A name for this type of drill bit?

[Michael Ray Smith]

Simple question: Does this type of bit have a particular name?

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[Sam Murdoch]

A gimlet bit - I think.

[George Bokros]

I call it a twist drill for use in a brace. I have few from my father

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

IMG_1466.jpg

In my experience, what I've heard called gimlet bits have sort of a weird different twist to them. There's a couple picture above (below some modern hand gimlets) while it looks like what you've got is more a standard twist bit that's been sharpened to a very acute angle.

[george wilson]

The true gimlets are the 3 in the lower part of your picture,Joshua. I can't remember what they called the OP's bit.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Yeah, the two above aren't really gimlets, it was just a photo I had already uploaded before so I didn't need to take another one.

[Michael Ray Smith]

IMG_1466.jpg

In my experience, what I've heard called gimlet bits have sort of a weird different twist to them. There's a couple picture above (below some modern hand gimlets) while it looks like what you've got is more a standard twist bit that's been sharpened to a very acute angle.

The three you show are also what I call gimlet bits, and this one is distinctly different. A gimlet bit has only one "groove" where this one has two. That's like a twist bit, but as you say, the sharp point is different from a standard twist bit.
By, by the way, it was clearly made with a sharp point; I'm pretty sure it wasn't just sharpened to a point later) because of the sharp point. I've seen a few like this, but I've never known what to call them.

[Michael Ray Smith]

Yeah, the two above aren't really gimlets, it was just a photo I had already uploaded before so I didn't need to take another one.

Coincidentally, I also have a brace bit that has the same configuration as the hand gimlets that you have. I'm not sure what to call it, either.

I've seen "gimlet" used with two apparently different meanings. One is a hand tool for starting a hole, and the word seems to be used without regard to the particular configuration of the business end. The other is a drill bit configured like the three in your picture. Actually, I suppose I've seen the word used with four different meanings. The third and fourth involve gin and vodka, respectively.

A bit of trivia -- while auger brace bits are marked with a number that indicates the diameter in sixteenths of an inch, many gimlet brace bits are marked with a number that indicates the diameter in thirty-secondths of an inch.

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[george wilson]

With a single flute gimlet,you can use the single cutting edge to move the hole a little when you are starting it.