Question about cutting tight circles for can lights in 5/8 fire rated board

I spent 45 minutes fiddling with a hole saw on a job in Portland last week until a foreman told me to just score the circle with a utility knife and tap it out with a hammer, and it worked way faster and didn't shred the paper face, has anyone else tried this method on thicker board?

3 comments

3 Comments

jordan_henderson1315d agoMost Upvoted

45 minutes with a hole saw? You're way off base, that trick only works on standard drywall.

henryt1815d ago

@jordan_henderson13 nailed it, this method falls apart quick on anything besides standard drywall setups.

beth_park15d ago

Honestly, that foreman was totally right. Ngl, I've been doing it that way on fire rated board for years and it saves so much time. Tbh, the whole hole saw struggle just isn't worth it when a sharp knife and a hammer do the job cleaner. The paper face stays intact too, which is huge for the fire rating integrity. Glad someone else figured out the same shortcut because that 45 minute nonsense sounds brutal.