Drilling PLEXIGLAS®: Nine steps to the perfect drilled hole

PLEXIGLAS® is drilled as easily as wood a few special properties must be factored in, however. Find out which drill bits are suitable for PLEXIGLAS®, how to drill and what to look out for during the process. Before you start, prepare your workplace and lay out all necessary tools.

Materials and tools: Drilling PLEXIGLAS®

1. PLEXIGLAS® Sheet
2. Drill bits
3. Countersink for deburring (or, for large holes, a metal or plastic file or a draw blade)
4. Stop Angle
5. Folding ruler
6. Permanent marker or grease pen
7. Clamping strip
8. Screw clamps
9. Wash bottle with water for cooling
10. Cotton cloth
11. Drill
12. Drill stand (optional)
13. Wooden Base

Instructions: Drilling PLEXIGLAS®

1

Do not remove masking film

Do not remove the masking film from the acrylic sheet.

2

Mark out the position of the drill hole

Mark out the position of the hole using a grease pen or permanent marker. The minimum distance from the edges is 1.5 times the required diameter of the borehole. Further information on marking out the drill hole position is available in the brochure Machining PLEXIGLAS®.

3

Clamp the sheet to the base

For accurate drilling, first, lightly secure the sheet with clamps or screw clamps to a firm, level base, of wood, for example; this could be a workbench or table. Before each drilling session clean the base so that no sharp-edged parts project from it. You may also clamp the material in a bench vice with protective jaws. Align the workpiece accurately before clamping it.

4

Set rotational speed

Many drills have the option to set the rotational speed. For neat results, working with a low rotational speed is recommended. As a rule of thumb: the greater the diameter of the borehole, the lower the rotational speed. Further information on cutting parameters is available in the diagram and the brochure Machining PLEXIGLAS®. You can also try out the appropriate settings on a practice piece (see also step 5).

5

Check rotational speed

The shavings produced while drilling indicate whether the rotational speed is correct. The images show the influence of rotational speed or cutting speed and feed rate on the quality of the drill hole, in this case with a PLEXIGLAS® sheet.

Above: optimal rotational speed and correct feed rate: smooth drill hole surface, smooth, continuous chip.
Center: rotational speed and/or feed rate too high: crumbly chip, rough drill hole.
Below: rotational speed and/or feed rate too low: overheating, drill hole shows signs of degradation, fused chip.

6

Align drill bit

Place the drill bit on the marking indicated and drill briefly. In this way you can check the position of the borehole.

7

Drilling

Switch on the drill before starting to drill.

Important: Shortly before drilling through the sheet, you should reduce the feed rate to prevent chipping.

8

Airing and cooling

For material thicknesses greater than 5 mm the drill bit should be regularly cooled down to prevent overheating. This is done by raising it briefly. You should also cool the drill hole. This is best done with water, which you fill into a wash bottle. Spray water into the hole at regular intervals. This is especially important for drill bits where shavings accumulate fast, such as when using spade drill bits.

9

Deburring the borehole

You should deburr the borehole on both sides, using a countersink; in this way the small notches arising during boring are prevented. For relatively large drill hole diameters you can use a scraper for deburring.