View Full Version : Home Depot don't know their holes
Ghettoliscious
07-23-04, 09:37 PM
Hi everyone!
I have an Antec 1080 case, and this thing is a serious tank... 1mm steel. I want to cut 120mm holes to put fans in, and I need to know how in the world I can get a decent round cut.
The people at Home Depot don't seem to know the difference between steel and wood, so I figure I'd ask the people who actually might have done it. I would try a jigsaw blade, but I know it would be dangerous, and would go through a few blades at least... so any help would be great!!!
holesaws...goes on the end of a drill..gives a nice hole..kinda exp though. 10-25$
Ghettoliscious
07-23-04, 10:32 PM
Yeah, I saw those, but I didn't see any big enough that would cut 120mm holes... they came kinda close though, just didn't want to do it cuz it would leave air whirling noises if the hole was too small
Electron Chaser
07-23-04, 10:34 PM
I usually use the jig saw, nibbler, and dremel approach it works pretty well. Hole saws can work as well but you will not find a hole saw exactly the size you need (120mm) so you will either have to drill it under 4 1/2 or slightly over 4 3/4 . You will need at a minimum a 1/2" chuck drill to handle the torque of a bit that size and a bi-metal hole saw of the desired size to make the hole. Be careful they can be dangerous if they grab your work. It may spin your case or it may sprain or even break your wrist if you are not ready for the torque. Drilling a hole with a hole saw requires some finese and they seldom make a perfectly round hole in steel especially if your doing it by hand.
One other thing.
WELCOME TO THE FORUMS
oh 120mm...id just draw a line where you wanna cut, n dremel it as best ya can...if you got a steady hand thn it should look good.
You're going to need a metal drilling holesaw and a powerful drill. I use a corded drill with a 4.75'' metal-drilling holesaw. Good luck, the 4.75'' are hard to find and will run you a good $35+
Ghettoliscious
07-23-04, 10:54 PM
Sweet, thanks for the fast results guys... wasn't even done looking through the modding sections and already replies :) I think I might go with 80mm fans inside of plexiglass... will kill two birds with one stone... or, eh... two fishsticks with one fork? O_o
I'm good with tools so I'll give it a shot
Sean Lindstrom
07-23-04, 11:02 PM
Using a jigsaw with metal cutting blade isn't dangerous. Just don't push it. You can clean up the hole with course emery cloth wrapped around a cylinder slightly smaller than the hole.
The cleanest way to use a hole saw with sheet metal, without using a drill press (that I know of) is to pre-drill just the pilot hole in the sheet stock, then do the same with two blocks of wood, then clamp these together - lining up the pilots. By the time the hole saw gets through that first block it'll have no tenancy to walk around, and the sandwiched metal won't grab or lift or whatever.
bluediamond
07-23-04, 11:05 PM
I have used a dremel with pretty good luck to cut 120mm fan holes. The only problem with purchasing a $35+ hole saw is that unless you plan on cutting a lot of blow holes you would be better off spending money on a dremel and some cut off wheels.
Enablingwolf
07-23-04, 11:19 PM
They make "aviation snips" that cut round holes too. They come in right or left handed cuts. From what I take, you start the cutting and work your way out, and cost about 15$ or so.
greenman100
07-23-04, 11:39 PM
enablingwolf:
'borrowed' your sig quote, thanks
Enablingwolf
07-23-04, 11:46 PM
YW, it is public quote, give Socrates the credit :D Very awsome someone else liked it.
greenman100
07-23-04, 11:49 PM
it's over at my procooling sig, if you were wondering
a dremel with a circle cutting guide worked for me. My dremel came with the tool too. Get a carbide side-cutting bit and off you go :)
-LxOxSxI
Capt Fiero
08-01-04, 12:16 AM
Just get a big hole saw, then charge your buddeis 5$ per hole to recoupe the cost.
http://www.captfiero.com/120mm/bigimages/PICT0113.JPG
Small one is an 80mm fan, the larger one is a 120mm fan.
