Question 1

What is difference between drill and reamer?

Accepted Answer

Drills start holes, reamers finish them: drill cuts new metal rough, reamer shaves the bored hole smooth to size. Drilling originates the hole with a double-point tool — rough walls, first phase of the job. Boring enlarges a drilled hole with a single-point bar where fitted. Reaming finishes an existing hole with a multi-point reamer for size and surface — neither length nor diameter grows. Use reamers for pin, valve-guide and bearing fits where drills alone would seize or weep. Surveyor follow-up: hole oversize after reaming — drill, speed or feed, and do you plug or bush it?

Question 2

Always center drill/punch before drilling any hole

Accepted Answer

Centre drill first, then punch, then drill — three operations because a drill that starts on a sloping surface walks. A centre drill cuts the pilot hole and seats the drill point squarely on the surface, so the drill does not skate. The punch gives a straight bearing face for the drill to start on, and the drill is then run to depth on a regular base. Skating buries the point, dulls it and can break the twist drill, and a hole off centre is a hole that has to be rehomed. The sequence is on the safety board as its own rule for exactly that reason. Surveyor follow-up: hole started with the work clamped loose on the plate — which failure came first?

Question 3

Always peck drill to prevent long chips from building up on the drill

Accepted Answer

Peck drilling withdraws the drill to clear chips; a continuous cut jams the flutes and can snap the bit in the hole. Pecking — withdrawing the drill periodically to break the chip — keeps the flutes clear and the cutting edge cool. Continuous drilling in a deep hole lets chips pack, which raises the torque, dulls the cutting edge and can part the drill. A broken drill in a hole is then a real casualty: it has to be extracted, often by a specialist, or the work is scrapped. So pecking is not a technique preference — it is what keeps a drill point consumable rather than consumable by fracture. Surveyor follow-up: drill broken in a deep hole with no extraction tool aboard — what has the pecking rule prevented?

Question 4

Always use the right speed for the diameter of drill and material being drilled. The

Accepted Answer

Speed follows diameter and material: too fast burns the edge, too slow work-hardens the swarf and stalls the drill. The correct cutting speed depends on the drill diameter and the material, and both are quoted in the chart for the job. Too fast on a large drill overheats and burns the cutting edge and can seize it in the hole. Too slow does not generate heat to clear the swarf, so the chips work-harden and the drill rubs instead of cutting. A dull drill is the symptom of the wrong speed — it produces oversized, rough holes and a rate of wear no lubricant can offset. Surveyor follow-up: oversized holes and a burned edge on mild steel — is that speed, feed or the bit material?

Question 5

Be sure that the bits can be used on the drill press and the speed they should run

Accepted Answer

Check the bit is for the machine and check the speed before you start — both are on the drill’s own capacity. The bit must be the type and the shank the machine takes; a hand-tool bit in a drill press is a mismatch of speed, not of convenience. Every drill has a stated speed range, and the pulley or the gearbox setting is set against the diameter of the bit and the material. The chuck is checked for damage and the bit is tightened in it, because a loose bit in a rotating chuck is a flying object. And the work is bolted down before the spindle starts — a plate held by hand is held by nothing at speed. Surveyor follow-up: drill press found with a hand bit fitted and the guard down — which two checks were missed?

Question 6

If the drill binds in the hole, stop the machine and turn the spindle backwards by

Accepted Answer

A bound drill is freed by stopping the machine and backing the spindle out — never by pulling the bit or restarting the cut. Stop the machine first, then reverse the spindle to break the drill free of the work. Pulling the bit out while it is bound shears it or tears the work; the bit is the stronger of the two. Freeing it and then inspecting the edge before continuing is the sequence, because a binding drill is usually a dull drill. If the spindle cannot be reversed, the machine is stopped, isolated and the work released by other means — not by force. Surveyor follow-up: drill broken while being pulled free — where exactly does that leave the plate?

Question 7

Let the drill press stop on its own after turning it off. Never stop the chuck with your

Accepted Answer

Switch off and let the machine coast to a stop — grabbing a spinning chuck with your hand is how a drill press takes a hand off. After switching off, the drill press is left to stop on its own; it is not braked to a halt. Never stop the chuck with your hand, a rag or a spanner — the stored energy in the belt and the bit is what does the injury. The chuck is set to stop before the belt and the motor, and the work is not handled until it has. This is the same rule as never reaching over a rotating chuck: the machine coasts, and nobody touches it while it does. Surveyor follow-up: a rag found caught in the belt drive — what is the actual sequence that caused it?

Question 8

Make sure the drill is tight and remove the chuck key immediately. Never leave the

Accepted Answer

The chuck key comes out the moment the chuck is tight; left in the chuck, it becomes a rotating steel bar. The drill is made tight in the chuck before starting, with the key held firmly and the chuck properly run out and re-tightened. The chuck key is removed immediately after tightening, and never left in the chuck or on the machine. A key left in a rotating chuck will strip, weld and fly, and a stripped chuck is then a further hazard on the next job. So the key is counted back into the case; a machine missing its key is a machine out of service. Surveyor follow-up: chuck key not on the machine board and the chuck showing strip marks — how long was it running like that?

Question 9

Remove tool bits from the tool post and drill chuck before cleaning

Accepted Answer

Bits come off before cleaning: a chuck still gripping a bit is a handle for a rotating part. Tool bits are removed from the tool post and from the drill chuck before any cleaning is started. Swarf and swarf trays are cleared with a brush or hook, never with the hand and never with anything that could be caught. The spindle is stopped and the machine isolated before a chuck or a heavy tool is taken off the spindle. The rule exists because cleanup is the moment people reach into a machine that is still turning — and the machine does not know you have finished. Surveyor follow-up: chips cleared while the spindle was still running — what was the actual sequence of the exposure?

Question 10

the drill press when finished, never clean machine while it is running

Accepted Answer

Never clean a machine while it runs — stop it, isolate it, then clean it. The machine is stopped and the power isolated before any cleaning, and the lockout is applied where one is provided. Cleaning a running machine is the classic way hands and clothing are drawn into belts, chucks and gears. Swarf and swarf trays are emptied after the job, with a brush and hook, and the area left clear for the next work. The stop is not optional housekeeping — it is the difference between a tidy machine and an injury record. Surveyor follow-up: a fire in a swarf tray on a machine found with no cleaning regime — which of the two causes is it?

Muster List & Drills — Most Asked Questions

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