Such drills are tubular in shape, and look more like a small cutter without teeth. The very process of making round holes in glass or ceramic tiles involves the use of additional consumables for degreasing - alcohol, acetone, turpentine, gasoline, special liquids, etc. You also need to take care of the rapid cooling of the treated surface.
How to drill glass with a drill?
For high-quality drilling of glass or ceramics, the following conditions must be met:
- immovably fix the product on which work will be carried out;
- ensure that the drill fits at a perfectly right angle;
- the future hole is indicated by a small plasticine rim;
- the drill is set to the lowest possible speed;
- an abrasive and a cooling material must be used - at best, turpentine and a crushed grindstone, at worst, fine sand and water will suffice.
Since drilling glass with a drill may not work well the first time, and there may be chips or cracks, you must first practice on small pieces. It is very important to drill slowly and with minimal pressure, otherwise the product may crack.
What is the best glass drill to use?
To make sufficiently large holes in glass or ceramics, special tubular drills must be used. Similar tools are used in industrial processing. The tubular glass drill differs not only in its special shape - its working cutting layer is made of industrial diamonds and is tightly attached to the steel base using the thermal sintering process.
Before the first use, such equipment must be cleaned with an abrasive stone from the cutting edge in order to open the diamond layer - a similar procedure is done for special machine drills, countersinks. Diamond-coated tubular drills are best suited for such work - unlike carbide drills, they do not form chips on the back of the material being processed.
How to drill glass with a conventional drill?
It is quite common that only a few holes need to be made in the glass, and for this it is unprofitable to purchase special equipment. For small diameters, it is quite possible to get by with a conventional metal drill. The general principles here remain exactly the same - rigid glass fastening, minimum speed, very light pressure. To drill glass with an ordinary drill, you need to feel the tool well and flexibly adjust the pressing force - at the slightest manifestation of "beating" you need to stop work, but it is better to change the drill to a screwdriver, which gives an even lower speed.
A plasticine bounding circle with a little turpentine inside will keep the surface cool and free of cracks, and you will also need a good abrasive. It is recommended to follow the following rules when working with conventional drills:
- harden the drill before performing work - just hold it in a hot flame, for example from a burner, and then cool it in sealing wax;
- work as long as possible, taking breaks from time to time and additionally cooling the drill in water;
- be sure to degrease the glass with acetone or alcohol, check the absence of slipping before starting work;
- fix the glass on a wooden surface;
- do not make holes very close to the edge of the surface (no closer than 1.5-2 cm).
With any drilling of glass and ceramics, the appearance of chips on the reverse side is not excluded. To avoid this, there are several different ways - use two pieces of glass at once, process the back side with plasticine, etc. One of the easiest ways is that at the very end of the work the glass is turned over and the hole is completed from the other end.
How to choose a drill for tiles and glass?
Quality tools for drilling tiles and glass are made by Italian companies (Zauber and others). According to the manufacturing technology, the drill for tile and glass can be different - steel, galvanized, brass, and so on. The best results in work are provided by tubular drills made of high-strength diamond-coated steel. For use in machine tools, conical countersink drills are taken, also with diamond coating. To work with such a tool, no abrasive is required, and the drill ensures the perfect appearance of the holes and the absence of possible chips or cracks.
Periodically, situations arise that require the creation of holes of various diameters in glasses. For example, this is required when mounting mirrors or when installing various devices on glass. This is a very rare type of work, and therefore calling a specialist can be very expensive.
You can do the necessary work yourself and do without the services of a master. However, you need to understand that glass is a rather fragile and expensive material, so you should carefully prepare before you start drilling.
Composition and stages of production
The composition of ordinary glass includes quartz sand, lime and soda. Various additives greatly affect the final properties of the material, but quartz sand remains the main component, and its amount reaches 75% in the mixture. The lime component adds shine, strength, and protects against many chemicals. Soda can significantly lower the melting point of the mixture. To the most common additional components include:
- Lead gives extra shine and ringing.
- Manganese, nickel and chromium are used to obtain various shades.
