Drilling through carpet
 

Any tips on drilling through carpet without having it unravel? Need to screw down shifter boot. Was thinking about using short piece of 3/16 stainless brake line as a collar around drill bit, but thinking there might be a good trick someone knows?

I would think you'd want to cut a small slit in the carpet first with an X-Acto knife, then insert the tube through the slit before drilling.

Yes that's what I had in mind.

Or you can use a good sharp awl punch to "poke" a hole in sheet metal which I prefer when using sheet metal screws. Provided it won't distort the surface too bad....Just a thought..

x2

I use a small pick or awl for small screws, larger holes for seat belt bolts etc you'll need to cut an opening w/a knife.

I spotted a post a couple weeks ago that had a member mentioning he used a hot iron or soldering gun to melt a hole in the carpet , then dril through that. If I remember right, he was installing seatbelts. Said it worked like a charm. Makes sense to me.

X2 on the Soldering Iron.

patrick

Punch 1st. then tape the drill bit so it does not grab the carpet , winding it around the bit so it does un-wind .

Xs 3 on the soldering iron..... works great. You can use it for larger holes like the seatbelt bolts. Just be very careful you don't catch anything on fire. And watch your fingers..... that melted carpet will stay hot and very stickey for a few minutes.

Heated screwdriver
 

As stated previously, using a soldering iron or heated rod of some kind works well.

On a similar note, when I installed my headliner, I used the method of attaching all the screws first, then installed the headliner. Afterwards, I used a heated piece of metal and very carefully touched the screw heads allowing them to pop through the headliner. I was then able to attach the coat hangers, seat belt clips, and visors.