Wooden wheels

[Ber Gueda]

I am doing a lot of toy cars, trucks and so on and I need a reliable hole saw that does not "burn down" after a couple of uses. I am very careful using them (low speed, smooth pressing on the drill press...) but it doesn't help much. After some uses, they are already dull. By the way, I am using pine most of the time, it's not a hard wood. 

I thought about buying them, but unfortunately in Europe you don't get a good offer as in the USA, where you can buy a bunch of them for not much money and in a different range of sizes. So I decided I would make mine as they suit me better. 

Anyway, what is your experience with these hole saws and what kind of material (eventually producer) would you recommend? 

Thank you for your comments.

[Dan]

What is the thickness of the wood you are drilling? Hole saws don't clear out the wood very well. Have you tried drilling half way through, flip the board over and finish from the other side? Also drill a little, clear the kerf, then drill a little more and repeat until you're through. 

I love making wheels. I usually buy the small ones and make the big ones.

[Scrappile]

For me, hole saws do not stay sharp very long.  If I am just making toys for little kids. I buy the wheels.  If I am trying to make a model of a car, I turn the wheels on my Lathe.   It is time-consuming but very rewarding.

[Wichman]

What types of hole saws have you tried? carbon steel, carbide tooth, carbide grit, cobalt tooth, wingtip, carbide wingtip?

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

Carbide is your best bet. Always carbide for longer lasting drilling in anything. Lennox is a good brand. 

[Ber Gueda]

I am using bi-metal HSS for the moment being.

[Gonzo]

I agree with JT.

I make my wheels out of 3/8” Baltic Birch or any scrap wood that I have laying around. 

[BadBob]

I have a large collection of hole saws. I used to make all my wheels and still do for the odd sizes. I have never had a hole saw get too dull to use. Mine are old Vermont American brands. They may be high-speed steel, but I am not sure. Carbon steel saws will dull quickly if the get hot. Starting a few years ago, I began cutting wheels with a scroll saw. I must sand the edges using either method so the hole saws are retired.

When using hole saws to cut wheels, I found it much easier to cut the hole, slightly overlapping the edge of a previously cut wheel's kerf, allowing the sawdust to escape.

I would buy carbide hole saws if I needed to replace one.

A batch of odd-size wheels I cut with a hole saw.

[CharleyL]

When using a hole saw, keeping the teeth of the hole saw blade cool keeps them sharp longer. With the repeating circular motion, there isn't any place for the saw dust to go and the teeth get filled with saw dust, then become more of a friction cut than a saw cut. This heating will rapidly dull the blade teeth of all blades, regardless of if they are on a hole saw or straight cutting blade, or even a scroll saw blade. If the blade teeth can't be kept clear and build up with saw dust, this will happen. Most straight cutting or scroll saw blade cutting dumps the saw dust as the teeth exit the wood at end of stroke. A hole saw doesn't have this capability and continues to fill the teeth with saw dust with no where to clear them. 

An air gun aimed at the cutting point and frequent backing out of the hole saw blade will allow the compressed air from the air nozzle will blow the teeth and the cut clear of saw dust every time the hole saw is backed out of the cut and keep the teeth cutting well and not dulling rapidly. Saw blades of any kind can't cut if the gullet between the teeth are plugged up with packed in saw dust. They become friction saws and the heat built up from continuing to try to use it will destroy the blade teeth.  

Charley

 

[Ber Gueda]

Thank you everyone for your comments. I think I should pay more attention to eliminate the saw dust as frequently as possible. I will try to use my VAC, that might help also everytime the hole saw is backed out. 

[Jim Finn]

I buy my wheels for the over 1000 cars I make a year.  While drilling wood for anything,  you should use slow feed rate and high speed as compared to drilling metal.

[rash_powder]

If you cut your wheels next to an edge so that the wheel stays round, but the saw breaks through the edge, that will give a natural exit point for the waste.  

With careful measuring and setup you could also place a relief hole at the outside edge of the saw kerf.

A few relief cuts up the side of the hole saw may give waste a place to go.

Other options would be to use the hole saw to make a pattern to follow - just cut a few mm's deep, then bandsaw, jigsaw or scrollsaw the part out.

The drill press can be converted to a sort-of lathe; and hand drills can be used to power a more traditional looking DIY lathe.

Sometimes you have to think well outside of the box to get the solution you want.

[BadBob]

You could make a pattern, print it, and cut it on the scroll saw. First, drill the axel holes.

 

[Ber Gueda]

50 minutes ago, BadBob said:

You could make a pattern, print it, and cut it on the scroll saw. First, drill the axel holes.

 

You are right, but in my case I need to do quite a lot of job afterwards because I can't scroll such perfect circles. I find, though, very interesting also this piece of advise:

On 3/12/2025 at 2:08 PM, rash_powder said:

Other options would be to use the hole saw to make a pattern to follow - just cut a few mm's deep, then bandsaw, jigsaw or scrollsaw the part out.

since it might make much easier to cut them on the scroll saw. I will definitely give them a try.

Thanks!

[BadBob]

6 minutes ago, Ber Gueda said:

You are right, but in my case I need to do quite a lot of job afterwards because I can't scroll such perfect circles. I find, though, very interesting also this piece of advise:

Whichever method you choose, you will need to sand the edges. I make mine slightly larger and use a simple jig to sand them to size. I have made wheels from squares with an axel hole drilled in the center. If you have a sander with a table, make a simple jig and sand them around. 

I don't have a photo of the jig. It is just a piece of wood with an appropriate-sized hole drilled in it. The bit is removed from the drill and inserted in the hole. This is clamped to the sander table at the appropriate distance. Put a wheel over the bit and tweak the position if needed. Turn on the sander and turn the wheel. I have made hundreds of wheels like this.