metal drills blog
Which metal drill can you use best for which application?
Standard metal drills are great for drilling in soft metals such as copper and aluminum. But for hard metals, such as stainless steel, it is better to use drills made from cobalt carbide. The HSS label indicates that the drill is made of a harder type of metal.
Advantages of HSS drills
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Processing temperature up to 600 °C.
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Higher cutting speeds (3 to 4 times faster)
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Stronger
The roll forged drill is the standard metal drill. They are made of high-speed steel (HSS) and have the property of having high flexibility. This drill is very suitable for soft metals, such as copper, aluminum, sheet steel, structural steel and cast iron. The drills can be recognized by their black color (surface treatment). This treatment helps reduce friction and increase chip removal.
The fully ground drill is of better quality than the roll forged drill. This is also made from high-speed steel (HSS). This drill is suitable for unalloyed steels, such as sheet steel, structural steel and cast iron. The drills can be recognized by their bright color (fully ground). Full grinding during the production process results in a very sharp drill with high precision and chip removal. The accurate split point grinding ensures that the drill itself centers and makes the desired holes without vibration.
The fully ground tin coated drill is a better quality than the fully ground drill. It is also made from high-speed steel (HSS). This drill is suitable for the most common types of steel. The drills can be recognized by their titanium nitride gold color (Tin coated). The Tin coating ensures that the drill does not heat up as quickly. As a result, the drills in combination with cutting oil have a very long service life.
The cobalt drills are the high-quality metal drills. The cobalt drills (HSS-CO) are considered to be an upgrade of HSS drills, because it contains 5% cobalt mixed with the base material. This drill is suitable for use in alloyed steels and steels that are difficult to process, such as stainless steel. The drills can be recognized by their cobalt amber color. The addition of cobalt achieves a very high hardness to handle steel types that are difficult to process.
In addition to the normal length of metal drills, we also supply extra-long metal drills with a TL parabolic flute. This made from high-speed steel (HSS). This drill is suitable for unalloyed steels, such as sheet steel, structural steel and cast iron. The drill can be recognized by their length and their TL parabolic flute. Thanks to the TL flute, this drill is also very suitable for drilling in hardwoods such as Azobé and Bankirai.
In addition to the spiral drills, we also supply special drills for sheet metal. They are also made from high-speed steel (HSS). This drill is very suitable for use in unalloyed sheet steel. The drill can be recognized by the bright color (fully ground). In addition to the color, the stubb drill is also shorter than the spiral drill. Because they are a bit shorter, these drills have a high stability and the chances are smaller that the drills will break.
We also supply special drills for holow profiles. These are made from high-quality high-speed steel (HSS). This drill is suitable for use in unalloyed steels such as sheet steel, structural steel and cast iron and is often used on roofs and sheet pile profiles. The drill can be recognized by the length. The drill is completely fully ground. This makes it a very sharp drill with high precision.
The step drill is a good alternative to up drilling holes in sheet metal. This is made from high-speed steel (HSS). The accurate fully ground split point ensures that the drill itself centers and makes the desired holes without vibration and deburr immediately. You can recognize the step drill by the stepped neck. The step drill is suitable for use in plastic and unalloyed steels such as sheet steel and cast iron up to a thickness of 3mm. More information about step drills? Check the blog: https://www.laborholland.nl/stappenboor-blog.
Countersinks ensure that you can sink the drilled holes so that you get a beautifully finished whole. The countersink drill is also made from high-speed steel (HSS). You can recognize the countersink by the tri-shank connection. This connection ensures optimum grip in the drill bit and prevents slipping. A countersink drill can be used in plastic and unalloyed steels such as sheet metal, structural steel and cast iron.
Core drills are available as well as fully ground high-speed steel (HSS) and as Cobalt alloyed drill (HSS-CO8%). The fully ground version is suitable for use in magnetic drilling machines (Weldon connection) for sheet steel, structural steel and cast iron. The cobalt 8% version is suitable for use in magnetic drills (Weldon connection) for alloyed steels and steels that are difficult to process such as stainless steel.
If you need more advice about buying metal drills after reading this blog, please contact us through +31(0)318 623444 or labor@laborholland.nl