I have found that with a good drill and a big hole saw, you can lay a machine on its back. So the front is point straight up. Place the holesaw centre into the case, and start cutting, you will first cut through whatever layers of plastic in the front bezel, then cut into the metal frame, and continue through whatever layers and finally out into the center of hte case. You get a perfect cut in all the layers and a perfect direct matching set of holes for the air intake. I usually mount a wire fan grill on the front of the case but mount the fan on the side of the frame. It works pretty well. This is the hole-saw I use. The drill is a black and decker gear reduction drill.
http://www.captfiero.com/120mmcut.jpg
BRB, I will post the size and model of the hole saw.
Capt Fiero
08-01-04, 12:23 AM
It is a Milwalkie, (sp) 4.5" (114mm) hole saw. I know it sounds like it is too small but it works like a charm. Plastic, Aluminum, Steel never had a problem. If the cuts start to get too hard and the matiriel starts catching just have a 2nd person spray some form of lube like WD40 on the cutting area and you will be fine.
I tried using a dremel and a jigsaw to do blow and intake holes, NEVER AGAIN. Trust me once you go holesaw you never go back.
RetroGrade
08-01-04, 01:42 AM
I used a 4.5" bi metal hole saw from BluMol for about 25 and 10 for the BluMol pilot hole attachment at Home Depot and worked like a charm. I was not ready for the torque and ruined a part of the top of my case. Also, kept getting caught so had to stop every now and then. My drill kept spewing a horible electrical smoke (even through a dual filtering gas mask) from overheating I guess... I was suprised it still worked. Anyway, I cut the hole and was perfect, except for ruining part of the paintjob from my inexperience. I retrofitted a carboard box under the cutting area to catch the little metal bits and afterwards vacuumed the inside and outside very well.
yep i got me a hole saw, but i got it for construction, and that sucker rocks! they are much better at getting a perfectly round cut, unlike the dremel, where there is more work involved!
rogerdugans
08-01-04, 08:57 AM
Hole saws are definitely the best way to go.
A jigsaw is a very good alternative for the budget conscious- a jigsaw will cost about what a single good hole saw would, but can be used for different sizes and straight cuts as well. It takes more skill to get a good cut though.
A dremel can also do the job, but takes a lot more time and effort to get a really good cut.
Being a cheap sonofagun, I use my jigsaw most of the time. ;)
Occasionally I borrow a hole saw from a coworker though.
Xenocide
08-01-04, 09:28 AM
im a dremel man, but if you get ****ed off, a milwaukee sawzall will tear your case apart :)
Anyone who claims that the dremel is more work, is trying to free hand it... I use whole saws daily in construction and can't see how you think that's easier than dremel with circle cutting guide...it's just like a rotozip... zing, zoom, done. Plus I can do my acrylic window with dremel and circle cutting guide easy. One tool, all jobs. Man...
-LxOxSxI
It is a Milwalkie, (sp) 4.5" (114mm) hole saw.
Hehe It is a pain if your not a local or saying and spelling some of the Cities around here.
Milwaukee (mil-walk-E)
Us snowbirds (Cheeseheads also) have too many Indian named Cities and to me it is second nature but I always got a kick from hearing others get all tongue tied :D
But back on track,Milwaukee Tools (http://www.milwaukeeconnect.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=27&catalogId=40027&langId=-1&productId=283597&mainCategoryId=127418&secondRefNum=189300&thirdRefNum=189450&firstHeader=Accessories&secondCatName=Hole+Saws&subCategoryHeader=Hole+Saws&thirdCatHeader=Standard+Bi-Metal&fromCatalog=Y) 4 1/2 Hole Saw
I found it easier to go the Dremel route. Like others said, if you have a steady hand, it is much easier to match up the hole to the fan and avoid the Whooshing sound.
Also if you need to buy the Hole Saw, it would be worth going with the dremel. So many other things you can use the Dremel for vs the one action of hole saw just cutting a hole.
