Best cutters for up to 1" holes in truck frames

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Hey all,I'm not much of a machinist, but the shop I'm currently working at does a lot of frame drilling with some no-name mag drill.  The mag drill is currently set up with a chuck that can handle up to 1/2" shank.  This can be a right pain in the butt because 1) they have no bit sharpener, just a harbor freight bench grinder, 2) everything has to be pilot drilled, which means after center-punching the frame surface for your hole, you may have to bolt and un-bolt certain fixtures multiple times to get to the point where you can drill your final hole (a lot of it is 5/8" or 3/4" holes for grade 8 bolts.  It gets very tiring trying to keep a good pressure on the bit that isn't excessive and still having the thing grab excessively.Every video I've seen of various makes and models of mag drill are using the flat-faced annular cutters for larger diameter holes above 1/2".  The shop boss/manager who is the owner's pet (and the cheap bastard who buys Harbor Freight everything for the shop) basically tells everyone to just sharpen up whatever whooped-to-shyte bits we have on the bench grinder, and carry on... but then in the same breath gripes about job time (we are all hourly but the jobs are bid at a quoted flat-rate time) and productivity.I'm a bit of the black sheep of the shop because of several arguments I've had with the shop boss about the poor condition of the shop tools, and his constant pressure that I should supply this or I should supply that... which inevitably results in me bringing in something that is nicer than the shop's, and my being a prick to anyone who asks to use it.  I tell them flat out that I would, but making their lives easier justifies the shop manager's cheapness, and until he starts spending money for things the shop supplies, nobody gets to use my stuff.  This has me marked as a non-team player, but at the end of the day I don't care... I live by the old mantra.... my box has wheels.So right now I'm in the market for a good set of cutters for up to 1" holes in steel with a mag drill, and ones that won't dull down quickly if used with lubricant.
Reply:I think all Mag drill cutters last a reasonable lenght of time if looked after and used with cutting fluid. There are cheap makes and there are the more expensive ones, you really do get what you pay for but once you have them the secret is to look after them, Start using them without the fluid will result in bluntness ultra quick so be warned
Reply:Gerry:  We're using standard HSS spiral flute bits that start out life with a pretty standard drill face angle, but start to look like prison shanks after the shop monkeys start to "sharpen" them on the grinder.  The mag-drill does not have an incorporated lubricant feed, so we have to feed the fluid using a soda bottle and small tube in the cap.  Usually I back the bit out, squirt in some oil, and drill more while keeping the oil dripping over the bit and hole.  If I see more than a little smoke from the oil heating up, I back off, relube, and repeat.
Reply:Hole saw?Ian TannerKawasaki KX450 and many other fine tools
Reply:Yeh, for the down and dirty multi-user environment a few hole saws would be my choice. Annular cutters are the cats meow and would be my 1st choice but they take a slightly tighter set of rules for care and use. If I paid for an annular it isn't what I would want the guy next to me grabbing to chuck up in his hand drill and go punch a few holes in who knows what and who knows where.With hole saws once you get a couple of mandrels the hole saws themselves are cheap enough. Drilling horizontal chip clearing isn't such a big deal. Chips fall right out through the slots in the sides. They come equipped with the pilot bits which are cheap to replace & easy to resharpen."The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get rich quick theory of life." -Theodore Roosevelt
Reply:plasma cutter and build a jig or template for the holesTiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Youll dump a chunk of change with the hole saws and you would still have to stand there with a bottle of cutting oil to make it through the thickness of a frame rail.  Either a plasma for a starter hole then finish with a bit, or a hole saw with an annular cutter is the best bet.  find out if a LWS has one you can rent, you would be money a head.
Reply:Originally Posted by soutthpawplasma cutter and build a jig or template for the holes
Reply:No way would I buy such tools because of a cheap bastard foreman. No way no way no way.
Reply:Originally Posted by Showdog75No way would I buy such tools because of a cheap bastard foreman. No way no way no way.
Reply:Originally Posted by W123BenzI share your sentiments.  Right now my pain issue is having to constantly change bits, sharpen, unbolt, etc, multiple times for a single hole when drilling a frame. At this point it has come down to me taking a giant dump in his cheerios because I already HAVE good tools, and the other technicians there have grown accustomed to working harder not smarter are seeing what I've got, and getting angry that the shop doesn't have it.  I'm happy to rile up a mutiny by being the prick who won't let anybody use anything out of my box... but this does cross a bit of a gray area for me, as far as I'm concerned, an annular bit for 5/8" or 3/4" is a consumable, and not a tool.
Reply:Originally Posted by W123BenzHey all, The shop boss/manager who is the owner's pet (and the cheap bastard who buys Harbor Freight everything for the shop) basically tells everyone to just sharpen up whatever whooped-to-shyte bits we have on the bench grinder, and carry on... but then in the same breath gripes about job time (we are all hourly but the jobs are bid at a quoted flat-rate time) and productivity.
Reply:X2 on the drill doctor. Also, annular cutters can be had fairly cheap on ebay, $12ish up about 1"
Reply:A good Mag drill (> 800 bucks) with annular cutters (25 - 50 bucks and up each) is the correct tool to be using.  A bona-fide oil squirt can is the correct tool for dispensing the oil.  If necessary when you don't have enough hands that is what the apprentice helper does - squeeze the trigger on the oil can!I feel your pain.  Over the years I have worked for many bosses who just don't get it.  Their idea of cost control is buy cheap tools and pay cheap labor rates, do everything quick and dirty, doing things "right" with the correct tools and methods is unnecessary expense,  while completely ignoring the real cost savings of having quality tools and quality employees doing quality work.  It sounds to me like you need to scout out a better employer and I think you are deserving of moving up in life. But I know too well how difficult that can be.- MondoMember, AWSLincoln ProMIG 140Lincoln AC TombstoneCraftsman Lathe 12 x 24 c1935Atlas MFC Horizontal MillCraftsman Commercial Lathe 12 x 36 c1970- - - I'll just keep on keepin' on.
Reply:W123BenzLots of frame drilling with on going issues; you need the cure.Since you are so tight with the Lap Dog/Boss why don't you cement your position and suggest they buy a frame drill.I have worked in two shops that had them.  They are a commercial manufactured tool, on wheels and look like a small Genie-Lift.  It's equipped with a permanently mounted 5/8 hp. drill motor, rack and pinion feed, and has worm-drive axial adjustments so you never lift the drill, just roll and screw.  To use, there is a quick chain binding system built into the carriage to secure the drill.  It's a one man operation and easy on cutters.  Its advantage over even the best mag-drill is it doesn't need an unobstructed surface to work; you can drill deep, and in close quarters.When you pitch the frame drill, be sure to have a pocket fullof dog biscuits.Opus
Reply:we use jancy sluggers. older ones, were usually drilling around 1" holes too, through atleast 1/2" to 3/4". sometimes twice that lol. but they are quality tools and if you treat em good (which most guys at the shop do NOT) theyll rip right through with ease over and over
Reply:As an apprentice in a truckshop, i did more than my share of drilling frames.We never had a mag drill either, when possible we would drill from the inside rail out with a modified hand drill it had a threaded rod attached to the back( inline with the bit), feed handle, and pipe sleeve to push against the other rail.  Kind of an inside out drill press.Briggs weldnpower 225/210/cvLn-25 suitcaseMillermatic 130
Reply:I would think some sort of portable "around the frame" hole punch could be fabbed up with hydraulic ram. I know when I have a redundant job I make up jigs or special tools to make the job much easier and faster.If I was repeatedly making the same one or two size holes in something I would look for a faster easier way then a drill bit.