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Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

2005-11-03 by Richard

Hello everyone

Having always used a hand electric drill in the past, together
with standard HSS drill bits, (wear out too quick), I want to upgrade.

I'd like to purchase a drill with stand, so Tungsten-Carbide bits can
be used and generally make a much better job of drilling holes :)

Drill Stands : I've looked at the Dremel 220 'workstation' / Proxxon &
Wolfcraft stands, all at about £35...

As for mini drills, there are lots to choose from, but what is the best
combination at a reasonable price (£50ish) in users's experience ?

Many thanks for any advice :)

Richard

Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

2005-11-03 by Leon Heller

----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard" <Richard@...>
To: <Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, November 03, 2005 12:51 PM
Subject: [Homebrew_PCBs] Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for
PCB drilling ?


Hello everyone

Having always used a hand electric drill in the past, together
with standard HSS drill bits, (wear out too quick), I want to upgrade.

I'd like to purchase a drill with stand, so Tungsten-Carbide bits can
be used and generally make a much better job of drilling holes :)

Drill Stands : I've looked at the Dremel 220 'workstation' / Proxxon &
Wolfcraft stands, all at about £35...

As for mini drills, there are lots to choose from, but what is the best
combination at a reasonable price (£50ish) in users's experience ?

Proxxon is supposed to make the best drills, they have less runout (better
bearings) than Dremel and Minicraft. I use a Minicraft drill and stand which
works OK, but can break tungsten carbide drills if I'm not careful.

Leon

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Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

2005-11-03 by Stefan Trethan

On Thu, 03 Nov 2005 13:51:55 +0100, Richard
<Richard@...> wrote:

> Hello everyone
> Having always used a hand electric drill in the past, together
> with standard HSS drill bits, (wear out too quick), I want to upgrade.
> I'd like to purchase a drill with stand, so Tungsten-Carbide bits can
> be used and generally make a much better job of drilling holes
> Drill Stands : I've looked at the Dremel 220 'workstation' / Proxxon &
> Wolfcraft stands, all at about £35...
> As for mini drills, there are lots to choose from, but what is the best
> combination at a reasonable price (£50ish) in users's experience ?
> Many thanks for any advice
> Richard


I use a proxxon IBE grinder. The bearings are good, but close together so
not so good for side-loads (none when drilling).
But the real good thing about the proxxon stuff is the collets. They are
precision ground and hardened steel, not brass or aluminum that is just
turned to a coarse fit. Also they have 3 jaws not 4. The grinder does not
break the drills, but i do sometimes ;-)
IMO the collets are more often the problem than the bearings.

For a stand i use a pivoting press made of mainly wood using thrust
bearings. which works well.

ST

Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

2005-11-04 by Mike Young

----- Original Message -----
From: "Stefan Trethan" <stefan_trethan@...>
>> Having always used a hand electric drill in the past, together
...
>
> I use a proxxon IBE grinder. The bearings are good, but close together so
> not so good for side-loads (none when drilling).

I think I just found a use for the RotoZip. It's not quite a dremel, and not
quite a laminate trimmer. I didn't know what to use it for, but I bought one
anyway based on the TV ads some years back. Simply prophetic in hindsight.
:)

I also have a small linear guide and a cute-as-a-button ballscrew that were
too small for every other job that might have used one. They too, I think,
just found a purpose. The ballscrew and stepper might be a bit over the top,
though.

Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

2005-11-04 by Stefan Trethan

On Fri, 04 Nov 2005 05:04:01 +0100, Mike Young <mikewhy@...>
wrote:

>
> I think I just found a use for the RotoZip. It's not quite a dremel, and
> not
> quite a laminate trimmer. I didn't know what to use it for, but I bought
> one
> anyway based on the TV ads some years back. Simply prophetic in
> hindsight.
>
> I also have a small linear guide and a cute-as-a-button ballscrew that
> were
> too small for every other job that might have used one. They too, I
> think,
> just found a purpose. The ballscrew and stepper might be a bit over the
> top,
> though.


Is this a rotary saw? Nobody buys them here because they seriously messed
up the TV ad (they tried to demonstrate it but every bit they put in broke
when touching the work, on several machines.).


ST

Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Advice on choosing the correct drill / stand for PCB drilling ?

2005-11-04 by Mike Young

----- Original Message -----
From: "Stefan Trethan" <stefan_trethan@...>
> Is this a rotary saw? Nobody buys them here because they seriously messed
> up the TV ad (they tried to demonstrate it but every bit they put in broke
> when touching the work, on several machines.).

That's the one. :) I bought one, cut a hole in the wall for the novelty of
it, and then promptly tossed it under the workbench. It looks usable as a
spindle for a micro-mini-mill-drill. 30k RPM, pretty solid 1/8" collet, huge
cooling fan. The housing is FRP, pretty flexible, so a really rigid mount
will be wasted. A split clamp around the throat and a single 4mm screw in
the handle mount lug, 5" distant, should suffice for light drilling. (A few
small steppers and a Taiwanese XY table will make a usable CNC drill. I'll
see about a Kavo and ER-16 collet after/if this toy burns out.)

BTW, I use their down-cut spiral bits in the laminate trimmer and router for
rough cutting MDF and plywood. They're cheap and last long enough that I
forget how much I paid for the last 10 pack. Ironic, isn't it? It saves the
good carbide for real work.