where to get glass bit?

[smokinreefer]

looking for glass drill bits for making 1-1.5" holes...

anyone know of a good place to pick one up?

thanks.

[outtafocus]

I know Rona carries diamond hole saws , they are pretty pricey but will do the job. Just remember to keep adding water to the cut.

[BCOrchidGuy]

Shao, I phoned action glass and they gave me a phone number to a place in Surrey that sells them. I got a very in expensive one, it was about $20 and they gave me a small bag of the cutting compound. So far I cut about 10-15 holes and it's barely started to show wear. I don't remember the size it is though I'll try to check tomorrow and if it's a 1.5 you are free to borrow it if you have a drill press.

Doug

[smokinreefer]

thanks for the info...
and thanks for the offer doug...
but i dont think i can use it on a drill press as i want to drill a tank and not an individual glass pane...

[Kiznik]

I thought about buying a glass drilling bit and I checked online, at ebay and whatnot, and since shipping is pretty small for these, you can get an all right deal there.

What size is the bit you got for 20$ ??? Online you can get sets of five or something like that with a few different sizes but they're all fairly small sizes, like 1/4" to 3/4". For the larger ones the prices seemed to go up pretty quickly.

[Richer]

http://stores.ebay.com/OKSupplies_W0QQssPageNameZl2QQtZkm

Those are some of the cheapest diamond hole saws I've ever come across. I don't think you need a drill press to use them... I've seen and have had my tank drilled by people who just used a hand held drill.

-Rich

[BCOrchidGuy]

The reason for the drill press is to hold the bit steady and to keep it from Skating on the glass. Seems a number of people have had good sucess with a dremel so you may want to consider that. You may even want to give James at OA a call he said he'd come by and drill a hole or two for me when I was giving it some thought.

Doug

[Richer]

The people who drilled my tanks took it really slowly in the beginning and scored the glass enough so that they could set the diamond bit into the grove. After that, a spray bottle of water and a few minutes of drilling was all it took to get a nice hole. Another friend of mine, made up a template for his bit to help keep it steady. If you have access to a large enough drill press for your tank, by all means go that route... its a heck of a lot easier... but you don't need it if you take your time.

-Rich

[BCOrchidGuy]

I always thought about going the dremel route but making a plexi template to use as a guide. I'm thinking of a project with two 15 gallon aquariums and this may just be the perfect thing to try doing it on.

Doug

[Rikko]

You can get an almost perfectly round hole with a Dremel if you mark the hole cleanly. I always mark up the whole area with a Jiffy marker and then scratch out a circle with a compass.. You can really see where the ink has been scraped away and just Dremel it away. I find you get a much smaller hole than you might otherwise get anyways - but maybe you can find a more precise holesaw. When I took an exact measurement of the bulkhead I used with calipers it was a good 1/4" (diameter) smaller than a "standard" size.

[reefnut]

i used a dremel with a number 7144 bit.it was very easy and i can make alot of other cuts then just holes.i cut a few slots and an overflow.i was very surprised at how quick it went even though the glass was from a ten gallon and very thin.

[Salinity Now]

I've used these before and they cut pretty good thru glass. Just take your time with your cuts.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=31022&cat=1,130,43409,43425

You can get these as well, but the $25.00 difference still makes a difference to my pockets.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=31021&cat=1,130,43409,43425

[takphan]

check princessauto.com
they have even better deal

Tak

[Invigor]

i always break those cheap dremel bits :|

[BCOrchidGuy]

Masked Reefer, have you used those economy bits to cut glass? I'm going to have about 8 small tanks to cut some holes in and do you think the ones from Lee Valley would be alright or should I stick with the Dremel diamond bit?

Doug

[smokinreefer]

i think i may just get a bit off ebay... but at those prices i will only go with one size...

what size bit do i need for 1" bulkheads?

i figure if i go with that size, if i need more flow, i can just add drill a second hole.

[Salinity Now]

Masked Reefer, have you used those economy bits to cut glass? I'm going to have about 8 small tanks to cut some holes in and do you think the ones from Lee Valley would be alright or should I stick with the Dremel diamond bit?

Yes, I have used those economy bits to cut glass. I've cut 2 holes, approximately 1-1/2" diam X +/- 1/8" thick, with one bit. I probably could still cut one or two more holes from that bit. I guess it's your call on the Lee Valley or the Dremel bits. I'd ask others also to get their opinion. I'll be cutting a 65gal here shortly, maybe I'll start a thread on "Glass cutting, economy style":lol:

smokinreefer

I pretty sure you'll need a 1-3/4" hole for a 1" bulkhead.