A special drill, such as a bench drill or box column drill, is not a prerequisite for drilling PLEXIGLAS® sheets: Any commercially available drill is suitable. Rather than the drill itself, the right drill bit is decisively important for accurate results. One possibility, suitable for DIYers as well as experienced professionals, is a specially ground for acrylic drill bit. Depending on the cutting geometry, however, other drill bits may also be used. Find more details in the brochure titled Machining PLEXIGLAS®.
Special spiral drill bits are best suited for drilling PLEXIGLAS® sheets. These have a special cutting geometry: Their cutting edges are ground in such a way that the material is scraped rather than cut. This prevents cracking and breakouts.
© Röhm GmbH – Acrylic Products / Photo: Stefan Wildhirt
Caption below image (max. 400 characters): Spade drill bits and Forstner drill bits, normally used for drilling wood, are also suitable for drilling acrylic sheets. When using bits of this kind, take care that the bits do not transport shavings out of the drill hole. To avoid this, remove shavings in regular intervals. Additionally, adequate cooling with water, for example, is necessary.
© Röhm GmbH – Acrylic Products / Photo: Stefan Wildhirt
Conical drill bits are perfect for use with thin PLEXIGLAS® sheets and PLEXIGLAS® corrugated sheets and tubes. These result in slightly conical holes, which prevent chipping on the exit side of the hole.
© Röhm GmbH – Acrylic Products / Photo: Stefan Wildhirt
Thin sheets are also easily drilled with step drill bits, which ensure cylindrical boreholes that are clean and score-free (i.e., free from fine grooves).
© Röhm GmbH – Acrylic Products / Photo: Stefan Wildhirt
Milling drill bits allow production of the elongated holes used in connector systems, for example. It is particularly important to cool adequately with water when milling with milling drill bits.
© Röhm GmbH – Acrylic Products / Photo: Stefan Wildhirt
For drilling holes of large diameter a hole saw with fine tooth pitch can be used with thin materials. A low rotational speed and adequate water cooling are important here. The spaces between the teeth of the hole saw should be cleaned regularly. For this type of drilling, the workpiece must be well secured.
© Röhm GmbH – Acrylic Products / Photo: Stefan Wildhirt
The drill bit you should choose depends on the thickness of the sheet and the diameter of the required drill hole. Tip: Test the drilling process on a practice piece.
When you have all the necessary tools and materials laid out, you’re ready to start. There are just a few things to keep in mind, and remember to go step by step. Find more details in the brochure titled Machining PLEXIGLAS®.
1
Do not remove masking film
Do not remove the masking film from the acrylic sheet.
2
Mark out the position of the drill hole
Mark out the position of the hole using a grease pen or permanent marker. The minimum distance from the edges is 1.5 times the required diameter of the borehole. Further information on marking out the drill hole position is available in the brochure Machining PLEXIGLAS®.
3
Clamp the sheet to the base
For accurate drilling, first, lightly secure the sheet with clamps or screw clamps to a firm, level base, of wood, for example; this could be a workbench or table. Before each drilling session clean the base so that no sharp-edged parts project from it. You may also clamp the material in a bench vice with protective jaws. Align the workpiece accurately before clamping it.
4
Set rotational speed
Many drills have the option to set the rotational speed. For neat results, working with a low rotational speed is recommended. As a rule of thumb: the greater the diameter of the borehole, the lower the rotational speed. Further information on cutting parameters is available in the diagram and the brochure Machining PLEXIGLAS®. You can also try out the appropriate settings on a practice piece (see also step 5).
5
Check rotational speed
The shavings produced while drilling indicate whether the rotational speed is correct. The images show the influence of rotational speed or cutting speed and feed rate on the quality of the drill hole, in this case with a PLEXIGLAS® sheet.
Above: optimal rotational speed and correct feed rate: smooth drill hole surface, smooth, continuous chip.
Center: rotational speed and/or feed rate too high: crumbly chip, rough drill hole.
Below: rotational speed and/or feed rate too low: overheating, drill hole shows signs of degradation, fused chip.
6
Align drill bit
Place the drill bit on the marking indicated and drill briefly. In this way you can check the position of the borehole.
7
Drilling
Switch on the drill before starting to drill.
Important: Shortly before drilling through the sheet, you should reduce the feed rate to prevent chipping.
8
Airing and cooling
For material thicknesses greater than 5 mm the drill bit should be regularly cooled down to prevent overheating. This is done by raising it briefly. You should also cool the drill hole. This is best done with water, which you fill into a wash bottle. Spray water into the hole at regular intervals. This is especially important for drill bits where shavings accumulate fast, such as when using spade drill bits.
9
Deburring the borehole
You should deburr the borehole on both sides, using a countersink; in this way the small notches arising during boring are prevented. For relatively large drill hole diameters you can use a scraper for deburring.
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