Wouldn't a 5" hole saw be better to use or there won't be a enough room to make the screw holes? Also what are some other good drills to buy? I have no clue what to look for when choosing drills.
all you do with a jig saw is draw out the hole you need .. drill a hole dead center and then one on the line inside :P then you make slices from the middle hole out to the line you traced and just do small cuts like that all the way around like a 200slice pizza would look like .. then you cut out where the hole drilled on the line it and keep cutting all the way around fallowing the line you traced and the little peices will just fall out along the way leaveing you no bending or problems like that then you will have a 95% finished hole take out a grinder and clean up the hole your done. simple might take you hmm 5-10min but it works.
ive done with hole saws jigsaws and dremels . i liked holesaw and jigsaw best. dremel was ok would have worked better if i had better cutters for it ..
if you have a jigsaw its easy just make sure to cut inside if your gona leave some slack so you can just sand it down to make it look right. because once you screw up outside the line your stuck with it :P
Race you with my dremel :)
-LxOxSxI
Wouldn't a 5" hole saw be better to use or there won't be a enough room to make the screw holes? Also what are some other good drills to buy? I have no clue what to look for when choosing drills.
I use a 5" hole saw, and it works fine ... most of the time. I had to resort to a Dremel with a reinforced cutting wheel for one hole, as the surface was uneven and had smaller holes here and there.
Anyway ... the 5" hole saw works fine. It's a bit big, but there's room for the screw holes. It sounds like the 4 1/2" might make a better sized hole.
I also use 3" and 2 1/4" hole saws for 80mm and 60mm holes, respectively.
I got the 5" and 2 1/4" saws and the ... uhm ... thingy (my grandfather the master machinist is rolling in his grave :rolleyes: ) that they mount to at Home Depot. I don't remember where I found the 3", but Home Depot had a dazzling array of sizes. :D
Oh yeah - I've also discovered that a vent hole in the (plastic) face plate of your case works well. I use a 80mm vent hole for a 120mm fan, and a 60mm vent for an 80mm fan. The hole saws work well for these, too ... but at much lower cutting speeds.
Great idea (whoever it was, up there) about making a box to collect the little metal gremlins. I'd like to hear / see more detail on that.
And ... whoever was having heat problems when cutting a hole ... two tips: (1) slow down (take breaks, even, to let things cool a bit), and (2) use some oil (cutting oil is best).
Sean Lindstrom
08-02-04, 02:44 PM
I retrofitted a carboard box under the cutting area to catch the little metal bits and afterwards vacuumed the inside and outside very well.
A sloppy duct tape bandage, applied before you cut, will catch dust too. Grabs it. Also blots well by hand. And if the added noise is no bother, that vacuum can be positioned to clean up while you drill.
***
The circle-cutting jig for Dremel sounds neat. Anyone care to illustrate?
A sloppy duct tape bandage, applied before you cut, will catch dust too. Grabs it. Also blots well by hand. And if the added noise is no bother, that vacuum can be positioned to clean up while you drill.
***
The circle-cutting jig for Dremel sounds neat. Anyone care to illustrate?
Oooo! Great idea, the duct tape! I like it! :clap:
I've got a circle cutting rig for my Dremel Advantage ... I'm working on taking and posting pics.
The Dremel might work well on thin-skinned cases, but on this tower I'm modding (heavy steel skin, Chenbro case), it didn't work well at all. I went thru a bunch of cutting bits of all sorts (I mean a bunch of each type, including the expen$ive carbide ones) with poor results. I finished that hole with the reinforced cutting wheel on a Dremel, and cut another 120mm hole with a hole saw without incident.
EDIT:
This RotoZIP rig on eBay has a circle jig:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=20791&item=4316394922&rd=1
The Dremel jig follows the same design. The power tool mounts in one end (the end with the larger black circular thing), the knob in the middle moves a guide pin back and forth (the center of the circle), and the knob on the other end is for steadying / moving the tool through the cut.
Would any of these drills be efficient enough? Any other drills that you can recommend at home depot?
Black & Decker
3/8 In. Variable Speed Reversible Electric Drill
Model DR200
High power motor. Double gear reduction. Mid-handle design. Two-finger trigger. Lock-on button for continuous use.
