Longer than usual wood drills

[robgul]

Can anyone suggest a source for decent quality longer than normal wood drilling bits - with brad points? Only need probably 4, 5, 6, 8mm so don't want to buy a set.

Thanks

 

[pcb1962]

Here you go
I've never used the company, just remember seeing these whilst looking for something else a while back.

 

[robgul]

Here you go
I've never used the company, just remember seeing these whilst looking for something else a while back.

Thanks - That's what I'm after but wasn't planning to need to mortgage my house to buy them!

I'll keep on hunting.

 

[Alpha-Dave]

Niche* / Quality / Cheap

Pick 2 of 3.

* length in this case

Also impressed you need to remortgage for 3x £12-26

 

[Daniel2]

Niche* / Quality / Cheap

Pick 2 of 3.

* length in this case

Also impressed you need to remortgage for 3x £12-26

+1.
I also had a look at the link and, quite frankly, was surprised how
much they weren't. Quite reasonable for quality stuff, IMO.

 

[TFrench]

You asked for decent quality, can't complain when it costs money!

 

[Spectric]

Hi there

Easier to get long series HSS bits, make an indent where you want the hole and then the std type drill bits work just as well.

This company do long and extra long HSS bits.

https://www.wealdentool.com/acatalog/Drills_28.html
Example 4mm with 106 total length and 75mm fluted cost £2.74

 

[robgul]

Niche* / Quality / Cheap

Pick 2 of 3.

* length in this case

Also impressed you need to remortgage for 3x £12-26

Understand on the niche product .... but I'm used to the £1.49 regular drills from Screwfix - or the odd special drill from Bosch at about a fiver!

I shall continue to grip the very end of the regular drill bits in the drill's chuck for the moment

 

[Alpha-Dave]

I bought a long set for drilling out ‘wands’ on the lathe (for putting an LED in the end like Harry Potter wands), thet were the Toolzone 300 mm set of 7 for ~£10 (set number DR134, which came in a plastic case.

They were carp; the 4 and 5 mm were significantly curved out the box, and flexed significantly at the slightest pressure. I’ve not tried the rest.

Even using the ‘drill the centre, then mount through the centre and do the outside’ they still made curved holes.

 

[gregmcateer]

Thanks - That's what I'm after but wasn't planning to need to mortgage my house to buy them!

I'll keep on hunting.

Go back to that website and rather than premium drills, just search long wood drills and it gives a huge selection

 

[AES]

Here you go:

https://www.fine-tools.com/bohrspiral.html
This is Dieter Schmidt in Berlin. As I THINK that UK is still in-ish!/out-ish! of the EU - NO! I'm not going there!!! - they will export to UK. Very good company to deal with (usual disclaimers) and the few extra-long and extra-extra long brad point bits I bought (Famag) are excellent quality (but I only use them rarely). But they WERE expensive (I forget how much, but worth it for me anyway).

But as someone has already said, if you can manage with "ordinary" drills (metalworking HSS drills) then "Long Series" drills will be a lot cheaper, especially if you only need a few sizes.

BTW, Dieter Schmidt also sells brad point bits down to 2 mm diameter (also by Famag I think). I've never seen those before and had significant difficulty in finding 3 mm dia here (most around here only start at 4 mm dia, or 3.5 if you get really lucky).

HTH

P.S. You also get a little packet of "Gummi Bären" ("chewy bear" sweets) along with the drills - well I did anyway!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I bought a long set for drilling out ‘wands’ on the lathe (for putting an LED in the end like Harry Potter wands), thet were the Toolzone 300 mm set of 7 for ~£10 (set number DR134, which came in a plastic case.

They were carp; the 4 and 5 mm were significantly curved out the box, and flexed significantly at the slightest pressure. I’ve not tried the rest.

Even using the ‘drill the centre, then mount through the centre and do the outside’ they still made curved holes.

You should have gone a bit upmarket and bought Silverline. Serve you right.

 

[Alpha-Dave]

I have come to the conclusion that life is too short for bad/cheap drill bits.

