Al, my hole-drilling friend:
Interestingly, my old Takara road bicycle had a LOT of holes drilled in the components when I still had Campagnolo parts. When I went to Sun Tour and Dia-Comp parts the holes were fewer, but larger and more artistically carved. Drilling component parts, however, when well done, can produce a part that is truly beautiful.
Here’s a good article of the bicycle hole-drilling group think in the late 1970’s when my last bike was built and why you see very few holes in road bicycles today. My current bike (my lightest ever at under 11 pounds) has almost no holes drilled. Even the brake handles, full of holes on my old Takara, are now carbon fiber, wafer-thin front-to-back on my Trek to reduce air drag, but wide enough to push sideways with a finger to do gear changes.