Black & Decker
5.5 AMP Keyless Chuck Drill Kit
Model DR220K
3/8" Variable Sped Drill/ Driver. Removable Chuck fror Easy Bit Changes. On-board Bit Storage. Powerful 5 Amp Motor. Rubber Over Molded Handles. Kit Box and 5 Accessories.
Black & Decker
1/2 In. Variable Speed Reversible High Torque Drill
Model DR500
Triple gear reduction and metal gear housing. Two-finger trigger. Lock-on button. 360 deg. side handle.
Capt Fiero
08-02-04, 04:23 PM
Would any of these drills be efficient enough? Any other drills that you can recommend at home depot?
Black & Decker
3/8 In. Variable Speed Reversible Electric Drill
Model DR200
High power motor. Double gear reduction. Mid-handle design. Two-finger trigger. Lock-on button for continuous use.
Black & Decker
5.5 AMP Keyless Chuck Drill Kit
Model DR220K
3/8" Variable Sped Drill/ Driver. Removable Chuck fror Easy Bit Changes. On-board Bit Storage. Powerful 5 Amp Motor. Rubber Over Molded Handles. Kit Box and 5 Accessories.
Black & Decker
1/2 In. Variable Speed Reversible High Torque Drill
Model DR500
Triple gear reduction and metal gear housing. Two-finger trigger. Lock-on button. 360 deg. side handle.
You will need the one with the 1/2 chuck. It is the same one that I have, it has a thread in handle on the side. It is so that you can brace yourself when cutting large holes. You need as much gear reduction as possible. Just be carefull with that kind of drill, it can just about rip your hand off if your matiriel catches. I have used cordless drills for doing smaller 80mm holes, but you will want at least a 14.4 if not an 18 or 24v drill with gear reduction.
Thanks Capt. I appreciate it. :)
Capt,
One more thing. Why did you get a 4.5" hole saw rather then a 5"?
dustytrail69
08-02-04, 09:36 PM
I would have to say I use the hole attachment for my dremel as well as my jigsaw. I guess I'm just can't seem to justify buying a $35-$40 holesaw that I will only use once or twice. I would rather spend that money on other things like more fans or something... unless I find the fans while dumpster diving.... lol.
...just my $0.02....
austinbmxnig
08-02-04, 11:28 PM
I have the same case as you and i just got done putting a window and it was hard to cut to say the least, i broke my dremel on it, i used battery powered jigsaws and got about an inch, then finally i used a corded jigsaw with hacksaw blade and it cut like buttah, i like my window, pics soon!
Capt Fiero
08-03-04, 12:18 AM
Capt,
One more thing. Why did you get a 4.5" hole saw rather then a 5"?
I took my 120mm fan with me to the Revy store and went though all there sizes. The 4.5 was the best match for the bladed area of the fan. I have cut fan holes with a holesaw that was too large before and hated the look, it showed the frame of the fan and it just looked tacky. With the 4.5 it works perfect. If you meassure the fan blades from tip to tip they are less than 4.5 or at least they are on all my 120mm fans.
Then I back it up with the wire grills and they seem to be just perfect in size.
Tru2ya - As to a drill, I use a Craftsman corded drill that my father gave me years ago. It's variable speed, 3/8" chuck (I aggree with the Capt. that a 1/2" chuck is better), 2.5 amp 1200 RPM motor. It's pretty light duty, I guess, but it cuts good holes. I just take it slow and easy and use oil on the cutting blade.
As to the 5" vs. 4.5" hole saw, I'll take some pictures of the 5" holes I cut to let you see what the Capt. is talking about. I think you will also agree that the 4.5" hole saw is the proper size. The 5" is just a bit too big. It works, but it's a bit rough.
Sean Lindstrom
08-03-04, 04:28 AM
You need as much gear reduction as possible.
Yeah. High torque, low speed, lean on it. A drill you can really lounge on is perfect for metal. But avoid drills beautified by sculpted, curvacious housings - a blocky housing is easier to line up to your work and presumably more compact than its overdressed young cousins.
