Best brad point bits?

[Carol Johnston]

I've recently been hired to make a product for a company which will require drilling about 2500 1/2 inch x 1 1/2" deep holes on my drill press. I've experimented with different drill bits and my brad point bit seems to work the best, although it's not a great bit. I'm sure this bit probably won't last throughout the project. Any thoughts on the best brad point bit I can buy that will last the longest? Also, does anyone have a tip on sharpening brad point bits?

Thanks for any help I can get.

[Carl Beckett]

Im assuming this is wood.

I have had good experience with the black and decker 'bullet' bits (with Ti N coating). I know you can buy singles in 1/2"

[Cary Falk]

There was a thread less than a week ago about this. Lee Valley gets high marks. I thank they will also sharpen them for you.

[Carol Johnston]

Thanks. I'll check it out.

[Greg R Bradley]

Your going to buy one size and drill a bunch of holes. I would contact W.L. Fuller and tell them exactly what you want to do and rely on them giving you the best tool for the job. www.wlfuller.com

I'm sure Lee Valley is good, but you might as well get the best item for the job.

[glenn bradley]

Lee Valley gets high marks. I thank they will also sharpen them for you.

Negative. I inquired about sharpening and was told that they do not provide this service.

[Jim Neeley]

You asked who makes the best; here's my $0.02... Please note that the best is not the cheapest.

Lee Valley (Veritas) offers the following:

"These are the best brad-point drills we have ever offered for sale.

Starting with a top-of-the-line American-made twist drill, we reshape and sharpen the tips on a state-of-the-art Swiss CNC grinder. Made from high-speed steel, the bits are not subject to burning, and stay sharp about 10 times as long as carbon steel bits.

The polished flutes give superior chip clearance, and the sharply defined lips have a slight negative rake angle on the lip tips to score the hole perimeter for clean entry and smooth sidewalls. Equally important, these bits are extremely accurate in diameter."

I own their boxed set of 12 for my egg beater and can tell you it's the real deal.

Jim

[Carol Johnston]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. Black and Decker: I'm not too impressed with their bits. Lee Valley and wlfuller: I'll check with them and tell them what I'm needing and get their suggestions. On wlfuller website they sell separate bits for "hardwood" and "softwood". On this project I'll use poplar--I know it's considered a hardwood, but it's much softer than oak, maple, etc. Maybe I'll get one from Lee Valley and one from wlfuller and see which one holds up--2500 holes will put them to the test.

[Curt Harms]

Your going to buy one size and drill a bunch of holes. I would contact W.L. Fuller and tell them exactly what you want to do and rely on them giving you the best tool for the job. www.wlfuller.com

I'm sure Lee Valley is good, but you might as well get the best item for the job.

W.L. Fuller seems like more of a supplier to industrial users rather than a "but mine are $.50 cheaper!" supplier so yeah.

[David Kuzdrall]

I have the top end HSS brad points from Lee Valley and can say that they are excellent. Are they the best? I don't know since I have not tested all the other options on the market but can't imagine that it gets much better. Super sharp and super clean holes are the norm.

[Jamie Buxton]

I'd use carbide-tipped brad points. I got some quite a while ago, and haven't been able to dull them. I don't remember where I got them.

[ian maybury]

Not sure about availability in the US (it's unlikely they are not) - but Famag HSS G (or probably the Colt HSS equivalent) are not cheap, but work so well.

I've a set of the Famags bought in Germany http://www.fine-tools.com/holzspiralbohrer.html Here's the high end Colts, but I've not used them: http://www.fine-tools.com/first-clean-exit-drills.html

They cut so cleanly in e.g. ply - hole entries are perfectly clean and crisp - and they drill with hardly any effort. That's compared to even the typical decent commercial quality bits you see about. You only have to pick one up to know they are very different - they 'ring' when tapped, they have a titanium nitride or similar coating, and the finish is exquisite.

Care is needed handling them, the very finely ground edges are so sharp that it's very easy to get nicked.

Carbide tipped brad points would almost certainly last longer, but I don't know how cleanly they cut or where you should go for them.

ian

[scott vroom]

What Greg said.

Your going to buy one size and drill a bunch of holes. I would contact W.L. Fuller and tell them exactly what you want to do and rely on them giving you the best tool for the job. www.wlfuller.com

I'm sure Lee Valley is good, but you might as well get the best item for the job.

[Gary Herrmann]

The best Lee Valley bits are made by Fuller. Check past threads.

[Jim Neeley]

+1 on Gary's post.. Made by fuller, with the brad pt CNC cut by LV/Veritas