Drill bits

[Van B]

After many frustrating years of muddling through with crappy drill bits I feel the need to invest in a decent set. What do you guys suggest for bits that will stay sharp longer and not break when you look at them wrong?

[Bryce]

Get a hss set or cobalt if you have the money. As for brand I sell and use Norseman with no issues.

[fordsbyjay]

I use the Cobalt Dewalt center point ones from Home Depot. They work good and are not too expensive, plus replacement are easy to get. I have never worn one out but I have broke a few, not the bits fault but due to a wobbly operator. The only downside is you can't open up an existing hole with them.

[camcojb]

cobalt here too.........

Jody

[Zanie]

Craftsman hss Black Oxide. no cobalt.

[MrQuick]

I do alot of drilling work and so far the fav free hand and press is the Irwin Turbo max. http://www.amazon.com/Irwin-Industrial-318015-TurboMax-15-Piece/dp/B000EB3YG2
i buy mine from Snap on tools and my favorite place on earth, Orchard Hardware. "what can you say about bark nuggets".

Treat the bits nice and they work for you everytime.

Keep them cool and lubed.
Vince

[David Pozzi]

I've got a high speed steel set from Snap-On that is outstanding. Also use some Triumph Cobalt drills from Enco.
The other side of the coin is to learn how to sharpen them.

[Bryce]

I've got a high speed steel set from Snap-On that is outstanding. Also use some Triumph Cobalt drills from Enco.
The other side of the coin is to learn how to sharpen them.

The Drill Dr. is awesome!

[ErikLS2]

Another vote here for the Drill Doctor and Snap On drill bits. I have found a properly sharpened and lubricated HSS bit works great for most things.

[MonzaRacer]

Honestly look into Mac Tools, as they do warrant the bits, for now. if you have a local tool dealer.
As for me i would look at both HSS and cobalt, as one can do things the other cant, like cobalt isnt for wood, titanium nitride coated is simply a lubricating coating, kind of like teflon. It has nothing to do with sharpness or hardness.
Also remember this the first cut is critical, if done wrong the bit will be useless unless resharpened. Drill bits have a way that either they are super sharp and perfect for specific jobs, then you crowd them and they break and are gone(unless you have a Drill Doctor sharpener)or the sides of the tip burn or round and they are crap.
I also recommend the Thunder bits from Snap On in cobalt.
Drill bits are like end wrenches, you will have 4 variations of the same number for different jobs.
Like my end wrenches at work are Matco 12pt metrics in the shorter length, Blue Point 12 pt ratcheting, and a set of Mac Edge 6pt flex head that you gotta flip to reverse. Each has its use.
I have a Mac set of 6 pt deep 3/8 sockets, a set if no longer sold mid depth Craftsman 6pt sockets and my shallow 3/8 are Matco Impact, I also have one set of stackable Mac deep impact metric 6 pts sockets.
Each set will serve specific purposes.
Also dont look past MSC , Enco, and other industrial tool suppliers that sell many economy bit, tool holders, vises, machines, supplies etc.
Lots of shops have tons of "generic" ie unbranded industrial tools to do everyday work and something with name would be hundreds of dollars but these have none and may only cost from $1 to $50.
Enco does have several multi sets with all of the fractional, numbered and lettered sets in several alloy types.
These are generally used in production shops and then they keep the popular bits in singles in tool room and you ask for replacements, and they resharpen them if possible or have them reground.
so replacements can be bought for popular sizes reasonably and you just wait but may have a drawer with 20 packages of the ones you break most.

[prostreet69camaro]

Get the ones with 135 degree tips.

[70 Chevelle]

How many of you have used the drill dr. with success. I always thought it was a toy.

[Bryce]

I have had great luck with the drill dr.

THe 135 angle drill bits are typically cobalt. Cobalt is a harded steel than HSS and will cut through stainless much better.

