Drill Bits

[sed9888]

Hi everyone,

i have just pulled the trigger on a bench pillar drill, i have a small getting very full workshop i am an avid DIY'r, my question is what Drill bits would you experienced guys recommend?, i will 99% be drilling wood if it was to be used for metal it would be very light weight stuff, so with the wood in mind what bits............ its a bit of a minefield out there

continue to keep safe
Peter

 

[Phil Pascoe]

https://www.ukdrills.com/drill-sets/99pc-cobalt-magazine-drill-set-for-metal
or the 170 piece, and replace anything you use excessively with better ones. I've had a 170 piece set for twenty years and I've replaced only the 3mms and 6mms. I'd go for the cobalt now. For repair work the 1/2mm sizes are useful. Depending what you are doing the 6mm - 10mm set in 0.1mm increments is good.

 

[novocaine]

decent set of brad points( borsch or equivelant) 8-10 index
decent set of hss jobbers (dormer if you are loaded, big name if you are not) 25 index is normally enough
decent set of forstners (others have suggested better than I have previously) 5 index
decent set of spades 5 index
broken ones as you go along.
in that order.

 

[Alpha-Dave]

Obviously different drills for different purposes.
For wood, the Fisch drills are a joy to use, but expensive, and you won’t need all the sizes: FISCH 25 Piece HSS Brad Point Drill Set therefore I recommend this set from Milwaukee, which I tend to use most of the time: Milwaukee Brad Point Wood Drill Bit Set 8 Pieces

For metal, HSS will be fine for mild steel and aluminium, so this set is good:HSS Metric Drill Bit Set Cobalt are nice to have if you need to do something harder, so a small set of those is useful:Cobalt Pro Drill Bit Set

For holes in metal over 13 mm, then buy individual ones when you need them, ebay or one of the engineering suppliers are reasonable.
For holes in wood over 13 mm, then Forstners are good, and getting a set is sensible. I have had the Axminster set for 7 years, and have used all the sizes by now, it was ~£55 when I bought it in a sale: Axminster 16 Piece Forstner Bit Set

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I have to admit to wondering what use spade bits would be in a drill press ............. but then, I wonder what use spade bits are anyway.

 

[Alpha-Dave]

Also, I’m not sure if it is obvious, but having the bits in a box/index so that both protects them (rather than rattling around in a draw), and makes it easy for you to identify the one you need without having to read the tiny engraving on the shank is a no-brainer. Much of the online reviews therefore focus on the box rather than the drills, but you can make your own up from a block of wood if you want them permanently to hand.

 

[novocaine]

I have to admit to wondering what use spade bits would be in a drill press ............. but then, I wonder what use spade bits are anyway.

Mainly because they are cheaper than forstner bits and come in a more sizes (and can be ground to odd sizes if needed).