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Discussion Forum

Best Drill bits?

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Mike Christian

10-12-2001 09:41:41




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Hey All,
WHat are the best drill bits when it comes to
longetivity and not gewtting wrecked? This weekend
I have to drill holes in 1/4 in mild steel
plating, that I am using to reinforce a few weak
spots in my trucks frame, and I need to bolt the
spring mounts back onto the frame and widen some
holes for some new mounts. There was a company
with a rather extensive bit set for around $175 or
so, were garunteed not to walk, and if you ever
broke one, theyd send you 2 for free.
-Anybody heard of these? I always seem to be wrecking the cheapies, and
want something that will last. Any Ideas?


Mike

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jdkid38

11-05-2001 23:33:36




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
ive got a set of drill bits that i purchased at a farm show they are Winters drill bit phone # 1 800 950 3938 they are the toughest drill bits ive ever had and will drill about anything even other drill bits i paid 100 dollars for mine but that was 5 years ago and if you do break one they will give you another one to replace it



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Hobo

10-16-2001 03:45:59




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  

I would suggest a cutting fluid called Tap Magic. Also it is best to center punch the area where you are going to drill and also to start out small and then move up to the larger bits. Irwin makes several good sets of drill bits and I sell them at my business. Any other questions let me know.



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Tom

10-14-2001 18:30:40




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
Sharp ones are the best. Learn to sharpen them and keep them that way. A cheap one will drill fairly well if it is sharp but the best bit in the world will not do anything if it is dull.



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Gordon in IN

10-13-2001 18:32:18




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
Keep a drill from "walking" by drilling a small "pilot" hole. This makes it a lot easier to drill the larger holes and makes it much easier to control and is easier on the drill. Plain old HHS drills are hard to beat. I have even had very good luck with the CHEAP ($10 for a set from 1/16 to 1/2 inch) HHS drills from Harbor Freight. Keep the drill sharp. Keep the drill cutting; it will actually run cooler and cut better. On larger drills turn the drill SLOW. Check the recommended cutting speeds for the size drill you are using in a good manual (Machinery Handbook). Most low priced drill presses and hand drills turn too fast for sizes above 1/2 inch. Wear safety goggles and/or full face shield. You can see better when you are not trying to keep "hot drill shavings" away from your face and out of your eyes. When (if) a drill breaks, the face shield and safety glasses are good "insurance". Good luck, Gordon in IN

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bill bva

10-13-2001 16:59:21




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  

there must be a drill lubricant expert here among us some where .... i have the information in my notes some place . there are different lubricants depending on what is being drilled from water to lard and of the oils from low sulphor to high sulphor. some are best drilled dry... cast iron being one if i remember correctly . bill b va ... P.S if you are ever drilling something dry and some one walks up and says that will drill better if you use oil... you say should it be mineral or peterolum based , high or low sulphor ,or animal fat, high or low speed ... my guess is they will say nothing and just walk away

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Mac

10-13-2001 08:47:14




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
Have used Morse for some odd 40 years. Find that these drills and cutting tools are just pretty darn good. Somewhere I saw a set 1/16 to 1/2 by 64ths for about 50 bucks.



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ted

10-13-2001 05:34:00




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
I use cobalt drill bits in my drill press for hard material. They really hold up well on thick steel.
I use titanium coated drill bits in by hand held drills that I got on sale from Harbour Freight on the internet. These have taken quite abit of abuse.



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busdriver

10-17-2001 07:29:02




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 Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to ted, 10-13-2001 05:34:00  
I agree with the Cobalt bits, they are pretty darn good. I have found the drill bits at Tractor Supply Company that are for "Tough Metal" are Cobalt and I like 'em quite a bit. Of course they are a little pricey - a 1/2" bit is around $9.



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Rod MI

10-12-2001 23:47:17




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
Mike I would go to your local machine shop supplier and ask for a catalog for what you are doing I would buy American made jobber drill 115pc bright finish set in High Speed Steel ($138.50 you get what you pay for) you can go to cobalt steel but they brake easy and cost twice as much ($380) the smaller drills you are always going to brake them sooner or later but probable sooner personally I would not buy a drill sharpener and I would buy a good bench grinder (Tip when sharpening drills it helps to turn of the grinder then sharpen the drill better control) and buy a drill gage (at machine shop supplier $10.00 ) instead and on the smaller drills you can use a flat surface and sum emery cloth and just follow the angle of the drill to sharpen making shire that the point is in the center of the drill and the flute angle is about the same good luck Rod MI

P.S It mite help to buy sum cheap drills to practice sharpening with but you can do it

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Neal in NM

10-13-2001 06:59:53




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 Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Rod MI, 10-12-2001 23:47:17  
Rod you are one hundred percent right! I have worked in many shops mostly mold making but I have also done production work. Right now I own my own shop and only have HSS drill bits. I am always amused when I have to remove a cobalt drill broken off by a shade tree mechanic. The people who think the cotated drills are great don't understand that the coating was designed for high speed production work where seconds count and using them for home use is a big waste of money.

