Ever wanted to drill a pretty pebble or sea glass?  You'll know that it is tricky to hold onto a small specimen while drilling.  Even with a drill press.  So I especially loved Mark Nelson of Rio Grande's tutorial where he drills the  stone with a simple holder.


He makes a custom holder using thermal or moldable plastic pellets. These are reheatable and reusable.  I really like this idea and wonder if it can be used for other situations and crafts which would help people hold a small item. Can you think of other uses?  Obviously the item has to be heat tolerant as you will have to gently reheat the mold to release the item.

Mark goes on to share his tips and tricks on drilling with his hollow diamond tipped bit.  Really nice idea to use the same drill bit to carve designs on the stone's surface.

His final tip on how to drill sea shells does not use the plastic mold - shells are very delicate so his sponge and water idea is a good one.



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Original Post by THE BEADING GEM
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