Drilling straight holes into and through MFC

[nashant]

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I do this with maximum cost efficiency? Baring in mind I live in a flat in London, I don't have a workshop or bench, and I can't afford to spend much on any new bits.

 

[JakeS]

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I do this with maximum cost efficiency? Baring in mind I live in a flat in London, I don't have a workshop or bench, and I can't afford to spend much on any new bits.

Richard Maguire shows a fairly neat method of drilling straight holes with a minimum of stuff here.

You will also want to clamp a bit of scrap wood tight to the back of your MFC if you want a clean exit hole, otherwise the drill popping out the far side will most likely chip off a bit of the melamine. Maybe even clamp a bit to the front as well, just to be on the safe side! Failing that, firmly stick down a bit of decent masking tape to the entry side.

Personally I'd use a 'normal' drill bit and not a fancy brad-point one, 'cause I have the impression that the spurs on the side of wood bits are more likely to tear up the surface... but it's purely an instinctive speculation - I haven't performed a series of tests drilling into MFC to find out! Either way, use an awl, a centre punch or even a brad-point bit with a tap of a hammer to make a small hole to start the drill in, to make sure it doesn't skid around on the surface before getting stuck in.

 

[xy mosian]

JakeS got it spot on.

But if I may add, the pilot hole needs to be larger than the chisel edge of the drill you use. The chisel edge is the little bit square on to the length of the drill at the very end, the first bit to work. On a 'normal' drill I should add.

Personally I didn't have a problem with brad point bits, perhaps I was lucky.

xy

 

[Eric The Viking]

A while ago, I needed to drill 15mm holes for knock-down fittings, and 35mm holes for hinges.

I have a 15mm router cutter from Wealdens that will plunge (but you need to mark an edge for the hole, rather than the centre), and a forstner bit in a drill stand does hinges well. The router cutter has a third knife in the centre and produces beautifully flat-bottomed holes.

I agree for through holes you need to clamp scrap to the back, or drill a pilot hole through then do the finished diameter from both sides for neatness.

Used carefully those cheap drill stands (with a pair of plunge bars) do work really well. You can screw them down to a scrap sheet, which you can then clamp securely, so you get accuracy.

 

[Lord Kitchener]

If I wanted to drill clean holes in MFC (which I don't) I would use a plunge router, but then I've got lots of routers and the noise doesn't matter.

So out of curiosity I tried a piece of melamine faced MDF (don't have any MFC here) with a Fisch brad point drill bit, and got perfect entry holes. Exits weren't quite so good but I'm pretty sure that was because the backing wasn't sufficiently well clamped, but only close inspection revealed any imperfections.

Expensive but very good
http://www.axminster.co.uk/fisch-hss-pr ... ll-bit-set

So there you have it, if the drill is a good make and sharp, you'll be ok.