drilling china plates

[Graz]

Hi my wife has been collecting old plates and wants to make cake stands out of them, so I've been drilling a 6mm hole with a tile drill using water for cooling, It's slow and the drill bits don't last long. I got a diamond drill which in the instructions says start with drill at 45 deg angle, It just wants to skip all over the plate   So has anyone got any suggestions for a drill bit ?
I broke two of her favourite plates today so I'm ging to be in the dog house 

[PTsideshow]

Biggest problem is getting started, as in tile, You can use a diamond point scribe to break the vitrified surface coating in the center of the hole, then drill with a clay dam around the area to hold the water or kerosene or your favorite coolant. Make sure that you have a large enough pool of coolant. You should also drill only half way and do the same from the other side to prevent break through.

Using a smaller sized drill bit then finishing the hole to size can help. I have some small sized diamond coated hole saws. That work well in the vitrified materials. I also have found that a slower light pressure works better than fast and hard.

Don't know what version of a "tile drill" you are using, I have had success with this type.

You can also start the holes with this type of burr too

I also have a small dia. set off carbide/diamond hole/core drills/saw that work with flood cooling. Again working from both sides doers help on some items.

Using a slightly large baking/cake pan to contain the cooling fluid works well and keeps the drill press cleaner.
Don't have a photo of the core drills.

I'm not pushing the HF tools as a an item for occasional use they work fine. But they have good photo's of the type.

[sparky961]

Hi my wife has been collecting old plates and wants to make cake stands out of them

[SNIP]

I broke two of her favourite plates today so I'm ging to be in the dog house 

I am prone to giving a disclaimer before doing anything that has great potential for unavoidable mishap...   Think she'd notice if you super glued it back together?

[Graz]

Thanks for the quick replies I will have a look for those type of drills PT sideshow do they have a trade name? I have managed to drill about 8 plates drilling from both sides. The diamond drill bit I got is flat bottom like a hole saw but kinda rounded cutting edge, so it just wants to run across the plate, best place for it is in the bin   I have some of those burr's so will give that a go too
I've been using a hand held battery drill, I have a Tom Senior miller but thought that would be over kill  lol

If I super glue the plates and poke her in the eye I'm sure she would never know 

[PTsideshow]

You can try and make your own hole/core drill. A copper or brass tube the dia. you need you cut 4 or 6 slots in one end about 4 to 6 mm(3/16 to 1/4 " deep. You will need to remove glazed or vitrified surface the size of hole. The diamond burs work well. 

You then make dam around the hole site, mix up a slurry of oil and grit, either some rock polishing grit or blasting  medium to fine silicon carbide grit any light to medium weight oil will do. The slots trap some grit and slurry and with a slower speed and light steady pressure. It cuts through the pottery beneath the glaze.

The spade looking bits are called tile or glass bits on this side of the pond.  The claim is that the points start the hole by chipping the glaze away. I always have had better luck pre starting them with a diamond burr, carbide burr or even a pointed grinding stone used wet of course.

Can't see why your mill if it is like most drill/mills can't be used. I would suggest that you get a can pan large in dia than the plates to contain the spray/splashing. On occasion I have taped some card stock extending above the pans rim to contain spray. I had one about 30 cm's(12") in dia with a rim about 40mm (1 1/2" tall)

[buffalow bill]

Hi Graz,
In the past I have drilled a 20mm hole in a ceramic tile, using a flat ended diamond drill.
The trick was to use a piece of wood/metal with the correct size hole already drilled. With gaffer tape to position and flood the plate with water – haypresto??? 
But go steady dont rush or 


Bill

[Pete.]

Starting off a diamond drill on a ceramic surface is never going to be fun. If you want to drill a 8mm diamond hole in it first make a guide by drilling an 8mm hole in a piece of thin plywood, then clamp/glue/hold that in position on the plate and start drilling through that hole.
Don't try to do it dry or the diamonds will clog with dust, generate a lot of heat, bind in the hole and likely cause the plate to ****ter. Proper diamond drill bits have a through-hole for water to pass through but for an 8mm hole you might get away with just running a hose on it.

[Graz]

Just catching up on there replies I've had manflu 

Some good advice will get an old plate and give them a go, thanks again 

[Graz]

Just catching up on there replies I've had manflu 

Some good advice will get an old plate and give them a go, thanks again 

[Aestus57]

Graz,

 I've done a couple of these with my son.  The "spade" type glass drills do quite a good job. you can start them in the right place by sticking some insulation tape to the back of the plate, using the drill bit in a cordless drill. Just like drilling tiles in the kitchen or bathroom.

Once the drill has just broken through, turn it over and complete the hole from the other side.

Good tip .... don't switch on the hammer action!!!   

Another seriously good tip though is to use a couple of large pieces of Florists Oasis (that soft green sponge stuff) to support the plate while you're drilling.

[mike os]

Abrasive diamond drill and plenty of water... points are not the best way as there is always a stress point.

[HS93]

Arc do these, dont use a hammer drill 


http://www.arceurotrade.co.uk/Catalogue/Diamond-Tools/Diamond-Drills

Peter

[Graz]

Today I drilled 15 plates without breaking one 

I bought a 4mm and 6mm tile drill marked out the back of the plate with marker pen, using a battery drill with 4mm bit started drilling just to break the surface, than added water as the back of the plates have an upstanding which retained the water. As I was drilling I moved the battery drill in a circular motion at about 30 deg until the tip started to break through, then turned the plate over and drilled from the other side. Put the 6mm bit in the drill and repeated the procedure using very slow speed and little pressure.
I found that the bone china plates are very thin and seem harder than the "pot" plates but using very little pressure+ slow speed + patience = happy wife with holes in her plates, I even drilled the one she brought my butty out on 

So I used a mix of your suggestions and got there in the end.

Thanks everyone   

[Chazz]

We used to use a masonery bit and run it backwards to start the hole\break the glaze.

Cheers,
Chazz

[andyf]

I was called on to fix loads of handrails, soap holders etc to the tiled walls of 3 bathrooms in a house in France. Earthenware, so easy enough with a masonry drill once you got into the glazed finish. I stuck Sellotape (transparent sticky-back tape) over where the hole was to go to inhibit the drill bit skidding away, and screwed the pointy end of those crappy brazed carbide "tools" round to make a pockmark in the glaze, through the Sellotape. After that, the drilling went well.

Andy

[HS93]

I have seen turps used and the glazer made a moat out of plastersean .

Peter

[wildman692]

macking tape over the area will help prevent the drill skipping.