drilling my Vise grip

[the gypsy]

I wish to modify my vise grip, guys please don't get upset, it is an imitation from Canadian tire. What I want to do is drill the side to copy the stronghold vise grip. So I tried to drill using so called Titanium coated drill bits but it did not even make a scratch. I thought that maybe the bit was not sharp so tried another and another still no go. So I guess I am using the wrong drill bits.

What say you?

I do not have a welder so that is out of the question.

 

[ALinCarolina]

were you using a drill press or hand drill?

 

[the gypsy]

I was using a small table top drill press. If I pressed too hard the bit would deflect.

 

[ssdave]

It might drill if you use a high quality cobalt drill bit, they're a bit more expensive but also a bit harder and heat resistant so they don't lose their temper drilling hard materials as they heat up. Use cutting oil will also help, it makes the bit "bite" better, and keeps it cooler so the edge doesn't lose its hardness.

TIN coated drill bits are slightly more wear resistant and have less friction, but they don't cut harder materials than the standard drill bit they were created from.

If it won't drill with a cobolt drill bit, why not just weld a nut on the top of it instead, to provide the hole for your attachment.

 

[rburke65]

I am not clear on what you are trying to do, but that said, I'm wondering of what those "vise grips" are made.

 

[the gypsy]

See the picture. I am trying to make a side puller. When I can drill the first hole I will try to drill another hole to create an inline puller.

 

[Schurkey]

What size drill bit are you using? Big enough to need a pilot hole?

Are these cheap-junk Chinese drill bits? Dull?

Drill motor turning the right direction?

 

[Cougar]

For heat treated steel, use much less RPM and oil. Cutting oil if you have it.

 

[the gypsy]

I will get back to you about the size of drill bit. As for cutting oil, well I did not have cutting oil so I used oil I had on hand to keep the bit cool.

 

[MFolks]

If using a drill press,the slowest speed,steady pressure and oil to keep the drill bit cutting edges cool and carry off the swarf,usually works. I'd get some Cobalt bits,for this type of work.

 

[GH85Carrera]

Try a cobalt bit. I was drilling on a broken bolt with my titanium bit and made zero progress and the cobalt just ate it like it was wood.

 

[pancho400cid]

Low speed (100 RPM or less - way slower than most homeowner drill presses are capable of)

Lots of Pressure

Cobalt HSS Bits

Actual Cutting Fluid

Most likely you are drilling way way too fast. On the bright side the pliers body may just be case hardened - easier to drill in the middle at least.

 

[MOwens]

Use a high roc (high rockwell) drill bit. It is a straight flute drill bit made of solid carbide to drill high rockwell hardened steels. It will cut the vise grip like butter. I use them to drill a hole down the center of grade 8 bolts and they cut like butter. The only caveat I have is you have to have a ridgid setup when using because the are so hard they do not like chatter and will shatter as a result. M.A Ford makes a good high roc drill bit although they are not cheap.

I have also taken a concrete bit and sharpened a steel cutting edge on them to drill hardened steel but not very many people can sharpen drill bits by hand.

 

[Richard Cranium]

thanks for posting the picture, I understand better now.

 

[rlitman]

I drilled Vise Grips for the same reason. A 5/16" hole, which I installed a clevis in.
I had no trouble drilling with a cobalt bit in my drill press. I'm guessing your TiN drill bit is just too soft.

 

[kbs2244]

Poncho has the idea.
Most table top drill presses run at wood working speeds.
In addition to a better drill bit slow down the drill speed.

 

[ASHMAN_AZ]

I bet a masonry drill bit would work. It was the best solution for redrilling a leaf spring pin hole in spring steel using a hand drill.

 

[matt_i]

I would take something like a dremel tool (belt sander, bench grinder) and grind a spot thru the plating. That could be hard enough to blunt the drill point.

If you had access to a mill I would take the 120 deg spot drill (solid carbide) to it to create a pocket, then switch to 118 deg black oxide jobber drill of around 1/8" diameter. Then step up to final diameter after that. If hand drilling, I'd skip the solid carbide...a hand drill will just fracture it or worse....break it off down in the hole where it now has to be smashed out with something sacrificial.

 

[JPinSTL]

Let me throw another obstacle in - cheap off brand vise grips usually have cheap poorly treated jaws. They slip, not grip. Mounting a slide hammer onto your no name vise grips may not get you the results. I'd at least upgrade to the Irwin made if I was doing this.

