Thread: Choice of drill bits (brand/material)

RSG
Two years ago my children presented me with a set of 19 Viper drills for christmas. I could not believe that drilling could be so much fun. They remain as sharp as when I first got them and I've only repaced the 1.5mm bit that I snapped due to poor drilling technique by me.
As far as brad points are concerned IMO any bit made in Australia or New Zealand will stand up to any punishment you can dish at them.

I have a set of Vipers (they're made by Sutton) that are pretty good. They're quite aggressive shaped drills though.

I also bought a cheapie set of titanium-something (I think it translates to 'gold paint' in chinese, but I'm not sure) coated brad point drills from Carbatec. The ones from 3mm to 13mm in half mm increments. I like them and they're sharp, but I have noticed that my popular ones are starting to be a bit blunt. I have no idea how to sharpen coated brad points, but at the price, I'll probably buy something better.

Cheers.
Dave

Quality HSS brad points are exxy cos the demand is relatively low and the material isn't cheap. You'll find Chinese versions that in the flesh are pretty short shanked.

I'm not a fan of the Vipers for wood, they wander too much; the old style twist drills with the higher shoulders work better, and brad point better still.

I have a set of these which have lasted quite well but like any HCS tool you have to learn to sharpen them.

Originally Posted by RedShirtGuy

So what's the general consensus? P&N? Frost? Viper? Sutton?

All these are very good brands and you won't regret buying any of them.
A few years back I was drilling small holes in thin high-tensile steel. Three holes, two broken Chinese cheapie drill bits. Went down town and bought a Sutton bit. Two hundred holes later still going strong.
Miebach seem to be making big strides in improving the performance of drll bits, but, like Festool, they also seem to be setting premium prices on their product. And the size range offered is limited. I like to have my sets in half mm steps or I find the hole just a smidgin too big or small.

I bought a set of those brad points that Ozkaban mentioned above. You don't have to use them to blunten them. They are blunt right out of the box. Was able to use a few by touching them up with a diamond file, but I'm going to have to regrind the lot.
Good HSS bradpoints are not easy to find in Australia (in my experience), except perhaps the CMT brand from Carba-Tec. Expensive, but very good.
Also, look at the HSS bradpoints from Lee Valley. I have just two (large)sizes of these and they are excellent.

Always liked Sandvik-Dormer. These can be bought from Bolts and Industrial Supplies in Salisbury.

You can't go wrong with P+N or Sutton split tip bits

Originally Posted by artme

Always liked Sandvik-Dormer. These can be bought from Bolts and Industrial Supplies in Salisbury.

I've got a couple of Dormer bits in my kit. Precise sizes I wanted like 7.9mm and 8.1mm. These are certainly the best HSS drills I have.

I've recently been in the market for drill bits.

I bought a 1/2" viper 3 years ago for $26. Was happy with it.
I just recently bought the 29 piece imperial viper set 1/64 to 1/2 in 1/64s. Very happy. Bunnings sells it for $160. I got it on ebay new for $71 (inc psotage.)

It's just a shame you can't get good quality brad point bits.

Another vote for Viper's. I punch a starter hole to stop them wandering.
Otherwise I use a b/p bit

Sutton Cobalt.

All of them are good, Dormer are simply the best.

Thanks for the great input folks. Very helpful getting some real world opinions over the marketing dribble.

I'm thinking that I'll go with either some Sutton or P+N (although I *HATE* their tin - it's a struggle everytime I try to open my old mans' pack) plain HSS (Jobber/Bright) twist bits and see what I can find in the way of TiAN or similarly coated brad points. (Wizened/Boz: Yeh it's been a real pain trying to find decent brad points here. Very strange.)

The twists I can sharpen easily but I'm not so sure or confident about doing it with the brad points so I figure going with a coating that retains the edge many times longer will be worth the extra bucks, especially on bits that won't get used nearly as much as the twists.

I'd thought about Cobalt bits but from my reading they're probably going to be too rigid for me as I don't have a press and tend to be a bit sloppy in my technique.

By the way, Wikipedia has some handy info on bits including the materials for manufacture and the coatings which helped explain to me some of the things I was having trouble with.

I'm not sure that TiNi is worth the money.

It's sposed to provide some extra hardness as well as lubricity, but is only applied to one face of the two that makes up an edge. Dedicated darksiders tell us that an edge is only as good as the treatment of the two planes that make it.

If the primary use is drilling wood, then IMO brad points are the way to go. And whether HSS or high carbon, sooner or later you're going to have to sharpen them. With Aussie hardwoods, it's gunna be sooner.

With HSS you need a quality device like a diamond hone. With high carbon, ornery files will do.

BUT, I noticed in the latest C-tec catalogue sets of Alox rods of various profiles and grits - v. interesting. Click me