DRILLING

4.1 Drilling
Drilling is a process aimed at creating a hole in a work piece. The entire
process involves certain operations like fixing the drill bit into the machine
chuck, clamping the work piece on the machine table, lowering the drill bit
towards the very point to be drilled on the work piece, applying cutting fluid or
coolant to the cutting zone where necessary, all geared toward creating hole(s)
into the material. Most of the drilling work is carried out on a pillar machine.

4.2 Drilling Machine

To drill successfully, any cutting tool used must be able to overcome the
resistance of the metal. In the case of a drill, two forces are required, a torque
to provide the tangential cutting force and a direct thrust normal to the work
surface to feed in the drill. Thus, any drilling machine must provide two
motions to the drill:
1) A rotary motion whose speed is adjustable to give the required cutting
speed and whose power is sufficient to provide the necessary tangential
force for cutting.
2) A linear motion for the feed.
- If the machine is to produce accurate holes without exerting bending
forces on the drill:
a) The drill must rotate on its own axis, i.e., ‘run true’ without
eccentricity, which demands an accurate drill holding device:
b) The drill must cut equally on both cutting edges:
c) The feed motion must be along the line of the axis of the drill.

Further a rigid base or table must be provided on which the work can be fixed
for the drilling operation. This table must normally be at right angles to the
axis of rotation of the drill and therefore at right angles to the direction of feed.
These requirements are called the basic alignments of the machine and are
illustrated in the Figure 4.2. They are common to all drilling machines, and

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machines differ only in size, power and the way the drill is positioned over the
work.
Functions of a drilling machine include;
a) Holding the drill bit vertically to the surface of the work table.
b) Rotating the drill bit at a speed towards the surface of the work piece.
c) Forming a flat circular surface on the drill plane.

Figure 4.2 Requirements for basic alignment

Drilling operation involves a straight-line principle of motion when cutting the

metal. Drilling machines are of different types and categories, the principal
types of power-driven machine used for drilling are:

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4.31 Types of drilling machines

4.311 Sensitive drilling Machine
The sensitive drilling machine may be bench or floor-mounted, the only
difference being in the length of the main column Figure 4.31. It is called
sensitive drilling machine because the feeding is made possible by hand, which
therefore permit a sense of touch or feeling as the drilling progresses
Here the spindle is fed with the aid of a hand lever at the spindle side of the
machine which is operated through rack and pinion mechanism. Handling the
lever make the operator feel the vibration of the machine. The spindle of this
machine is driven with the aid of a motor through the vee belt and pulleys, and
have the capacity of drilling holes of small diameters ranging from 5mm to
20mm.

Figure 4.311 Sensitive drilling machine

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4.312 Upright or Pillar Drilling Machine

This drill is called the Pillar Drilling Machine because its elements are arranged
on a vertical pillar. It is similar in principle to that of sensitive drilling machine.
It is used for drilling holes up to 50mm in diameter. This machine has more
than one drilling head. The one with four heads is very common. This multi-
spindles or heads are used to drill holes of different sizes. Each of the heads
has its own feeding arrangement or control. This method can to a greater
extent eliminate the problem of constant changing of drill bit when carrying out
drilling operation. The pillar drilling machine is actually a much more robust
version of the sensitive drill, floor mounted and provided with power feed,
usually at three rates and with a wide range of spindle speeds provided by a
gearbox rather than cone pulleys.

Figure 4.312 Sensitive drilling machine

4.313 Radial Drilling Machine

On the radial drilling machine, the drill spindle is carried on a slide which is
supported on ways machined along radial arm. This arm is supported at its

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end by a pillar and is capable of angular rotation about the pillar as centre see
Figure 4.313. The drill spindle owing to its angular and radial movement is
able to cover the entire working surface of the table and also has property
which renders it much more versatile than the upright type of machine with its
fixed spindle. Work in which a number of holes are to be drilled may be set up
and clamped to the radial drilling machine and all the drilling carried out by
adjusting the drill to the positions of the various hole.
The machine comprises a (cast iron) base or table and heavy column. The
column carries an arm with which a carriage supporting the drill spindle and
feed arrangement is mounted; the arm can be rotated about the column with
the carriage. It is these movements that enable the drill spindle to be
positioned at any point on the machine table while on the upright pattern the
work would have to be moved for each hole. The machine can be provided with
several spindle speed and with automatic feeding.