[tommycomfort]

I've had great luck with my drill doctor. At this point, I try to buy all my bits at wholesale tool where they give me the choice of USA made or import. If I can swing it, I will buy the USA stuff and have never been disappointed.
Tom

[sniper]

The drill doctor has taken the grief out of drilling for me. I am hard in bits with a hand drill. In the drill press they last longer and stay sharp.
For me, I want my tools set up for weasy use. I hate having to try and un pack something, set it up and use it. I just want to grap it and go. But I set up the drill doctor up next to the battery chargers so it's a quick chuck up, hit em 3 times a side and bam, sharp, fresh bit with no hassle.

[wellis77]

Just picked up a drill doctor on ebay a couple days ago. I have a drawer full of bits that have been patiently waiting for me to buy one. Can't wait to be able to use all those old bits again.

[brans72]

I use KNKUT and I am impressed with them over my old turbo max,and just old bits I had laying around. I wanna try a drill doctor just still unsure on them. How long does it take to sharpen decent size bit? Just looking for more info and personal experince from using drill doctor. Brandon

[Samckitt]

Sounds strange, but I bought some Black and Decker ones at Wal Mart that have a funky tip with more surface cutting area than a regular angled ones. They cut really fast, even compared to the DeWalt bullet tip ones.

[CamaroAJ]

snap on, cornwell and matco all warranty 1/4" and up. mac warrantys all of their bits.

[wellis77]

I wanna try a drill doctor just still unsure on them. How long does it take to sharpen decent size bit? Just looking for more info and personal experince from using drill doctor. Brandon

I can't say from experience yet, but there are a few in this thread already that have commented on it's greatness...

[Jim Nilsen]

The best thing about a drill doctor is that you can make any bit a split point bit. I have sharpened thousands of bits on one wheel. Sometimes there are some bits that need to be rotated clockwise in the holder to get the right edge. I have had drill bits that were new and wouldn't drill very well and then you sharpen it and realize that it wasn't the steel that was bad , it just wasn't sharpened right. It only takes 1 minute to have a good drill bit again in most cases.

We used to use the Triumph bits at work and had good luck with them.
You can find some nice indexes at Mc Master-Carr from cheap to expensive. They sell Drill Doctors too I believe, Get the next to the best one and you will always be happy with it.

[Northeast Rod Run]

If you look in a machinist supply catalog (MSC is a good one), you will see plenty of good ones (Made in USA, Cleveland Twist Drill, Guhring, Chicago Latrobe, etc). From here you can step-up to cobalt or carbide. Hell, even their cheap import ones are better than most anything you will get from Snap-On or Mac. This is where most machine shops get their supplies from and it's not worth us messing around with inferior drills.

Even when you see "titanium coated" drills out in the regular stores, those are usually inferior drills with the cheapest and thinnest coatings possible. You can usually even notice how uneven and poorly coated those drills are compared to if you saw a high quality drill. A lot the same "usual" places that sell the cobalt and carbide drills usually sell cheaper ones also. They might seem pretty good to you, but there are many different grades and mixes of those materials in the drills, and again, if you buy from a real industrial supplier instead of a tool supplier (Snap-On, Mac, etc) you will see the big difference

While we're on almost the subject, how about taps?

Greenfield, Guhring and OSG are great taps and the tool guys stuff can't compare. Their stuff is much more powder based than the ones I mentioned. I just had to go bail out one of my mechanic friends a week ago becaus ehe was trying to tap out a hardened bolt cutter (I still don't understand why he was doing it). He broke too many Snap-On taps so I went to his shop with just a couple of beat-up Greenfield taps and took care of it for him. He now understands why I always tell him the his taps are crap and I wouldn't tap a piece of wood with them

[Kamikaze Sy]

Cobalt bits and the Drill Doctor are the only way to go!

Time savers and a little bit of cutting lube will help keep the bits from burning up!

I have the older pro model Drill Doctor, (came with a VHS tape!), and it has yet to fail me!

[BulldawgMusclecars]

I bought a set from my local Kimball-Midwest rep, and have been pretty impressed with them. They weren't cheap, but after 6 months of daily shop use I haven't broken one, and they are all still sharp.