 

[Jake]

On a long length bit it is worth paying for a wood bit which will clear itself properly (in wood), otherwise it's that in/out/in/out/picking bits out to clear the flutes/CBA so make things smoulder routine. Those Swiftfix ones could be Famag from the product code and German manufacture, and probably not a bad price for that quality. I've only bought and used one such, I think it is also Famag, long series 300mm or so, fancy deep flutes (the big difference), expensive but just works, so fast and clean and hassle free. Depends how many holes you are doing I suppose (mine was lots).

 

[Roseland 2]

Try Axminster, they sell long Fisch drills: FISCH Beam Drill

 

[Cooper]

I also want long bits, so I can make slide whistles on my lathe, out of oak from a tree in my garden. I want to end up with a 12mm hole but presume I need to increase the diameter in stages. The problem is that all the long bits I've see have deep flutes, which I would have thought are likely to let the hole wander, going a long way into end grain. I watched a video about making a clarinet, obviously far more precise than I need to be and they used a reamer to true the hole. Does anyone have any experience and advice about boring a smooth deep hole (200mm), reasonably true, on the lathe?
Martin

 

[Spectric]

Hi there

The flutes will not make the drill bit wander, they are essential to clear the waste from the cut. With the drill in the tailstock on your lathe you can easily apply steady pressure and should have no issues but then the material I used to drill did not have knots and defects which may cause issues.

 

[xy mosian]

I also want long bits, so I can make slide whistles on my lathe, out of oak from a tree in my garden. I want to end up with a 12mm hole but presume I need to increase the diameter in stages. The problem is that all the long bits I've see have deep flutes, which I would have thought are likely to let the hole wander, going a long way into end grain. I watched a video about making a clarinet, obviously far more precise than I need to be and they used a reamer to true the hole. Does anyone have any experience and advice about boring a smooth deep hole (200mm), reasonably true, on the lathe?
Martin

Examination of a 'conventional' twist drill, especially a broken one,will reveal that the web in the middle is quite thin. That is where the flexing occurrs. For example a 6mm twist drill is significantly more flexible than a 6mm flat/spade/quick bit. I have not seen a smaller diameter flat bit. Most of the drift away from the centre of the hole is caused by pushing. Exactly the same as a jigsaw blade. Letting the drill cut at its own speed will give better results, otherwise the bit will take the easiest path, which may not be a straight line.
As for straight line drilling in a lathe then a 1/2" lamp standard bit through a hollow tailstock will generally give good results. I used to regularly bore holes of 1 1/4" diameter using a similar method, daed straight up to 30" long.
Hope this helps, xy

 

[AES]

I have MUCH less experience of boring long holes in wood than you wood turners do, but perhaps a bit more in metal.

I'd agree that it's not the flutes themselves that cause drills to go off line when boring long/deep holes, it's allowing the flutes to get clogged up. I THINK that - inevitably? - the flutes don't clog up evenly, and it's that "uneven clogging" that starts a drill heading off line, especially in the smaller diameters.

For me, standard practice when boring almost any hole in either wood or metal, especially in the smaller sizes and/or with especially long holes, is to frequently withdraw the drill, using a short stiff brush if necessary to ensure that the flutes remain completely clear.

FWIW, hope it helps.

 

[Cooper]

As for straight line drilling in a lathe then a 1/2" lamp standard bit through a hollow tailstock will generally give good results. I used to regularly bore holes of 1 1/4" diameter using a similar method, daed straight up to 30" long.
Hope this helps, xy
[/QUOTE]
A very long time ago (in the workshop where I taught) I had a hollow centre that fitted in T rest, for drilling the up the middle of table lamps and we used a shell bit, as you say about 30" long. History now. I don't have a hollow centre or long shell bit and I haven't seen either in a long while. Do you know who I might supply them? I don't remember that the holes were particularly precise either, which didn't matter as we only had to thread the lead down it, not the reasonably tight fit of the piston of a slide whistle. I think I'll get some of the long bits recommended further up the correspondence and take a bit more care clearing the shavings.
Thanks
Martin