- Boric acid gives strength, shine and lowers the coefficient of thermal expansion.
Industrial glass production includes the following steps:
Currently, there are many types of this material, depending on the components used in the production. The most common are:
Nozzles for drilling and rules of work
Most often, the need for drilling occurs when using industrial glasses, quartz, crystal. These types are often fragile, so unskilled attempts to make holes most often end in damage to the workpiece, so the process must be approached very responsibly.
Drills for metal and concrete are not similar in shape to special glass drills. They must be used very carefully, and if possible, then not used at all. But if only these types of drills are available, then it is best to use carbide concrete or spear-shaped drills for tiles. Drills for metal must be hardened.
There are also special nozzles designed specifically for glass:
- Carbide drills of feather-shaped or spear-shaped form of various diameters. It is highly desirable to use those that have diamond coating on the cutting part.
- A drill presented in the form of a tube. This type of glass drill can be used when you need to make a hole of a large diameter. When working with this nozzle, it is advisable to use a drilling machine.
When carrying out drilling work, you must adhere to the following rules:
Surface cooling can be done in several ways:
- Cover the drilling site with plasticine and pour water.
- Lay a moistened rag or cotton ball around the hole to be treated so that the water gradually flows into the recess.
- You can wet the drill itself, and a break in work will allow the drilling tool to cool.
Ways to make a hole in glass without a drill
In the absence of a drill and the possibility of acquiring it, you can make holes using other methods or make a homemade drill, but such methods do not have high accuracy and quality, as a result of which they can damage the glass surface. But still, some methods can theoretically be applied, so they should be listed.
With sand and solder
Quite an interesting way that does not require drilling skills and tools. To use it you will need:
- Sand.
- Low-melting solder, for example, tin-lead.
- A container in which this solder will be melted.
The surface in which you want to make a hole should be degreased and dried, after which a hill of wet sand is poured onto the area in which the hole should be located. Next, you need to make a recess in it of such a diameter that the hole being created requires.
Solder melted with a torch or soldering iron is poured into the formed hole, after which you need to wait for it to completely harden. With the subsequent removal of sand and hardened solder, a hole of the desired diameter remains on the glass.
This method is distinguished by high quality and accuracy of the resulting hole.
Making a homemade drill
In the absence of special nozzles for working with glass, you can make them yourself.
To do this, you need a metal rod and a simple glass cutter with a diamond roller. To turn it into a drill, you need to cut a hole in the rod, into which the roller is inserted and fixed so as to remain motionless relative to the rod.
The resulting workpiece is fixed in the drill chuck, and then drilling is carried out according to the principle of a conventional drill.
You can also prepare a conventional drill, for example, for metal for working with glass. To do this, you need to clamp it in a vice or pliers and keep it in the flame of a gas burner until the metal is white-hot. After that, the drill is dipped in warm water or oil. The tool thus hardened is suitable for glass drilling.
With a metal tube
A piece of metal tube is also suitable for making a hole in the absence of a drill. To do this, cuts are made on the part of the pipe that will be cut to create a cutting part in the form of teeth. When applying such work, auxiliary abrasive powders or pastes should be used, but this method is quite laborious and often leads to damage to the workpiece.
Using a glass cutter
An ordinary glass cutter can also replace a drill, the main thing is not to make sharp jerky movements, not to put pressure on the glass, and to tap the formed cut surface with the handle of the tool.
To cut holes of large diameters with a glass cutter, you can use a compass, fixing one part of it in the center of the intended hole, and the second part (on which the glass cutter is fixed) to cut the surface.
Often there is a need to drill glass at home. Videos of these works can be found on the Internet, they cover such topics well in simple language with illustrative examples.
Work, if possible, is best done with a screwdriver, and not with a drill. This will give a softer way to drill and reduce the chance of damaging the glass surface. In addition, it is recommended to use protective glasses and clothing, and drilling should be carried out in non-residential premises.
It is important to observe the minimum indents from the edge of the workpiece: for fragile materials - at least 25 mm, for ordinary types of glass - at least 15 mm.
