Drilling Through Metal Door

Hard metals like steel and larger drill bits require even slower speeds.

Drilling through metal door.

And heat dulls bits quickly. Self tapping screws suggest that you don t need a pilot hole but they re really meant for sheet metal. Drilling through steel is not an everyday home repair activity and drill bits for metals are the most expensive. A small hole will let them engage.

Please forgive me if this is too basic but someone else might find it useful. There are two types of drill bits that you can count on for metalworking projects. They ll never get started in the steel skin of your door. It depends on what size and how many holes you re drilling.

If you re trying to make a 1 2 size hole then that s easy unless the door is hardened. Regular drill bits can t cut through steel so you need a heavy duty hard drill bit to do the job. With a small twist bit 1 16 in. To 3 16 in you can drill through most metals at 3 000 rpm.

If you re drilling hole. You could just use a black oxide deltill bot found at most hardware stores. Drilling steel is not like drilling wood.