[MisterTea]

It doesn't set off alarm bells in my head. That bearing material is very soft and easy to drill. clamping it is not simple as it's easy to deform. I would have done the same and went nice and slow starting with a center drill and moving to a standard jobbers afterward.

[cduzz]

And I would have put the bearing shell over a pvc pipe and used a hand drill or just spun the drill bit between my fingers, assuming it is just bearing material.