Drilling pearls

I hold the pearl with my fingers against a bench pin attached to my work surface. I start with a really small round burr, .4 mm to make a small divit where I want to drill. The divit gives the drill bit a place to start and keep if from sliding off the pearl. After I've made the divit, I use a .4mm stainless steel drill bit and drill the pearl where I made the divit. You have to drill slowly so you don't crack the nacre.

I don't have the drill press and I do it all by eye, but I try to keep the drill as perpendicular as possible to the pearl. After drilling a bit, I will rotate the pearl in my fingers and drill again. This helps to keep the hole as perpendicular as possible.

But like Dfrey mentioned, I only use this method to half drill.
 
I don't have a brand for the drill bits, sorry. Not sure what you mean by "bit types". The small round bur as a starter is a great idea to prevent the drill bit from skating over the pearl surface. I am using .7mm and 1mm drill bits because that's the diameter of the wire I usually use for pegs.
DFrey
 
You can use mine for free next time your on the mainland.:D Dremels would be a bit scary for me. One bad move and you have mabes
 
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Mikeyy said:
You can use mine for free next time your on the mainland.:D Dremels would be a bit scary for me. One bad move and you have mabes
Click to expand...

Let's see.... air fare to the mainland or buy a drill which would be cheaper? You could come to Hawaii and bring the drill! And you and my husband could sit on the deck, drill pearls, drink beer (root or malted) and compare beards!
 
waimeamomi said:
Let's see.... air fare to the mainland or buy a drill which would be cheaper? You could come to Hawaii and bring the drill! And you and my husband could sit on the deck, drill pearls, drink beer (root or malted) and compare beards!
Click to expand...
Hmm, Decisions decisions.(pulling my beard)
 
No, I meant a drill brand name or suggestion for a high speed twist drill.

Don't give up on me, I can learn!
__________________
Sheryl

Dear Sheryl:
May I ask why you think you need a high speed twist drill (bit)? I use basic titanium drill bits in a size .32mm and I anchor the pearl in a padded hand clamp. The dremel works great. As long as you check your position (pearl) before starting you should be able to flip the clamp. I am planning to build a jig that holds the dremel steady and allows the pearl clamp to move to and from the bit. Like in the pics but made of wood with steel guides.
I've been looking for a jig pattern. There doesn't seem to be one on the market but I will persevere.

BTW, the dremel tool guide says NEVER drill with your bare fingers. It's dangerous. Keep in mind that that little itty bitty bit is going around several hundred times a minute. It can make a real mess out of your fingers. Use a clamp.

Keep safe.
barbie
 
Thanks, Barbie. I don't know what kind of drill I need, that's the problem!! I just know I need to drill Tahitians, some round some large, some keishis. I am really thinking about trying the Dremel. Your info really helps because I need to be talking to someone who actually does this. I'll look around for a jig as well or jig pattern, and maybe between the two of us...
Thanks!
 
Hey Sheryl,

I would recommend you use a flexible shaft drill or a drill with a foot pedal to control the speed of that drill. The brand of drill I use is "Foredom". I really like it. I think the Dremel will work, but I don't like the lack of speed control with the Dremel.

The bits I use with my Foredom drill are stainless steel round burrs and twist drill bits. I like the Grobet burrs and drill bits but they can be kind of pricey. Rio Grande burrs and drill bits work well too,

I'm not that scared about holding the pearls with my fingers because I'm drilling at a low speed, but what jeweler doesn't have a myriad of injuries to their fingers. *hah*
 
Pearly Shell said:
I'm not that scared about holding the pearls with my fingers because I'm drilling at a low speed, but what jeweler doesn't have a myriad of injuries to their fingers. *hah*
Click to expand...

Oooh girlfriend, you are one tough jeweler! ;)
 
You know it. You don't mess with me and my Foredom. ; )
 
Dear Sheryl:
Have been looking at Rio Grande today. If you read to the bottom of the list of things available on the left side of the page, waaay down at the bottom, you'll see "Wire Working". Click on wire working and then go to page 2. Basically, they are using a good quality commercial drill on a jig set up. Now, granted, in this picture they are talking about wire wrapping but it's a very short jump to taking your high quality drill and a good backer board, some wire clamps and good quality vibrations dampening material, (I'll look into this more if you want) and you've got the drill end of the jig. Now all we need is the clamp set up. I have 4 good drills, 2 cordless, and 3 routers. I could easily dedicate one to a pearl drilling station. Does your hubby have a drill you can use? A good non-commercial drill can run $150.00 to $200.00 USD. Being able to dampen vibration and control the pearl are the important parts.

