I am going to be lying under my vehicle drilling upward into the frame rails; any suggestions on type of lube to use on the drill bit to avoid burning the temper out of it? Cutting oil seems likely to run down faster than I could apply it with one hand while holding the drill with the other. Moly-B grease? some other type of grease applied to the hole site or drill tip? Thanks in advance. (ps-if this were a 1/4" hole, I'd just buy a bunch of cheap bits and not worry about it, but the hole is over 1/2 inch and the bit I'm using is definitely not cheap)

B.D.

Forget regular drill bits and lube altogether. Get yourself a

diamond-grit hole saw in half-inch. Greatest little gadgets ever for

large holes!

NOT A LUBE!!!

What you want is a cutting fluid!

Certainly NOT Moly or graphite. You want MORE, not LESS friction!

If you dip your drill in normal cutting oil and then drill quickly

it'll work. Like others have said, graduated sizes will make it easier.

Once you get the first hole through, you can apply the oil to the top

surface and it'll drain the right way.

A cup and an acid brush work well for applying cutting fluids.

The tool supply companies carry a very nice product in the form of a stick wax for cutting and drilling. I've used it lots.

And wear safety goggles to keep chips out of your eyes...

I would definitely progress up through a couple of sizes. Use spray oil or just roll the car over.

I'm just shooting from the hip on this one but if I was doing it:

1. Work your way up in drill sizes from small to large. It creates much less friction and heat.

2. As the hole size gets larger slow the speed of the bit down so that it can cut. High speed and large bits generate a lot of heat (and not much cutting).

3. I would still apply some type of oil while drilling especially with the larger bits. Cover the floor with newspaper under your drill site and spray some type of lube on the site several times. The less cutting the bit is doing the more oil I would apply.

Randy