It should be remembered that glass is a rather fragile and expensive material, so you need to work with it very carefully. In the absence of experience in such work, it is important to practice on unnecessary pieces of glass in order to gain experience and understanding of the process.
Sometimes it is required to make round and neat holes in the glass, that is, to drill glass. We will tell you about how to drill glass at home with your own hands in this material.
Tools and materials for glass drilling
Before starting work on drilling glass, it is required to make all the necessary preparation, collect the following tools: an electric drill, or a manual one, gasoline or acetone, turpentine, plasticine for window putty, a diamond-coated drill, goggles for the eyes.
How to drill glass
To avoid glass cracking, drilling should be carried out further than 15 mm from the edge in relation to thin glasses and no closer than 25 mm in the case of thick ones.
The necessary practice can be obtained by first practicing drilling glass pieces of similar thickness, so that, having acquired the appropriate skill, not to damage the glass in the process of working with it.
Significantly simplifies the process of work performed, the use of a drilling construction stand during the operation of a drill.
Steps for drilling glass at home
The drilling procedure is as follows:
1) The glass surface is thoroughly wiped, in order to remove dust from it, the area prepared for drilling is processed with acetone;
2) The glass is laid in a horizontal position to avoid cracking;
3) The intended hole is marked with a cross using a felt-tip pen or a glass cutter;
4) Using plasticine or putty, a ring is molded with a thickness of a finger and an inner space diameter of about 20 mm, which is located around the mark, creating a tight pressing on the surface. Turpentine is poured into the inner surface of the ring;
6) In the case of using a hand drill, drilling can be very difficult. A drilled sheet of plywood is required to be attached to the top of the glass surface, which will subsequently need to be removed;
7) The hole is made four-fifths deep;
8) The ring is removed, the glass is turned over and work continues, for this you need to stick the ring on the reverse side and pour turpentine into it, while trying to get into the designated hole. This procedure is carried out in order to prevent the occurrence of chips.
In order to ensure an acceptable appearance of the hole made, its borders must be cleaned with an abrasive sandpaper with a fine grain.
For high-quality use, the skin must be tied around a pipe having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the hole made.
When it is required to drill a hole in a small glass object, it is completely acceptable to drill it in a state of almost complete immersion in water.
Safety first
In order to ensure the safety of the work being carried out, protective goggles for the eyes are mandatory.
They will help to reliably protect your eyesight from the impact of glass chips, which causes serious damage to the eyes and is completely unacceptable.
How to drill glass with your own hands VIDEO
Glass is a very fragile material that breaks very easily, so when performing work with its participation, you need to be extremely careful and attentive. That is why many, faced with the need to drill this material, are lost, not knowing how best to do it. Today I will share with you three ways that will be the answer to the question of how to drill glass.
The first way (the easiest).
To drill a hole in glass we need: a flat surface (board, table or other), a screwdriver or a low-speed drill, plasticine and turpentine.
So, to begin with, put the glass on the prepared flat surface so that it lies stable (does not “play” on the surface), and its (glass) edges do not hang. Now we insert the drill into the drill (screwdriver) and set the minimum possible drilling speed. We scroll in the air, determining the "beat", if it is large, then you should choose another drill. Having picked up a drill, we degrease the surface of the glass with alcohol and sculpt a restrictive circle on it from plasticine, into which we pour turpentine (a small amount). Now you can drill, the main thing is not to make much effort so that your glass does not crack under pressure.
The second way.
Allows you to make a hole in the glass without using a power tool. For him, we need: a metal mug, alcohol, lead or tin, sand, gas burner or stove.
So, we take the glass and degrease it with alcohol, after which we sprinkle it with wet sand, in which we make a funnel of the desired diameter with a sharp object. Then pour pre-melted tin or lead into this funnel. We wait two minutes, remove the sand from the surface and remove the hardened solder, getting the desired even through hole.
The third way.
This method of drilling glass is not something special, but rather a modification of the first method.