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Rod MI

10-13-2001 14:53:36




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 Re: Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Neal in NM, 10-13-2001 06:59:53  
Neal I have spent about 8 years in the trade and been threw the production and mold and Die stamping thing sow I’m just going by experience I have tried cobalt drills and they seam to be to brittle for me and the life of a VERY GOOD brand of HS drill will work 99% of the time and probable last longer do to cobalt braking (but cobalt dues have its place) I wish you luck with your business adventures (if business is like around hear you need it) Rod MI

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Larry Garbarek

10-12-2001 17:29:02




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
Drills that do not walk are a dime a dozen.

Its know as a split point design and is offered by all major drill manufacturers.

A more readily available split point drill is sold by Black & Decker as their "Bullet Drill".
It can be a little expensive, but, no where near the $175 you reference.

The B&D drill is actually made by Triumph Twist Drill of Rhinelander WI, America's largest volume drill manufacturer who makes close to 500,000 drills per day.

TTD has a simlar split point drill that they call "Thunder Bit". The TTD and B&D drills are both multidiameter that might help you to drill into some fairly tough material.

There probably is a good chance that a hardware store near you would carry one brand or the other.

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Mike Christian

10-12-2001 20:10:29




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 Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Larry Garbarek, 10-12-2001 17:29:02  
Link

Theres the article they're in. They sound pretty good, and I figure I might as well buy the best and dont ever have to worry, or buy a sharpener. Just the price turns me off, Since I need to finish my truck before winter!

Who makes a good cutting oil? I saw some of napa's brand, any good?



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Larry Garbarek

10-12-2001 20:48:32




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 Re: Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 20:10:29  
Black & Gold super drills????

Come on now. If you have money to throw around, go right ahead!

The B&G drill sounds like a split point drill that is commonplace. Cobalt drills are almost always of the split point design as they are designed to drill harder materials and the self centering split point is very helpful.

Unfortunately for your application, cobalt drills might not be the best because they are relatively brittle. Most cobalt drill manufacturers will state that the product is not made to be used in a hand held operation as they may break and injure the user.

You might buy a cobalt 1/4" drill to give it a try as well as Thunderbit or Bullet drill in the same diameters.

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big fred

10-12-2001 10:42:29




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 Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to Mike Christian, 10-12-2001 09:41:41  
Are you using some kind of lubricant when you drill? I have found that use of lubricant, such as Tap-magic or similar, will make a world of difference in drill life. A cheap HSS drill used with cutting lubricant will probably outlast a carbide drill without lubricant. The other thing to keep in mind is matching the drill speed to the drill bit. Larger bit takes lower speed to keep the temperature down.

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bob

10-13-2001 16:21:23




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 Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to big fred, 10-12-2001 10:42:29  
most people run drill speed too fast andburn thro



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Fred OH

10-22-2001 11:13:18




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 Re: Re: Re: Best Drill bits? in reply to bob, 10-13-2001 16:21:23  
Looks like everybody got in their two cents worth on this one so, I'll bring up the rear.
Ever notice how a sharpie like Larry Garbarek (sells them for a living, has for years, good man to pay attention to on tools)always refers to them as twist drills? He knows the bits are in the wood shop, it's twist drills mostly for steel. I guess that's how you tell a novice. ;>( No offense guys, that's just how it is. And if I threw in anything to contribute to this post, it would be that they used to use carbon steel drills exclusively. You just have to pay attention to the speed-how far it would roll if you laid it down and rolled it. I think that a carbon twist drill should roll about 40 or 50 feet per minute. Does that make any sense? It's just a way of explaining surface feet per minute. I think high speed and cobalt will run two or three times these speeds, especially if you use a coolant/lubricant. It doesn't matter what lubricant you use if you're just drilling a few holes, spitting on it might be better than nothing. I will comment on the cobalt split point drills for all around use doing repair work, they're kind of a pain in the butt because of their brittleness, they have to have a thicker center section and everytime you sharpen one, you have to thin the web. Get a pedestal grinder with good wheels on it and keep it for drill grinding and such. Learn to sharpen them and pay attention to speeds and feeds. You can use the foreign made drills if you are careful and use speeds slightly less than american made high speed steel. Go ahead, break a few experimenting, it's good for you. It's called getting experience, knowing what they will and won't do.
PS Sorry Larry but your a knowledgeable tool man and it's good for your image (grin) L8R----Fred OH

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