McMaster-Carr logo
    Enter e-mail addresses in the fields below
    Message
    Cancel
    Comments
    E-mail address (if you would like a response)
    12 Products

    Friction Drills for Sheet Metal

    Image of Product. Front orientation. Friction Drills.
    Make a hole in thin pipes, tubing, and metal sheets to install threaded fasteners that won’t twist or loosen. Unlike other fastening options such as rivet and weld nuts, you don't need to deburr, remove shavings, or add hardware. Rather than cutting, these drills generate heat that softens metal to form a hole with walls. These walls are three times thicker than the original material to accommodate extra threads. After drilling, press threads into the walls with a forming tap (not included) that won't cut away material and leave the walls too thin.
    These drills come with everything you need to mount them on a drill press or CNC machine with a Morse taper 2 or 3 spindle. Five aluminum cooling rings dissipate heat to prevent your machine's spindle from getting too hot, even when drilling repeatedly in hard metal such as steel. The tungsten carbide bits (sold separately) can form thousands of holes before you need to replace them.
    Material
    For Material
    Thk. Range
    For Machine
    Spindle Type
    For Machine
    Taper No.
    Body
    Ring
    Each
    0.0394" to 0.1181"Morse TaperMorse 2, Morse 3SteelAluminum
    1643A150000000
    Friction Drill Bits

    Friction Drill Bits for Tapping Sheet Metal

    Image of ProductInUse. Front orientation. ZoomedIn view. Contains Border. Friction Drill Bits.
    Image of Product. Front orientation. Friction Drill Bits.
    Pair these bits with a friction drill and a collet (sold separately) and mount on a drill press, milling machine, or CNC machine to use friction heat to melt through sheet metal and quickly produce a hole with a lip. The lip that is formed is approximately three times the material thickness.
    Friction Drill Bits
    Friction
    Drill Collets
    For Hole
    Thread Size
    Dia.
    Shank Dia.,
    mm
    For Material
    Thk. Range
    Min. Rotation
    Speed, rpm
    Material
    Each
    Each
    6-32
    0.12"60.0394" to 0.0591"2,300Tungsten Carbide1643A210000001643A611000000
    8-32
    0.15"60.0394" to 0.0591"2,200Tungsten Carbide1643A22000001643A61100000
    10-24
    0.17"60.0394" to 0.0787"2,100Tungsten Carbide1643A23000001643A61100000
    1/4"-20
    0.22"80.0394" to 0.0787"2,000Tungsten Carbide1643A24000001643A61200000
    5/16"-18
    0.28"80.0394" to 0.0984"1,600Tungsten Carbide1643A250000001643A61200000
    3/8"-16
    0.34"100.0394" to 0.0984"1,500Tungsten Carbide1643A260000001643A61300000
    1/2"-13
    0.46"140.0339" to 0.1181"1,300Tungsten Carbide1643A270000001643A61400000

    Friction Drill Collets for Hole Makers for Tapping Sheet Metal

    Image of Product. Front orientation. Friction Drill Collets.
    Secure bits into hole makers for tapping sheet metal.
    Collet
    Size, mm
    Each
    61643A611000000
    81643A61200000
    101643A61300000
    141643A61400000
    back to top