Figure 4.313 Radial Drilling Machine

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4.314 Gang Drilling

Gang drilling is a system where multiple spindle drilling machines are arranged
in a row and spindles are driven either separately or collectively. This system is
useful when the nature of work is such that a number of operations like
drilling, reaming, counter boring and tapping, etc. are to be performed in
succession to each other.

Figure 4.313 Gang Drilling

4.40 Hand drills (Portable drilling machine)

Situations where it is not necessary

to carry the work piece to a fixed
and power-driven machine for the
purpose of drilling hole, then
various types of hand-drilling
appliances are resorted to. Some
common hand drilling machine
includes; breast drill, ratchet brace,
electric hand drills among others.

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Assignment I [15 Marks]

Research and make short notes on
a) Multiple spindle drilling machines
b) Automatic drilling machines
c) Deep hole drilling machine

4.50 Methods of Holding Drill

Hand operated chuck
Hand operated chucks are used for relatively light work. They are tightened by
hand. Three jaws slide up and down a conical seating in the chuck body. They
are held in contact with the seating by three coiled springs which fit into the
holes in the face of the jaws.

Key operated chuck

Key operated chucks grip more firmly than hand operated chucks. They are
tightened by means of a key which engages with the rack on the chuck sleeve.
Drills up to 12mm diameter are usually chuck held. Drills above thus size are
usually supplied with morse taper shanks.

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Taper shank drills

Taper shank drills fit directly into female socket on the machine spindle. The
tapers are called morse tapers and usually used on drills above 12mm
diameter because they are far more costly than parallel shank drills and
breakages are frequent with drills of small diameter. The drive is friction. The
taper and tang serves the purpose of ejection. The tang fits into a slot in the
machine spindle and the drill is ejected by means of a steel drift.

Advantages of parallel shank drills

1. Cheaper than taper shank drills
2. Can be used in a wide range of drilling machines

Disadvantages of parallel shank drills

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1. More accurate than a chuck fitting

2. Quicker to assemble than a parallel shank drill

4.51 Methods of Holding the Work piece for Drilling

There are different methods of holding a work piece on a drilling machine, the
very method to be employed depends on the size and shape of the work piece.
Hence, we have:
1. Holding the work piece in a machine vice
2. Holding by hand – This is highly discouraged but is suitable when
drilling small holes on long metal strips
3. Clamping the work piece directly to the machine table.
4. Clamping the work piece on the angle plate
5. Supporting the work piece on a Vee-block

6. Holding the work piece in a lathe machine chuck

Marking out for drilling

A centre punch mark must be made in order to position the drill. The mark
must be
1. Accurate in position
2. Large enough to take the chisel
edge of the drill

Pilot drills must be used prior to drilling large holes for the following reasons:
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1. Large drills have such a large chisel edge that the centre punch mark
would have to be so large that it could not be positioned accurately
enough.
2. The chisel edge is inefficient in cutting and considerable pressure is
needed to force it through the metal. The larger the drill the larger the
chisel edge and, consequently, the greater the pressure needed. This
pressure can be retrieved by drilling a pilot hole.

4.60 Drilling Machine operations

Drilling: It is the operation of making a circular hole by removing a volume of
metal from the job by a rotating cutting tool called drill. Drilling removes solid
metal from the job to produce a circular hole. Before drilling, the hole is located
by drawing two lines at right angle and a center punch is used to make an
indentation for the drill point at the center to help the drill in getting started.

Reaming: It is a finishing operation of a

predrilled hole using a reamer, which has multi
longitudinal straight flutes. To obtain a
smoothly finished accurate size hole, a slightly
under size hole will be drilled first. It is then
finished with a reamer. In such a case the
amount of material to be removed should not
exceed 0.125mm.