Tools oughtn't wear shoulder pads.
***
A handy add-on to a drill is a bull's-eye level (http://www.jensentools.com/product/group.asp?parent_id=51550) carefully epoxied to the butt. You can always keep the bit plumb that way.
***
So the Dremel circle jig is just a trammel? A stick with a nail at one end, and a Dremel clamp at the other, essentially. Requires drilling a pilot hole. Maybe I'd better buy a Dremel router base, and make my own (plywood) circle jigs as needed.
Okay ... here are some pics of some holes I cut with a 5" hole saw.
http://home.texoma.net/~sdgilmer/2004-08-04%20001.jpg
http://home.texoma.net/~sdgilmer/2004-08-04%20002.jpg
As you can see (I hope - sorry for the poor quality :rolleyes: ), the hole extends quite a bit beyond the outer ring of the 120mm fan grill.
In the first pic, if you look really hard, you can see the edge of the fan case, and even a gap beyond it.
In the second pic, I put a peice of white paper in the hole so you can see the edge a bit better.
I hope this helps illustrate why a 4.5" hole saw is better than a 5" hole saw for 120mm fan holes.
Carry on. :D
I bought the Black and Decker DR501 drill and the buhol 4.5" hole saw(not sure if thats the right name). I'm trying to make a hole through the plastic clear window on the case. When I start the drilling, the blade keeps sliding off the material and just creating a bunch of scratches. Good thing I don't really care about the case. I'm trying to put as much pressure as I can but it still just slides off the material. I expected it to rip through the thin plastic very easily. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong.
Capt Fiero
08-06-04, 12:17 PM
First question, you do still have the drill bit in the center right, that is what keeps the hole saw from walking around while you are cutting a hole.
Second, try less pressure and let the hole saw do the work, once it gets into a grove then you can put more pressure on it, but you should not need much pressure cutting through plastic.
If this is an existing hole you are cutting out to make larger, try taping a piece of thick cardboard over the existing hole make sure to use a lot of ductape. This will allow the drill bit to have a guide to cut though.
I have cut round holes in many plastic front bezles and have never had much of a problem starting from a solid piece. But if you are trying to cut a larger hole from a pre-existing hole, it can be a bit of a pain.
Good luck and make sure to post pics of what you are working on.
Thanks again Capt. Like an idiot I did take the center drill bit out. I wasn't sure why it was there. I ended up just making another hole in the window because I didn't have any strong card board lieing around. I'll probably get a better case soon but this was just for practice. I didn't get the hole to cut out perfect because I wasn't on a completely even surface. You probably wouldn't notice it much.
http://img64.exs.cx/img64/5003/Picture152.jpg
I'll try to get more pics later. You can see in the upper right hand corner, the 80mm hole.
Hoo ah! :thup:
Looks good, Tru! :clap:
Now all you need is to hang out a shingle, "Case Mods While U Wait!" :attn:
HiProfile
08-07-04, 02:09 AM
Hehe It is a pain if your not a local or saying and spelling some of the Cities around here.
Milwaukee (mil-walk-E)
Us snowbirds (Cheeseheads also) have too many Indian named Cities and to me it is second nature but I always got a kick from hearing others get all tongue tied :D
I hear that...I live outside of Milwaukee in Waukesha County - on the edge of Oconomowoc ( :beer: ), on Lake Nemahbin. The only name not butchered around here is my township, Summit...
Anyways, back on topic, my dremils never seem to last very long after I use it with 5" holesaws...j/k IMO the best hole for a 120mm is the semi-octagon that makes up the intake of the fan's case (there's a reason fan cases aren't just simple tubes w/tabs). More flow, easier to cut, easier to make it perfectly shaped, and gives idiot friends just enough room around the edges to test the speed of the fan... :attn: (<-- two-time tester) The problem is that its more involved, creates much more dust (and boy does it smell good), and takes 1.5-2 cut-off discs per hole in steel cases.
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