Oh, and the part about a footpedal for controlling speed, not an issue. Most good woodworking stores have those available. You can convert almost any tool to foot pedal efficiency the same way you'd plug in your lamp to an electric 'bar'. Yeah I know, it's one more thing to buy. Upside is you can use it on any tool you want to control the speed of, without moving your pearl drilling station. Just think of it as an extension cord plus. But don't use it on your lamp. Could brown out the bulbs.

Oh, one last thing. This hasn't come up yet and I wonder what Jeremy does about it but, I use really tiny drill bits, based on the size of holes in pearls I've gotten from PP. When I break a bit I generally have to purchase a 'collection of 6 or 7 in a pack. It's a pain. (But what, $12.00 bucks?) The 1mm bits may be available individually.

Jeremy: What do you do about drill bits? Does your machine use special ones?

barbie

Bottom line: If you build a decent jig this year and learn to drill, next year you will probably have saved up for the better drill and be the better able to take care of it. Plus, having done some drilling you will then be better able to know what questions to ask.
 
I see that this thread is old, but wanted to post for the sake of anyone looking for advice in the future... I would love to have an electric pearl drill myself, but I've found, for the number of pearls that I need to drill, I can do the job by hand with no problem. I make a few necklaces and bracelets each year. After a tremendous amount of time spent searching before I got started, I finally purchased Japanese pearl drill bits from Otto Frei, and use them in a small non-electric hand drill. I think the bits could be used in a variable speed Dremmel on the slowest setting, but I haven't tried it. Not sure if it would go slow enough.

So far, I've only needed to enlarge the holes of pearls that were already drilled, but I don't think it would be a problem to start holes by hand as long as you start with the smallest drill bit and then enlarge as needed. When enlarging holes, it works best to start with a bit that's one size up from the existing hole. Drill part of the way in, then turn the pearl around and drill through from the other side. If you still need a larger hole, drill in stages, using the next bit size up until the desired hole size is reached. If you skip a size, it's more difficult. Pearls are pretty soft, so doing it this way is not difficult, (just time consuming). I tried using a jig in the beginning, but it wouldn't hold the 3-4 mm pearls I was working with. Since then, I've just held them in my fingers while drilling. There's no danger of injury, but the fingers do get sore from holding them if you're trying to drill enough for a whole project in one day. It's something you can do while watching TV or chatting, so, not a bad idea to do a few at a time, ahead of time!

Here are links to the Otto Frei pages for the drill bits, and the little hand-held drills. If I can figure out how to attach pictures, will post ones of a bracelet and necklace I made for my granddaughter's first birthday. It took forever to find clasps that were small enough! If anyone has advice on where to find tiny ones, I'd appreciate the info!

http://www.ottofrei.com/Store/Pearl-Lathe-Pearl-Drills/Pearl-Drill-Genuine-Japanese.html

http://www.ottofrei.com/Store/Cobal...ium-Twist-Drills/Archimedian-Push-Drills.html

Nians pearl bracelet_Christmas 2016.jpgNian in bd dress and pearls.jpg
 
Have you considered using magnetic clasps for jewellery for young children. I would hate to think of a bracelet or necklace getting hooked on something and not break away. Could be very dangerous.
 
<3 Love your bracelet and adorable little model!
 
I've got both a Dremel and the Chinese drill. I don't drill many pearls so decided that the Japanese machine wasn't cost effective. The Chinese drill is fine. Mikes makes an excellent point on the sharpness of the bit. I've drilled Edison's ( half drill) and Tahitians ( half drill) and no problem. I got mine here for around 250$AUD on sale. The Dremel I use to redrill or clean up a drill hole. It's fine, very handy. The Drill press for it is hopeless.

Lots of online companies sell drill bit sets for Dremel ..from .5-1.0 Mostly you need. .7 .9 1.0

You can buy the bits for the Chinese drill at Jac's and a few other places on ETSY.. or at a Jewellery Supply shop.
 
Keep in mind on the drill bits you use, you want a very hard drill bit for Tahitian pearls, and other pearls with a bead. For pearls that are all nacre, you can use the lesser quality drill bits and they will be fine. I have a Japanese drill and drill bits. For me it was worth the expense, and it does a beautiful job easily.
 
Best way is to buy in bulk and be prepared to throw them after just a few pearls - they go blunt almost immediately and unless you can sharpen them again (as the pearl factories do) then the cost of a bit is always less than the cost of the pearl which will be damaged by trying to drill it with a blunt overheated bit
 
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