Voltmeter fitment

I used a metal hole cutting saw, that I already had.
it came in a kit of hole saws that I must have bought 40 plus years or more ago.
Greenlee brand.

OR,
it may have been from a kit of Hole Punches from Greenlee also.

I have both. the hole punches do a better job, no jagged edges

AZgl1800 said:

I used a metal hole cutting saw, that I already had.
it came in a kit of hole saws that I must have bought 40 plus years or more ago.
Greenlee brand.

OR,
it may have been from a kit of Hole Punches from Greenlee also.

I have both. the hole punches do a better job, no jagged edges

Click to expand...

I’ve got a set of hole saws. I could chuck the 2” saw in my drill press. I assumed that the center drill bit would cause the ABS to crack.

toolcraft4100 said:

I’ve got a set of hole saws. I could chuck the 2” saw in my drill press. I assumed that the center drill bit would cause the ABS to crack.

Click to expand...

Drill a small pilot hole first, then one the size of the center bit. Go slowly. If you have a step bit use it to make the pilot hole. It slices the plastic and won't jam. Make the hole the same size as the center bit.
When starting the hole saw, run the drill in reverse to score the plastic, then forward to make the hole.

If you don't have a CB there should be an empty 2 pin connector real close to that area. If you do have a CB you could tie into it anyway.

Plus one on the step bits. They are great in plastic. Much better than using a hole saw.

RambozoClown said:

Plus one on the step bits. They are great in plastic. Much better than using a hole saw.

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One thing about the step bits is you can use them on the opposite side to clean up the burrs.
The only problem with step bits is they are limited in the size of the hole. The largest one I've seen is 1 3/8. Any one over 1 inch should be used in a drill press. They will grab if not kept completely perpendicular to the material. Especially in plastic and thin metal.
As far as the hole saws, the finer the teeth, the smoother the hole in plastic. Use a little soapy water as a lube.

I got big one on Amazon that is perfect for installing gauges and trailer sockets. Goes to 65mm (just under 2 5/8").

RambozoClown said:

I got big one on Amazon that is perfect for installing gauges and trailer sockets. Goes to 65mm (just under 2 5/8").

LESOLEIL Large HSS Spiral Step Drill Bit - 1/4" to 2-5/8'' Grooves Cone Drill Bit Titanium Coated for Drilling Aluminium Iron Sheets, Wood, PVC Hole Cutting - - Amazon.com

LESOLEIL Large HSS Spiral Step Drill Bit - 1/4" to 2-5/8'' Grooves Cone Drill Bit Titanium Coated for Drilling Aluminium Iron Sheets, Wood, PVC Hole Cutting - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

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WOW

toolcraft4100 said:

I’ve got a set of hole saws. I could chuck the 2” saw in my drill press. I assumed that the center drill bit would cause the ABS to crack.

Click to expand...

I remember that I almost did it by hand, no drill press.
that ABS will fracture just looking at it.

thinking back, I am pretty sure, I started with a 1/8" bit, and gradually made it larger with a Step Bit until the Hole Punch bolt would fit thru it

RambozoClown said:

I good reminder that I needed to add a battery capacity gauge to one of the golf carts in prep for a LiFePO4 upgrade.
This was poly not ABS so no worries about cracking. Giant step drill made short work of it, since the factory gauge hole is too small.

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Glad to help. We all need a little memory bump once in a while.

I used a cheepo wood hole saw set to cut a hole for a power outlet in the 1200 false tank. They work fine on plastic and fiberglass.

Just make sure you wire it to a switched power supply NOT direct to battery or you will flatten your battery

Bryanlj said:

Just make sure you wire it to a switched power supply NOT direct to battery or you will flatten your battery

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that is a fact, jack.
mine is Wired Direct to the Battery, because I wanted to know that the Battery Tender is working when I walk by it in the garage.

forget to plug in the battery tender, and 3 days later, the battery is flat or nearly so.
if I have to leave it for along time, w/o the battery tender, I pull the fuse out to the voltmeter

I found out years ago when a neighbor with an mg midget had 3 replacement batteries in a month then i noticed he had a cheap moving iron voltmeter reading all the time and they take about 1/4 amp!

That is a downside to LiFePO4 batteries, voltage has almost no correlation to state of charge. So that meter measures the current going into and out of the batteries so you can read the state of charge. Because these carts get trailered all over the place in really rough areas, the battery life has been awful with Trojan lead acid. AGM would have been a lot better option back in the day for vibration resistance. However, now LiFePO4 prices have come down to the point that it's kinda a no-brainer. Saving 300 pounds on each cart isn't bad either. The rough service lifespan is the big unknown at this point.
An upcoming project will be to build a mini cart that can hang on a hitch mount on the back of a truck without any trailer.