hole saws

Boonie Buster · Apr 10, 2007

what style hole saws do you guys use for notching tubes and putting holes in frames. my friend picked up a bi-metal and blew right through it cus it had too big of teeth, but i can't seem to find/know of a place that sells a good "long-lasting" hole saw (haven't really looked hard though). cus i'm going to need a couple...

darius · Apr 10, 2007

We've been using whatever brand Fastenal sell's lately, we usually get about 3 chassis worth of notches per holesaw. I can't remember the name of the good holesaw's that we get at the moment. Don't push too hard, when they are brand new they are so sharp and move so much material that it's really easy to kill one right away. I have killed a few holesaw's on their first notch cause I am used to the old dull notcher I've been notching with all day. I love watching really little guy's and newb's when the notcher catches and they come off of the ground, we've got a few really mean drill's we notch with:redneck:

Boonie Buster · Apr 10, 2007

darius said:
We've been using whatever brand Fastenal sell's lately, we usually get about 3 chassis worth of notches per holesaw. I can't remember the name of the good holesaw's that we get at the moment. Don't push too hard, when they are brand new they are so sharp and move so much material that it's really easy to kill one right away. I have killed a few holesaw's on their first notch cause I am used to the old dull notcher I've been notching with all day. I love watching really little guy's and newb's when the notcher catches and they come off of the ground, we've got a few really mean drill's we notch with:redneck:

coolness, there's a fastenal in town. so they should be able to guide me to the right one. it's not a bi-metal though is it? or is it, just with a finer tooth?

darius · Apr 10, 2007

Fastenal, bi metal, don't get a tooth option, also don't try to cut slow, hold the drill wide open. It's just a guess, but a straight notch through a piece of 1 1/2 should take about 20 second's, it's not a race. Also I alway's get 1/8th bigger size than what I am notching for, make's for a little room to spare.

Boonie Buster · Apr 10, 2007

ok, ya i wonder if my friend was just trying to hard then... cus he wasted a bi-metal in seriously no more than 45 sec's and another didnt take much longer, ok....so fast speed and let the bit do it's work, can do:awesomework: so a 1 5/8" hole bit is what you use then?

heep70 · Apr 10, 2007

Mclendons in Sumner. Gotta ask for them in the drill bit section. They are the deep style bi metals.

Hip · Apr 10, 2007

darius said:
Fastenal, bi metal, don't get a tooth option, also don't try to cut slow, hold the drill wide open. It's just a guess, but a straight notch through a piece of 1 1/2 should take about 20 second's, it's not a race. Also I alway's get 1/8th bigger size than what I am notching for, make's for a little room to spare.

i use bimetal and get the EXACT size you need as the hole is a sawed hole and not very accurate. a 2" hole saw cuts a 2 1/16" hole so it is already bigger than stated. if fitting to a 2' use a 2" , if fitting to an 1 1/2" use a 1 1/2". :;

be a man about it and hold the drill tightly. i also use a lot of oil during the cutting seems to make the saws last much longer. makes a bigger mess thou.

jjduedall · Apr 10, 2007

so could i use one of these for the hole i need to make in my frame for the shackle on the sas ?? sounds easier

Boonie Buster · Apr 10, 2007

jjduedall said:
so could i use one of these for the hole i need to make in my frame for the shackle on the sas ?? sounds easier

yep, this is why i brought it up, cus my freind blew through two bits doing the same thing. so knowing now the method and maybe the brand helps a little, it should be no problem.:awesomework: but ya these are essentially what i'm going to be using them for only thicker metal:;

darius · Apr 10, 2007

Hip said:
i use bimetal and get the EXACT size you need as the hole is a sawed hole and not very accurate. a 2" hole saw cuts a 2 1/16" hole so it is already bigger than stated. if fitting to a 2' use a 2" , if fitting to an 1 1/2" use a 1 1/2". :;

be a man about it and hold the drill tightly. i also use a lot of oil during the cutting seems to make the saws last much longer. makes a bigger mess thou.

If you're drilling a hole through a frame or plate for a 2" tube to fit nicely into, then you are right about the 2" saw. Apparently you havent done much tube work, or you are really wealthy in that you can throw away lot's of tube after it's notched slightly wrong. For a straight simple notch, sure 1 1/2" is good for 1 1/2", but you would never see the difference if a 1 5/8 was used. In all reality that is only and extra 1/16th per side, and that little bit help's with complex bent peices and obscure notch angles, I call that a "penetration gap":awesomework:

greentowtruck · Apr 14, 2007

I built 5 cages for racecars using 2 holesaws from home depot i beleive they sell lenox brand. BTW the cages were made from 1 1/4" secdule 40 pipe as it is allowed for our class ande is alot cheaper than tube here is mine after a 7 time roll over at about 65 mph

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