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Reaming: It is a finishing operation of a

predrilled hole using a reamer, which has multi
longitudinal straight flutes. To obtain a
smoothly finished accurate size hole, a slightly
under size hole will be drilled first. It is then
finished with a reamer. In such a case the
amount of material to be removed should not
exceed 0.125mm.
Boring: it is an enlarging operation of a pre-
drilled hole using a boring tool, which has a
single cutting point. It is used in order to
produce a non-standard size hole

Counter boring is the operation of enlarging the

end of a hole cylindrically, as for the recess for a
counter-sunk rivet. The tool used is known as
counter-bore.

Lapping is the operation of sizing and finishing a hole by removing very small
amounts of material by means of an abrasive. The abrasive material is kept in
contact with the sides of a hole that is to be lapped, by the use of a lapping
tool.
Spot-Facing is the operation of removing enough material to provide a flat
surface around a hole to accommodate the head of a bolt or a nut. A spot-
facing tool is very nearly similar to the counter-bore

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Tapping is the operation of cutting internal

threads by using a tool called a tap. A tap is
similar to a bolt with accurate threads cut on it.
To perform the tapping operation, a tap is
screwed into the hole by hand or by machine.
The tap removes metal and cuts internal
threads, which will fit into external threads of
the same size. For all materials except cast iron,
a little lubricate oil is applied to improve the
action

Counter-sinking is the operation of making a

cone shaped enlargement on the end of a hole,
as for the recess for a flat head screw. This is
done for providing a seat for counter sunk
heads of the screws so that they may flush
with the main surface of the work.

Center drill this drill is a twist drill and

countersink combined. It’s used to prepare
work for mounting between centers.

4.70 The Twist Drill

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Twist drills are available with parallel shanks up to 16mm diameter and with
taper shanks up to 100mm diameter. They are used in drilling holes in metal
and other engineering materials. They are either made of carbon steel or high-
speed steel. Those made from carbon steel quickly becomes dull, and if heated
excessively, lose hardness. But HSS can retain its qualities when red hot hence
it is more preferable.

Standard lengths of a twist drill are known as jobber-series twist drills, short
drills are known as stub series, and long ones known as series and extra-long
series. Twist drills have 2, 3, or 4 flutes also called cutting edges. The most
common type has it lips grounded to an angle of 59O so that the included angle
is at 118 O.

Figure 4.70 Twist drill

Twist drills are cylindrical throughout the fluted length but tapered slightly
towards the shank. It should be noted that, if the cutting edges are grinded at
different angles and the point is in the centre, only one lip will cut.

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The angle 59O is best suited when drilling aluminum, steel and cast iron. But
for brass and copper, the angle of 50O preferred while 45O is preferred for
drilling plastics, wood and other fibers.
Twist drills having two cutting edges require proper sharpening of these edges
for accurate cutting. A correctly sharpened drill bit will have:
- Equal and correctly sized drill point angles.
- Equal length of cutting lips
- Correct clearance behind the cutting lips
- Correct chisel angle

4.71 Sharpening the Twist Drill

Requirements of a properly ground drill are as follows;
1) The point must have both lips equal in length and the same angle with
axis of the drill
2) Proper clearance at the centre, indicated by the angle of the dead
centre with the cutting lips
The lips should be ground to an angle of 59 degrees. If the cutting edges are
ground at different angles and point is in the centre, only one lip will cut. Drill
bits should be placed in a grind jig or attachment for sharpening to ensure
accuracy. When grinding the drill its axis should make an angle of about 59O
(half of the drill point angle) with the face of the grinding wheel. The actual
grinding of the drill point consists of three definite motion of the shank of the
drill while the point is held lightly against them grinding wheel.

4.72 Summary of Faults in Drill Sharpening

i) Unequal point angle - Drill will wonder and cut an oversize hole due to
side thrust.
ii) Angle correct and equal but not at the centre:- Drill will run unevenly,
hole will be oversize

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iii) Excessive angle: Drill will wonder as the centre will be too flat to hold
the drilling control.
iv) Angle insufficient: Cutting edges are much increased in length,
therefore much more pressure will be needed to retain cutting but will
cut quicker in soft metals.
v) Convex or concave edge: This is due to grinding wheel not dressed flat,
hence chips break and tend to join the flutes
a. Holes drilled with such a drill will be rough
b. Drill may break
vi) Lip clearance angle: Drill soon blunt, if too shallow gives excessive
pressure in feeding