Go to your local muffler shop with a 12pk of beverage with your vise grip and an appropriate sized nut. Walk out with you mod'd vise grip. Much cheaper than buying a cobalt bit, different drill, etc.

 

[Ign]

I've drilled a Bessey f-clamp easily by hand to tap for the StrongHand gold-colored pipe jaws and stand-off block. Just basic HSS drills, but quality (not Chinese). I'd opt for screw machines if I were the OP, and I'd elect to drill in a cordless drill as I'd have more control over the speed. Table top DP's are meant to whiz through wood and that's it.

 

[jerry j]

Aren't the gripping jaws hardened ??

I needed a small hole in this area and had to heat that jaw.. Then used a regular drill bit and it cut like going through butter.......

 

[Milton Shaw]

Bad Dog drills are the only drill that I have seen that works for super hard materials. For instance they can drill a file. "Baddogtools.com is there website. They are sold at machinery shows and on the internet. One set should last a lifetime for drilling those materials that resist every other effort. They also come with a life time warranty.

 

[like2wheel]

I'd at least upgrade to the Irwin made if I was doing this..

FYI: Irwin Vise Grips are now made in China too.
The difference was obvious when I saw them.

 

[JPinSTL]

FYI: Irwin Vise Grips are now made in China too.
The difference was obvious when I saw them.

I know that. But Irwins at least have some quality control and a better chance of a a decent heat treat over HF, Princess Auto, etc. Nothing beats old Petersen made for jaws holding up. I use the Irwin until they are flattened and then they end up as custom clamp donors, etc.

I'd hate for the OP to go to the trouble to mod this set only to have soft jaws that flatten out.

 

[the gypsy]

I do have older Vise grips but I wanted to try the mod on cheap ones before.

 

[Nexussian]

If you can find a shop with a spot welder, one spot weld, right where you want to drill, can anneal the jaw enough to drill more easily, without taking the heat treat out of the whole jaw, if you're careful.

 

[Doug Arthurs]

If the drill bit came from canadian tire like the vise grip did throw it away. Go to an industrial supply house and buy a real drill bit.

 

[rsanter]

Bad Dog drills are the only drill that I have seen that works for super hard materials. For instance they can drill a file. "Baddogtools.com is there website. They are sold at machinery shows and on the internet. One set should last a lifetime for drilling those materials that resist every other effort. They also come with a life time warranty.

I have burned up or broken about 5-6 of their drill bits drilling into really hard stuff......
They replaced them no problem

If it is case hardened then I often like to use a carbide burr to grind a small indention or divot in the spot I want to drill.
Prevents the drill from walking and often takes the hardest part of the material to drill away

Bob

 

[cheechi]

I know that. But Irwins at least have some quality control and a better chance of a a decent heat treat over HF, Princess Auto, etc. Nothing beats old Petersen made for jaws holding up. I use the Irwin until they are flattened and then they end up as custom clamp donors, etc.

I'd hate for the OP to go to the trouble to mod this set only to have soft jaws that flatten out.

I will second this. Had to use an Irwin last weekend, I'm sure was chinese, had the blue/yellow 'rubber' grip on it. Worked great

For chinese drills, let me make you a direct comparison, I have HF drills in Ti and in Co. I have a lot of broken Ti ones, and in each case I remember I broke one, I went to the Co index and finished the job no issue. I've had this HF Co set for years now and have never broken one. The Ti ones are nice because they take a sharpening from a Drill Doctor a few times before you get through the coating, but they are still not Co drills.

One day I'll have a full index of Norseman or equivalent. For now I cant afford that for consumables. The HF Co set however is worth every penny.

 

[Dennis Leigh Henry]

Bad Dog drills are the only drill that I have seen that works for super hard materials. For instance they can drill a file. "Baddogtools.com is there website. They are sold at machinery shows and on the internet. One set should last a lifetime for drilling those materials that resist every other effort. They also come with a life time warranty.

Went the website.. The drills are very similar to the carbide tipped masonry bits...

 

[Schurkey]

I am utterly amazed that drilling a generic vice-grip could present any problem.

A thousand years ago, I drilled a (Sears???) "vice grip" in order to thread the hole and screw a flexible dial-indicator mount to it. Drill dropped right through it with no trouble at all, using a hand-held 3/8 air drill.