[Quoting Cew27]the rotary file set. will they fit my dremel?
They have a 6mm shank, so possibly not. I use them in a cordless drill. They're not particularly high quality tools, those Bosch rotary files, but they'll deal with an Altoids tin. A proper reamer or step drill is probably OTT for such thin metal. In fact, the very thinness of the mint tin metal makes it quite awkward to deal with IMO. Also, because a reamer is a proper cutting tool, it might remove too much metal too easily, leaving you with too big a hole. The crappier Bosch conical file removes metal more slowly and makes slip-ups less likely.
Fred_Fred's method is a good one, or you could try one of the Black & Decker 'Bullet' drill bits, which centre themselves better and cut flimsy materials like a mint tin more cleanly than a conventional twist drill. It will also help if you can hold a piece of wood behind the metal to prevent it from flexing too much or collapsing while you drill. I started using old tobacco tins bought off eBay to case Cmoys. Solid and slightly easier to work with. And 20% cooler.
[Edited by miles hand on 03-21-2009 at 08:54 PM.]
posted 03-21-2009 12:40 PM CST (US) 
