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Post by Deleted on Aug 25, 2008 7:56:28 GMT -8
I'm having a terrible time drilling the holes in etched pcboards. I have to use an adaptor chuck in my drillpress to get down to a #60 bit. When I try to drill, there's so much wobble at the tip, it screws up the hole. Years ago, I bought bits that had maybe an 1/4 in shaft with a short #60 bit coming out the end, but I can't find them for sale now. Any ideas? What do you guys do? Any help appreciated, Ron.
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rmeyn
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My primary interests are electronics, sailing, bowling, and camping
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Post by rmeyn on Aug 25, 2008 8:40:50 GMT -8
I've struggled with this also. My solution was to buy a small hand operated mini-drill. It has a chuck small enough for #60 bits and smaller. I found that operating by hand allows me to get very accurate hole placement. Some sort of hold-down is necessary to keep the board from moving. Also, a #60 bit is too large for DIP placement. You can use it, but you will find that the #60 bit removes too much of the pad. A #62 or #64 bit would be better. Richard (rmeyn)
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Post by Gary Lecomte on Aug 25, 2008 19:13:14 GMT -8
I use an older Dremmel with a Drill press. No Problem. However, Reguardless of the drill used, it Shouldn't ever be a problem IF your etching shows a small Etched hole in the pad. Just take your time.
Typically I drill two offset holes in each board of the same type, than stack 4 board together and pin them so there alligned and drill through them all at once. (Saves Time as some of my boards are over 300 holes and presently I have 50 of my metal detector boards Etched with 271 holes in each to drill now.)
I use a #66 for IC Socket holes and a #64 for Most other holes. But there are usually a few that need to be larger.
Those bits with the 1/4 inch shaft are probably Carbide Bits. They are still available, but typically expensive. Probably Digikey sells them.
I just use the cheap steel ones and buy them at about 50 cents each in larger quantities.
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rmeyn
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My primary interests are electronics, sailing, bowling, and camping
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Post by rmeyn on Aug 26, 2008 6:20:59 GMT -8
I've used a small drill press in the past and it has worked. Breaking drill bits and/or wandering is probably due to dull bits or too much pressure. The small hole in the center of the pad that does not have copper should allow the bit to self- center itself. Richard (rmeyn)
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2008 17:06:19 GMT -8
Check this out from Electronic Goldmine. I purchased a set and they seem to work fine. Home > Drill Bits
SALE! Solid Tungsten Carbide PC Board Drill Bit Assortment
Item Number : G15421
Unit Price: $9.95
Quantity
Refer this page to a friend
Detailed Description Consists of 10 different solid tungsten carbide drill bits made for PC board hole drilling. These came from a PC board manufacturer that closed and may have been resharpened or used drill bits. Each bit has a small collar on it and most have the size marked on it (some sizes may be metric). Bits range from big to 80 (very tiny). All shanks are standard 1/8". These will drill thousands of holes in PC boards, however you should use a drill press as flexing these tiny bits will break them! This is our best assortment- We find these bits very useful when making PC boards here at the Goldmine. G15421
SALE ITEM
Regularly:$12.00 / Asst of 10 Sale Price: $9.95 / Asst of 10 Sale ends 09/01/2008
©2008 The Electronic Goldmine
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2008 18:52:47 GMT -8
Hey iflynxs, cool posting, thanks. I ordered 2 sets. I could not find these locally at all. It's amazing in a city of 500,000, all you can buy here is corn, beans, rice and flour!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2008 9:00:04 GMT -8
Hey iflynxs, order for bits came in yesterday........just what I wanted. I been drillin' them holes in the pc boards :-) Much thanks, do appreciate, Ron.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2008 9:47:37 GMT -8
FYI........ I've tried every method I could think of from drill press' to dremel tools and this one works best for me. Any drill bit (exotic or common old bit) , Dremel tool, and foot switch (a must). Insert the bit into the little copperless spot on the pc board, hit the foot switch.....perfect hole, perfect place....Every Time :-) :-) I'm a Happy Camper!
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rmeyn
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My primary interests are electronics, sailing, bowling, and camping
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Post by rmeyn on Sept 4, 2008 10:35:37 GMT -8
I've seen the offer at Electonic Goldmine. I'll have to give them a try. All this just points out how the internet has changed marketing and allowed electronic enthusiasts , such as ourselves, to find what we need. There was a time when could go to the corner Radio Shack store and get just about anything! rmeyn
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2008 14:04:53 GMT -8
I agree rmeyn, my city is 500,000 strong, but once you get passed wheat, corn, beans and rice, you gotta order it. I was buying most of my needs on E-bay, but that's overwith. Auction.com isn't big enough yet......so, it's places like this where guys will jump in and help others with stuff they're looking for, fill in the gap. It's really cool and appreciated. Ron.
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