Basic question

Meir: What type of annular cutter are you planning to use? You might need more than one to make that many holes in 1/2" steel
Mark
 
That may not be quite the correct tool for the job, considering the material and number of holes- I think a conventional split-point drill might be more practical. What type of drilling machine do you have available?
Mark
 
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I'm going to use a magnetic drill.
very similar process to what this guy is doing. (you can skip to 1:30)


in fact, i was reading reviews on amazon for the annular cutter he is using.


and one of the reviews said as follow :
"
I used the cutter I purchased to gang drill 1/2 plate (4x plates, so 2" at a time, and yes I got a 2" depth cutter). Cutter performed very well, no chips or even discoloration on any teeth even after drilling a total of 16" of steel. I did use cutting oil (and yes it's required if you're not familiar with machine tooling), nothing too specific, just the general purpose cutting oil I had on hand.

Note: If you gang drill as I did, you will have to remove the slugs from each layer as you go, the last bit of the cut always stays on the slug and that will not cut when it's spinning in the hole, this is not a fault of the cutter, there's really no way to prevent this with annular cutters.

I am quite pleased with these cutters and will be looking at more of these as I run into a need for them."

i kind of like the ganging idea :grin:. can save me a lot of time with aligning the cutter. after all, it cuts 1/2" at a time.

i have another work table in the backyard, with the same top plate. so i can experiment on it.
il pick up a conventional drill as well.
 
Good to experiment and find what works best for you- as long as the steel is mild it should be ok, a backup drill is a good idea too
Be careful of the sharp chips
 
Be advised the scale on hot rolled plate is hard and abrasive. You may want to remove the scale at each hole site, or overall, to extend the life of the cutter...............Bob
 
bhigdog said:
Be advised the scale on hot rolled plate is hard and abrasive. You may want to remove the scale at each hole site, or overall, to extend the life of the cutter...............Bob
Click to expand...
thanks Bob. that's a valid point. i'll consider that.
at the moment i'm opting to leave it as is, as the scale is protecting the plate from rusting.
i will still need to coute the table (especially the drilled holes), with some rust protection, but i would like to keep it to a minimum.
 
With all respect it's a WELDING table. If used properly and with regularity it not only will, but should, get the crap beat out of it. It will get spatter, arc burns, water and flux spilled on it, have parts beat into shape on it, clamps stress it, beer bottles broken on it and the occasional disc grinder run over it.
Putting a coat of almost anything will hinder the conductivity of the table.
Putting lip stick on this pig is not only a waste of time it is counter productive...............Bob
 
bhigdog said:
With all respect it's a WELDING table. If used properly and with regularity it not only will, but should, get the crap beat out of it. It will get spatter, arc burns, water and flux spilled on it, have parts beat into shape on it, clamps stress it, beer bottles broken on it and the occasional disc grinder run over it.
Putting a coat of almost anything will hinder the conductivity of the table.
Putting lip stick on this pig is not only a waste of time it is counter productive...............Bob
Click to expand...

Agree Bob.
i have a 2'x4' with 1/2" top, welding/fabrication/working table on the side of the house.
i don't put anything on it. just give it a wire brush with an angle grinder every now and then.
i do everything on it, except spilling my beer :grin:. too valuable.

289225


the new table is going to be more "fancy" fixturing table, with adjustable height and as flat as possible surface.
it is going to be mostly used for Tig welding inside my home garage.
that is why i'm also opting to leave the scale on the surface, use a bit of Boeshield T-9 on the drilled holes.
if i decide to remove the scale from the surface, and coat it with the T-9 i can always give it a wipe of acetone before working on a project, and a light spry after.
it is not going to be used every day. in real life i make my mony seating behind a desk (no complaints though)

anyhow. i took my ass off the desk during lunch time, and went to see the local LINK distributor. super nice guy.
he just called me back. he can get me the LINK 3/8" drill with 3/4" countersink combination, 1/2" straight shank for $31, including Tax and shipping to his store.i'll pick it up next wednesday.

so it looks like i got my issue solved.
thanks for all your help and comments everyone.
 
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