Sorry for posting here but I need a guy answer, unless any women lurking here might know as well.

[Third Day]

My drill bits do not say what size they are. I need a picture of drill bits with sizes to compare.

There are very tiny markings on them, too small to read, and the slots that they go in, in the case, do not say the sizes either.

Do any of you know where I can get a picture of bits to print out, that I could just lay the bits down on to match the sizes?

I googled "drill bit chart", and all I get are pages of numbers, not pictures with the sizes shown.

:hairout

Thanks for any help you could provide!
Cheryl

[icebear]

got a tape measure?

[Third Day]

Not sure where any are.

So is a 1/4 drill bit 1/4 inch in diameter?

[5stringWorshipper]

Hi Third Day!

Here's what I would do;

First, I would try to acquire (or borrow) either a very powerful magnifying glass, or a jeweler's loupe to read the inscription on the bit.

If you can't get your hands on one of those, my next choice would be to find a drill gauge. That's a flat piece of metal or plastic that has a series of precisely sized holes in it, arranged small to large, and labeled by size. What you do is take the blunt end of the bit, and starting with a hole that is obviously too small, try to slip the bit through the hole, and work your way up to the first hole that it fits through, which will tell you the size of the bit. A drill index (box that holds a collection of bits) works the same way.

The last option is to acquire (or borrow) a caliper, which is a precision measuring tool. It has a pair of jaws that move toward and away from each other, to find the size of an object placed between them. The dimension is measured either on a scale along the length of the caliper, or some calipers may use a dial from which to read the measurement. Some calipers read in hundredths or thousandths of an inch, so if that's the case, you'll need to be able to convert from decimal to fractions. Hope this helps! :scripture

[Third Day]

Thank you for the advice! The drill gauge would be great, but I was hoping to not have to drive into town.
You would think that a picture of bits and their sizes could be found on the web.

I have to go to town tomorrow anyway. It seems that the drill and bits that I have are not strong enough do drill through metal. I am trying to replace a window motor on my gmc jimmy, and have to drill out some rivets in the door.
Never done it before, and have no idea what I'm doing, but willing to give it a try rather than pay someone over $100 labor for each window. None of my windows work anymore, and the air conditioning stops working when I'm out on the highway stepping on the gas. It works ok in town, with the starting and stopping at traffic lights, but on the freeway when I have to keep accelerating, it quits. No one knows why. The weather is getting hotter, and I need to take a 4 hour trip to visit my son. If I can get even one of the windows to go up and down I will be happy. I hate, no, I HATE power windows!!!

Maybe one of you guys could tell me what kind of drill and bits I need to have for metal. Right now I have an 18 volt cordless drill, but it has never seemed to be as strong as an electric one. I also have an electric, dremel type rotary tool, but they both seem gutless to me. Don't have much money to spend on more tools.

Thanks!

[Third Day]

Hi Third Day!

Here's what I would do;

First, I would try to acquire (or borrow) either a very powerful magnifying glass, or a jeweler's loupe to read the inscription on the bit.

If you can't get your hands on one of those, my next choice would be to find a drill gauge. That's a flat piece of metal or plastic that has a series of precisely sized holes in it, arranged small to large, and labeled by size. What you do is take the blunt end of the bit, and starting with a hole that is obviously too small, try to slip the bit through the hole, and work your way up to the first hole that it fits through, which will tell you the size of the bit. A drill index (box that holds a collection of bits) works the same way.

The last option is to acquire (or borrow) a caliper, which is a precision measuring tool. It has a pair of jaws that move toward and away from each other, to find the size of an object placed between them. The dimension is measured either on a scale along the length of the caliper, or some calipers may use a dial from which to read the measurement. Some calipers read in hundredths or thousandths of an inch, so if that's the case, you'll need to be able to convert from decimal to fractions. Hope this helps! :scripture

Welcome to the board by the way! I'm honored to be the first one you're responding to here. I live in south central Washington, so your not too far away from me. Hope to see you around the board! :wave Can I borrow your caliper? (just kidding)
I have a friend who plays a 5 string bass.

[Wally]

The drill index or drill gauge is the best idea. You can find them at most hardware stores. I have a nice Irwin steel gauge, but there are economical plastic ones too. Just do not force the bits as you will ruin the gauge.

Once sized, keep the bits an a box with the sizes marked or get a bit holder. After a while I just get a new set of bits. Relying on the numbers on the bits is not good for as soon as a bit freezes and the chuck spins on it... the numbers are gone.

Keeping them sharp is critical and the angle must be correct. If you're drilling and drilling, new bit time - or sharpen. Cheap bits are just that so get the nice ones if possible. My 18v DeWalt is great, an extra battery really helps. I use a heavy duty cord type for thick metal and grinding.

When drilling out rivets, use a punch to make a centering spot so bit does not hop (depends on rivet or side you're drilling). Also try not to drill the whole way through as you could mar the hole. Use a punch to finish the knockout.

Just my experiences, good luck.

PS Pictures probably wont help as the sizing changes when you print. Also your eye may not be that good and you wind up a size or 2 off.

[Psalm 143]

Do you know what type of metal the rivets are made from? Its important because it dictates how you should drill. If its soft aluminum, you can use higher speed and lighter feed. If its steel, use slow speed and heavy feed. You can use a smaller drill bit than necessary to drill a pilot hole, then use the correct size to drill the head off. If you use high speed on a steel part, you'll "smoke" the drill bit in a hurry and possibly work harden the rivet which makes it even harder to drill once you get a new bit. Its not rocket science and you can do it!

Best of luck!

[Third Day]

Thanks everyone for all the great advice! I have my drill bit and hope to be borrowing an electric drill tomorrow.
That's good to know about the drill speed-wouldn't have known that!
The rivets look like steel rather than aluminum.

[Third Day]

Well praise God!
I have one working power window!
After church I came home and changed and started drilling on those 4 rivets in that window motor - you can now call me Rosie the un-riveter.

That is what took the longest, because once I drilled through the dome of the rivets, then punched out the centers, I still could not get the rivets out of the door frame. I think that I must not have drilled deep enough or something. It was getting really frustrating trying to get them out, so finally I used a star shaped screwdriver, putting it through the center hole that I made in the rivets, and kept working it side to side and up and down till it got loose, then I would hammer a flat screwdriver underneath the head of the rivet, trying to make it pop out. It took forever but finally they all came out.

After that I had to pull the motor out, along with the regulator, then I was able to take those two parts in the house and drill the smaller rivets out that held them together. That did not take very long. Once I got them apart, I took a rag with gas on it and cleaned off all the old dried grease from the regulator, put new clean grease, and fit the new motor on, bolting both pieces together with the nuts and bolts that came with the motor. It was then ready to go back in the car door, but I had to call my daughter and ask her to go buy me some 3/4 inch x 1/4 nuts and bolts to replace the bigger rivets in the door.

It took awhile to get all four holes aligned - motor to door - and get the window arm back underneath the glass, but with almost constant praying to the Lord for His help and guidance, it finally all came together. Imagine my delight, after re-connecting the switches, that the window actually worked!

I am very tempted to go buy another motor tomorrow, and install it on the other front door while I still have the borrowed drill. It will take up another big part of the day though, and there are so many other things that need to be done before going back to work on Tuesday. We'll see. It's just amazing to know that I could actually do it - something that seemed nearly impossible just the other day. I can be stubborn though, especially when it comes to giving someone else so much money for doing something like that.

God gets all the glory, and you guys get a lot of thanks for giving me advice and encouragement. Thank you! Anyone need any power windows fixed? :thumb
Cheryl

Rats......now I need to go do my nails again!