Let's take a glass cutter and extract a diamond roller from it, we will need it to make a homemade drill. We fix this roller with a rivet on a metal rod (in which it is first necessary to cut a slot) so that it cannot turn and sits rigidly in the seat.
We insert the homemade drill we made into the drill chuck and drill the glass surface in the usual way.
That's all. Now you can easily drill through any glass surface without fear for its safety. And I say goodbye to you, I hope I was able to answer the question of how to drill a hole in glass. See you soon!
Video instruction.
The need to make a hole in the glass arises when you need to hang a new mirror on the wall or fix the glass top. Glass can be machined, but the fragility of the material requires extra care and light pressure on the tool, protection from chips and cracks during operation. This problem can be solved in several simple ways.
Having chosen any of the methods, it is first better to test it and practice on a small fragment.
Use a small piece of glass to learn how to properly drill into this fragile material.
Do not ignore the safety regulations, be sure to wear protective gloves and goggles.
Do not neglect safety precautions, eyes, face and hands must be protected To prevent the glass from cracking during operation, you need to prepare the surface of the table. It must be clean and even, small potholes within the hole area are acceptable, the entire workpiece must fit on the base. You can put a sheet of plywood and a piece of soft flannel under the workpiece. Then you need to prepare the following tools and materials:
- drill and spear-shaped carbide drill for working on glass or metal, drilling machine;
- turpentine, plasticine;
- marker;
- acetone, alcohol.
How to make a hole in ordinary glass
- Lay the workpiece, mark the center and draw a circle of the required diameter, while taking into account the thickness of the glass. For thin material, it is necessary to step back from the edge by at least 15 mm, and for thick material - 25 mm.
Before you start drilling, you need to make markings on the glass - Install a spear-shaped or crown drill and set the speed of the drill to the minimum speed, acceptable from 250–1000 rpm.
To make holes in the stele, you will need special drills - Wipe the hole area with acetone or alcohol to degrease.
- Place the drill according to the markup in the center of the circle and start working, while dripping turpentine onto the glass. In order not to be distracted by the gravy, you can make a small rim of plasticine and stick it around the hole, pouring turpentine there.
- - The easiest way is to pour water little by little.
The drill must be located strictly vertically, otherwise cracks and chips cannot be avoided. - Drill a hole halfway, lightly pressing the drill so as not to split the workpiece, then turn the glass over to the other side and do the same. Turpentine is needed to constantly cool the drill, which will ensure high-quality drilling without overheating.
- If the hole is planned to be large in diameter, then you need to use a crown: a tubular drill with a diamond coating.
Water or turpentine will prevent the drill from overheating.
Drilling tempered glass
For tempering, the glass is heated to 680ºC, and then the outer layers are cooled quickly, and the inner ones slowly. Thanks to this treatment, the mechanical strength increases by a factor of 6, but the areas of internal stress during drilling contribute to the destruction of the workpiece.
It will not work to drill tempered glass with an ordinary drill and drill - it will break into small crumbs, therefore, if necessary, holes are first drilled in the glass and the desired shape is cut out, the edges are processed, and then they are tempered. In industrial conditions, waterjet cutting is possible, when a special powder with water shoots through a narrow nozzle at a speed of 1000 m / s.
Thanks to special processing, the strength of tempered glass is greatly increased. Is it possible to do without a drill
Glass was successfully cut long before the invention of drills, here is a time-honored method that guarantees a smooth hole with smooth edges, no drill is needed for it. When working with a torch and hot solder, you should follow safety precautions, take personal protective equipment and fire extinguishing equipment.
For work you will need:
- tin or lead;
- fine clean sand, glue or water;
- alcohol;
- unnecessary iron mug;
- gas burner, stove.
Stages of work:
Mirrors and glasses have been used by people for a long time and they cut, drill and give them various shapes, apply drawings to the surface. Therefore, even for a novice master, this work is quite possible if he carefully studied the instructions and takes all the steps carefully and slowly. As a result, neat and perfectly even holes will be obtained, and the glass will remain intact.