Masonry drills (not)

Don't feel too bad. I just bought a set of 3 1000mm SDS drills for £19... they might last a couple of holes each.

Cue for Scottish jokes....

Seriously though, some of the cheap masonry drills seem fine and some are rubbish. Name and Shame!

Steve

OK - from the Pound Shop in Falkirk, Blackspur Tools 3Pc 400mm Masonry Drill Set

- tips reduced to rounded lumps in 30 seconds... Geo

Blackspur!! (clenches fist and spits) I bought a pack of 6 flat bits from a cheap shop in Liverpool. I had to power the drill in reverse to make a hole. :)

Arthur

Sounds like a special brand for cowboys...

Made in China,will we ever learn,buy cheap gets cheap

No problem here with a 10x1000mm from Screwfix. After a whole afternoon of probing into Scottish bedrock (trying to find somewhere to sink an earth rod), it happily drilled through three layers of engineering brick. The tip still isn't showing much wear.

SDS tends to be far kinder on the bits than hammer. It's the heat that kills them.

Masonry Drill Set

Ah, Blackspur... its ancient Saxon and means 'beware, you wont even get one job done with this POS.'

I bought Blackspur screwdriver whatnots. Managed one screw. The screw head was fine, but the driver had acquired a new shape altogether.

NT

Suppose it's horses for courses. Only Blackspur thing I ever bought were some clamps - they work like a sealant gun - don't know the proper name. They work an absolute treat, better than some more expensive ones I have.

Dave

Masonry Drill Set

Got an angle grinder? Cut slots in them and dip in water to harden, drill another half inch, cut em again and dip in water, etc etc etc.

Crude, but sometimes it can be quicker than going to the shops.

I was going to say it might just be theyre being overheated and need more rest, but probably not: my experience of blackspur work bits is no hardening at all, and quite useless. In which case grinding and dipping might make them last better.

NT

Would heating them red hot on the stove then quenching them in water be of benefit?

That is how you would normally soften hardened metal... it this case it sounds like it is not going to get much softer ;-)

Or maybe not. Bought a set of 3*1000mm (8,15,122mm) and the 22mm bit has done about

No perceptible wear.

John Rumm wrote :-

Nope, to soften you normally allow to cool very slowly

Regards Jeff

Dave Plowman (News) wrote :-

Years ago I had a B&D drill that had a switch for the 2 speeds, 3300 and

Regards Jeff

Not with ferrous metals IIRC.

(slow cooling will anneal copper for example, but quenching works better on steel)

John Rumm wrote :-

I beg to differ my good man :-

To harden most steel it is heated to a medium red or slightly above the point where it becomes non-magnetic. It is then quenched in water, oil or air depending on the type of steel. The steel is now at its maximum hardness but is very brittle. To reduce the brittleness the metal is tempered by heating it to some where between 350°F and 1350°F. This reduced the hardness a little and the brittelness a lot. Most steels need to be tempered at about

source =

Regards Jeff

Hi John

But surely on a masonry drill bit we are talking about tungsten carbide and not ordinary steel?

Dave