Tool for making hole in rubber belting.

[DWF]

I am planning on using a piece of 1/2" thick rubber belting for a support for a truck hood. I need to make two 3/8" holes for bolts. I'd like to have nice clean holes. What is the best tool for this?
Thanks!
DWF

 

[glennster]

a gasket punch would do a nice job.

 

[Errin OH]

Take about a 6-8" piece of 3/8 water pipe, cut it off square and sharpen the end to form a round punch (hole will end up same size and the ID). Lay belting on a block of hard wood set on something soild and give it a good wack.

Do it all the time for gasket making.

 

[Gary from Muleshoe]

Just clamp it between two pieces of plywood and drill it. A good sharp bit and take it slow will leave a nice clean hole.

 

[souNdguy]

ditto.. good wood bit will do it. if it has a rough texture.. clamp with wood as another poster said.

soundguy

 

[Aaron Ford]

A gasket hole punch was the only way I found. I tried drilling 14 different ways. Getting the plug out of the gasket cutter was a real pain.

Aaron

 

[Stephen Newell]

A brad point drill bit would do it, especially if you clamp a piece of wood on both sides of the belt when you drill it.

 

[Russ from MN]

The end grain of the hardwood! HF has sets of punches that work quite well. I have made them out of pipe, but most pipe is pretty soft!

 

[Grampy]

There are special "bits" for that. They are made by FLEXCO for installing mechanical splices in conveyor belts. I would"t buy them for just a couple of holes, but they sure are a handy item to have in the tool box. Ken

 

[JOHNNYfromMI]

http://www.flexco.com/products/boring-bit-b3b.html

Here is the tools we used to splice a convayor belt when I worked in a stone quarry. Put a hardwood block behind the belt and punch a clean hole in the belt.

 

[DH in Carolina]

38 special wad cutter, 44 mag

 

[Ryan - WI]

If it were me I would head to the nearest tool store (I have even seen them in the cheap tool bins at the hardware store) and pick up a hollow punch set.

http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?keyword=hollow+punch

 

[Anonymous-0]

A Forstner wood bit would probably work ok

 

[rustyfarmall]

(quoted from post at 19:33:00 12/23/11) I am planning on using a piece of 1/2" thick rubber belting for a support for a truck hood. I need to make two 3/8" holes for bolts. I'd like to have nice clean holes. What is the best tool for this?
Thanks!
DWF

A gasket punch is the best. You can make one easy enough as one or two of the other replies mentioned. A drill bit of any type will not leave a clean hole unless you clamp the rubber between 2 pieces of wood, as also already mentioned, but how are you going to get the hole in the precise location needed if the rubber is sandwiched between 2 pieces of wood and you can't see it?

 

[JMS/.MN]

I do something similar with copper tubing.....but I drill inside the end, so the outside is not tapered, thus the hole size is the OD of the tube.

 

[rustyfarmall]

(quoted from post at 09:31:24 12/24/11) I do something similar with copper tubing.....but I drill inside the end, so the outside is not tapered, thus the hole size is the OD of the tube.

Yes, do the sharpening on the INSIDE.

 

[36 Coupe]

Not strong enough.I bought leather punches 60 years ago.You can still buy a set for 10 bucks.

 

[JDseller]

I just take a short piece of 3/8 steel brake line. Then sharpen the inside of it with a chainsaw chain file. You can use it like a hole punch with a block of wood under it and hit it with a hammer. I also have good luck chucking it in a 1/2 drill and cutting the hole in the belting. I have to replace mud flap all of the time. I use a drill over punching them.

 

[GordoSD]

Holesaw

 

[spacechem]

IMO, the brad-point bit is the way to go. I also think you can dispense with the clamped wood blocks and have an easier time locating the holes. [u:e3ef0f10b6]The trick is to start the holes with your drill running in reverse[/u:e3ef0f10b6]. That way, the sharp 'wings' of the bit are taking a climb cut and not trying to dig aggressively into the workpiece. Once you have that initial cut made, re-reverse the drill and clean the cut piece out. Repeat the process until you are through.

 

[rick2 in ohio]

i use standard metal drill bits.use a bit about
twice the size hole you want and it will come out
just the right size.drill threw the rubber then
reverse it and work it back and forth just a little
and it will make a nice clean hole.
RICK

 

[jose bagge]

my saddle guy keeps a selection of ammo brass around as his punches.

 

[Ryan - WI]

Yes, do the sharpening on the INSIDE.

Those of you guys who are suggesting to do the sharpening on the inside are making it harder for yourselves. The reason why the factory punches (and my homemade ones) are sharpened on the outside is that in this case the plug that you cut out is not under compression inside the tool. When you sharpen the inside the plug is bigger than the id of the main part of the tool which makes getting the core out harder.

Since in most cases the material you are punching has some flexibility (like in this case rubber belting) the material will stretch around the tool on the outside leaving you with a perfect hole.

 

[36 Coupe]

Ammo brass is too soft.The case mouth is annealed soft to prevent cracking.Rubber belting is much tougher than leather.Too many posters on here seem to avoid using the proper tool for the job at hand.Ive been using leather punches since I was 12 years old.

 

[DWF]

A friend had a gasket punch set, so I used it to make the 3/8" hole all the way thru and use a 3/4" punch just into the belting so the head of the bolt didn't stick up.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
DWF

 

[Bill Krosnicki]

Try your local snowmobile shop. There is a special bit they use for drilling tracks for studs, that's probably the bit you need. They may even have extras as some kits come with the bit.