So at my family's marina, we have about 500 drill bits and it always seems like most of them are just barely sharp enough to go through soggy cardboard... Let alone fiberglass, metal, or wood..
Many of our bits are larger, like 1/2", 3/8", etc, which can be expensive.. I figure with all the bits we have, it would be nice to sharpen them instead of buying new ones..
I've seen bit sharpeners go for like $100, which for the volume we'd be doing it would DEFINITELY be worth it if they worked...
Any thoughts?
Drill Bit Sharpeners?
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Rev_D21
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Re: Drill Bit Sharpeners?
They don't turn out as good as the ads make it seem. We had one at out last job and it's a loud, messy and unproductive process. Maybe someone has had a better experience.
Re: Drill Bit Sharpeners?
I have used the drill doctor a good couple few times...
A bit of it is about setup, and while the machine features a guide to get the drill bit in the holder at the right angle it is not particularly rigid and it is easy to slip and there is enough play that your attention to detail, caution and understanding of how to use the machine will effect the results, and your typical "get a bigger hammer" guy will get worse results because of this.
One project I was drilling holes for a TV mount up in some square C channel beams that held wires and duct work up in the ceiling.
It was some cheap steal, almost cast looking from the chips/drilled hole.
The guys who started I think ran the drill bit backwards for a while to start to dull it, then ran it at full speed under huge pressure with no chips to finish the job... (dulling it is, not drilling the hole).
The drill doctor brought the drill bit back well enough for me to make it through just under a quarter inch of material with out too much struggle, though it was still a chore. I later got to dot he same thing with a new drill bit and it was noticeably easier, but the sharpened one worked. Both cheap black oxide coated bits.
The second time we used it a lot.
We were drilling about 24 through holes in 1 X .049 to .095 4130 steel tubing. The black oxide bits had no chance of doing it, at least with the hand drill we were using. It was a pain in the a** with the cobal bits we got, and even then we went through two.
The bit seemed to loose a little life and effectiveness each sharpen for some reason, so we were sharpening more and more and progressing slower and slower.
The do do something though, and if you use them carefully the result will likely be better then what you have.
If nothing else, they at least give you something to try when your bit is just not cutting, and depending on the material your working with they will either let you limp along, or work almost as good as new...
A bit of it is about setup, and while the machine features a guide to get the drill bit in the holder at the right angle it is not particularly rigid and it is easy to slip and there is enough play that your attention to detail, caution and understanding of how to use the machine will effect the results, and your typical "get a bigger hammer" guy will get worse results because of this.
One project I was drilling holes for a TV mount up in some square C channel beams that held wires and duct work up in the ceiling.
It was some cheap steal, almost cast looking from the chips/drilled hole.
The guys who started I think ran the drill bit backwards for a while to start to dull it, then ran it at full speed under huge pressure with no chips to finish the job... (dulling it is, not drilling the hole).
The drill doctor brought the drill bit back well enough for me to make it through just under a quarter inch of material with out too much struggle, though it was still a chore. I later got to dot he same thing with a new drill bit and it was noticeably easier, but the sharpened one worked. Both cheap black oxide coated bits.
The second time we used it a lot.
We were drilling about 24 through holes in 1 X .049 to .095 4130 steel tubing. The black oxide bits had no chance of doing it, at least with the hand drill we were using. It was a pain in the a** with the cobal bits we got, and even then we went through two.
The bit seemed to loose a little life and effectiveness each sharpen for some reason, so we were sharpening more and more and progressing slower and slower.
The do do something though, and if you use them carefully the result will likely be better then what you have.
If nothing else, they at least give you something to try when your bit is just not cutting, and depending on the material your working with they will either let you limp along, or work almost as good as new...