SCREW WERA'S...

[Zac]

When drilling with little tiny drill bits, use the FASTEST speed you have on your drill.  At slower speeds you will probably try to force the bit too much.  Because the bit is such a small diameter, the cutting edge doesn't travel very far in a rotation, hence the high speed.  Also, a lot of bolts and nuts on motorcycles are hardened steel.  Use colbalt drill bits on these, the HSS bits will dull really quick.  Throw away those dull bits, even if you haven't broken it, because you soon will.

If you complain about WERA's safety wire requirements you should see AHRMA's.  I also have about half a pound of wire on my CR500, but it vibrates so much it would fall right apart without it.

-z.

[cornercamping]

When drilling with little tiny drill bits, use the FASTEST speed you have on your drill.  At slower speeds you will probably try to force the bit too much.  Because the bit is such a small diameter, the cutting edge doesn't travel very far in a rotation, hence the high speed.  Also, a lot of bolts and nuts on motorcycles are hardened steel.  Use colbalt drill bits on these, the HSS bits will dull really quick.  Throw away those dull bits, even if you haven't broken it, because you soon will.

If you complain about WERA's safety wire requirements you should see AHRMA's.  I also have about half a pound of wire on my CR500, but it vibrates so much it would fall right apart without it.

-z.

Got any tricks for removing the broken part of the drill bit that is stuck inside the bolt?  ::) >:( :'(

[bmfgsxr]

my bike is completely ccs and lrrs legal with even some extra stuff wired up and it only ran me two drill bits to do my entire bike. i drilled every bolt in place on the bike. just a little oil in a soda bottle cap, and some good ole cobalt drill bits will do the trick.  ;)

[Zac]

Got any tricks for removing the broken part of the drill bit that is stuck inside the bolt?  ::) >:( :'(

EDM (electrical discharge machining) - It's how we burn broken taps out of parts in my line of work (usually these parts being multi-thousand dollar chunks of titanium) :P

If the tip of the drill bit started to protrude out the other side, you can try to back it out with a (small) pin punch.  If there is still some of the broken bit sticking out, try to get some vice grips on it and turn it out.  Grinding a small flat on the bit with a dremel will help.  If you want to put a lot of work into it (instead of buying a another bolt) you can heat it with a torch which will expand the bolt (and the hole).

I tend not to use safety wire drilling jigs, I've found them to be more trouble than they're worth.  I only use one when I'm drilling through the threaded end of the bolt.  With a jig it is very important to get everything lined up very straight (the drill axis to the jig hole, and the drill press table better be normal to the drill axis for that to happen).  If not the bit will be flexed and is more likely to break.  When I cross drill socket heads, I center punch the head, then hold it in my drill press vise (with aluminum soft jaws) on the shank.  When I do the corners of nuts or hex head bolts (and I almost always do three corners on each head) I hold the nut or bolt in a bench vise and use a hand held drill.  It takes some practice, but I wear out about 4 drill bits for every one I break, so I don't break many.

-z.