4.73 Care and Precautions when Using Drill

 Do not use of high speed as the corner of the drill will wear away rapidly
 Never allow the drill to become hot (apply coolant)
 Do not use too great a feed as this may cause the cutting to chip and the
point will wear away quickly
 When drilling deep holes do not allow the flutes to become filled with
swats. This can be prevented by releasing the feed occasionally and
withdrawing the drill from the hole.
 Re-sharpen the drill in good time otherwise excessive wear will take place
and the corners of the ends will run away,
 When fitting shank drills, make sure the shank is clean.
 When removing drill away uses a proper drill drift.
 To avoid injury while drilling
(a) Do not hold the work by hand
(b) Make sure that the work is firmly held with the vice or clamped on to
the machine table.

4.80 Drilling Jigs and Fixtures

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The following points highlight the ten main types of drill jigs. The types are:
1. Template Jig 6. Vise-Jaw Jigs and Fixtures
2. Plate Jigs 7. Drilling Fixture
3. Plate Fixtures 8. Universal Jigs
4. Angle-Plate Jigs and Fixtures 9. Plastic Jigs
5. Channel Jigs 10. Milling Fixture for Milling Rough
Casting
4.81 Template jig and Flat plate template jig
This is the most basic type and the simplest form of drill jig used when only a
few parts are to be produced see Figure 4.81 a). Template jig can serve as
layout guide for locating holes and contours. The drill jig may be clamped to
the sheet, in which holes are to be drilled, by means of thumb screws. The
plate jig may also be clamped directly to the top of the work by means of C-
clamps. Flat plate jigs are used to locate holes on flat surfaces see Figure 4.81
b). This template is normally located with pins referenced from the edge or from
other holes. The minimum plate thickness is around one to two times the tool
diameter.

Figure 4.81 a) Layout template jig b) Flat plate template jig

4.82 Circular plate and Channel jigs

Circular plate jigs are used for drilling holes on cylindrical work pieces by
locating it on a cylindrical portion of the part see Figure 4.812 a). Channel and
box jigs are the detailed types of jigs in common use. These are designed to
machine part details on more than one surface without repositioning the work
in the tool. These are costly but save a lot of machining time and parts
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handling time. After loading of part, it is seldom removed until all machining is
complete. The channel jig [Figure 4.812 b)] having its main structural member
as channel, is the simplest and most basic form of closed jig, and capable of
machining on three surfaces. Channel jigs provide better stability and support
for thin parts in comparison to open jigs. Generally, the work is mounted
against the top and one side of the jig while it is clamped from the other side.
A box drill is made in the form of box or framework around a part. It is
generally used when it is required to drill holes in two or more sides of a piece.
Each side of the jig is brought up under the drill spindle by tumbling a jig.

Figure 4.812 a) Circular-plate b) Channel jig

template jig

4.83 Plain plate jig

The plain plate jig Figure 4.83 is the simplest and most basic form of jig. It
uses a flat plate as its only structural member to which all the details are
attached and referenced.

Figure 4.83 Plain plate jig

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4.84 Cutting Speed for Drilling

The cutting of a drill is the speed at which the twist drill rotates in the course
of drilling.
Thus 𝑁 = 1000𝑠/𝜋𝐷
Where s = Cutting speed
N = spindle (rev/min) or speed of drill
D = dia. of drill (mm)
π = 3.142 standard
Example:
Find the spindle or drill speed to cut 24 meters per minute if the diameter of
the drill is 20mm.
Solution = 382rev/mm

N/B: Spindle or drill speed is in rev/min cutting speed (s) is in m/min.

Note that machining time (tm) is the time for operation of the machine. This is
the time used by the machine to enable the cutting edge of the drill to cut off
the chips. It is measured in minutes.
Mathematically, the machining time is given as;
Where l = depth of hole to be drilled in millimeter
d = diameter of drill in millimeter
N = revolution of drill per minute

Example:
A machinist drilling a hole of diameter 18mm in a metal bar to enable it
accommodate other component decides to select a cutting speed of drill as
33m/min and a seed of 0.16mm/rev on the bar of 64mm in thickness.
Determine the machining time.
Solution
= 0.74min
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