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| Drilling holes in carbon fiber |
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| Brass_Machine:
So I work with carbon fiber quite a bit. I end up drilling a lot of holes. Looking to see if there is a better way of doing it. Right now if I am drilling a hole in CF, I tape the area where the hole is and use a regular drill bit. Works OK most of the time. Occasionally the epoxy chips... is there a better way? Or better tools to do it with? Eric |
| spuddevans:
I will preface this by saying that I have exactly ZERO experience with CF, but would a lip-and-spur drillbit work? I've always found them to be good on non-metal objects that are a little more troublesome. Tim |
| Bernd:
Eric, Try a brad drill that's used for wood. It's close to what Tim suggests. Don't know how long they'll last though. Isn't carbon fiber a bit tough on HSS? Bernd |
| Sorekiwi:
I've drilled a gazillion holes in carbon-fibre (20 odd years as a racecar mechanic). From your comment about chipping the epoxy, I gather that these are visible holes where appearance is important (as opposed to a hole that for example a bolt and a washer are going through it). The cleanest hole I think comes from a Rotabroach tool - its a piloted cutter. I have them down to 5/16" but they may come smaller than that. It will give a nice clean edge. Uni-bits (step drills) can give a clean cut when sharp, but dont stay sharp with carbon for very long. Normal drills work OK when sharp for normal bolt holes and rivet holes, but its easy for them to give a ragged edge on the back side. Backing the piece up with a piece of wood helps a lot with this. If you are making a big enough hole, a sanding barrel in a ginder will clean up the fuzzy edge pretty well. Carbon can also cause the drill to wander a bit. I dont really know why, I've always suspected that the weave of the fabric can pull the tip of the drill over a bit. Normal countersinks work OK when they're sharp, but again the material blunts them really quick. I buy solid carbide ones now, and they seem to last a few years. Carbon Fibre can vary a lot depending on the application. Stuff thats made to look pretty has a lot of epoxy so it gets the fancy shiny appearance. Things that are functional tend to be a lot "drier" where a lot more of the epoxy is drawn back out while vacuum bagging and has a matt, greyish finish. The material itself is ridiculously expensive, so they tend to use the minimum amount of material possible. |
| Brass_Machine:
Wow. That's some good info. Hopefully I will have the part I will be drilling soon. I am getting ready to layup the mold in the next day or two. The part will be vacuum bagged BUT is mainly a cosmetic piece for a motorcycle. Though it does have some function, it is not a structural piece. Thanks for the info! Eric BTW... what race team? My buddy works for Brumos DP race team in the Rolex series. |
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