I was taught how to sharpen drill bits on a bench grinder, but it is a "pita" and slow. Any one have experience with various drill bit sharpeners on the market. There is one model called "drill doctor" at the Lowes, and Harbor Freight tools has a cheep unit I assume made on china. thanks in advance
I have one of those B&D drill sharpeners for 20 years and I have actually sharpened a drill with it a few times but it usually just screws them up. To be honest I haven't really used it enough to use it well. I assume if you sat there and played with getting the setup right it would work OK ... for that drill. Get another size and start over.
Drill Doctor works fine. You might want to go to and read up on the various models. They're for twist drills and carbide-tipped masonry bits only--won't do brad point or Forstner or spade or anything else, but the more "deluxe" models can do split points.
But why? Get a good set to start, treat them right then replace them if they actuall do get dull. I bought a set for like $150 and the have lasted me for 7 years on metal and wood. Sometimes you break one but you can buy them as singles too. I'd consider getting some of my carbide mill bits sharpened but would throw away drill bits.
JMO, mark
I have the general one that positions the bit against the side of the wheel. it works pretty well for medium sized bits. I really only use it on bits that need a lot of grinding. touchup I do by eye.
I have this one from Lee Valley Tools. It's fast, easy to use and works well.
Like you I was taught to sharpen drills free hand using a bench grinder, but alas it is a "use it or loose it" skill that I don't do well these days; however, it definitely is not slow IMHO.
The Drill Doctor is very much overpriced and under peckered IMHO.
Standard jobber drill bits can be replaced in sets at relative low cost for
1/16"-1/4" sizes.Can buy a lot of replacement drill sets for less money than the cost of a Drill Doctor.
Brad points are another matter.
SFWIW, I never developed the skill to sharpen them free hand using a bench grinder.
HTH
Funny you should mention that: my neighbor loaned me his model 300 Drill Doctor today and I sharpened all my bits tonight. I was impressed with it once I got started cranking out the bits. The actual machine seems to be cheaply made and yet it works perfectly. I used an old POS bit to learn on... once I had the alignment figured out it was all downhill from there. The smaller the bit, the faster the sharpening. With a really small bit you can overheat it if you fool with it too long. That didn't seem to be a problem with any reasonable sized bit.
I gotta get one of these.... I think the model 300 is about $100; Woodcraft sells the model 500 for $150.
Picador (swinging guide mounted next to an existing grinder) is good and quite cheap, but won't work on less than 1/4" and is increasingly hard to use with smaller drills (problems with the alignment tooth)
Drill Doctor ought to work, but some of them just don't (problems with the chuck). If you have a good one, I can believe it works quickly and effectively. Maybe in the USA you can get some product support, but I'd not recommend them to anyone in the UK who didn't want an expensive shelf ornament.
On the whole though, drill bits are cheaper than an investment in good sharpeners.
I just bought a drill doctor model 300 at Home Depot on sale for 49.95. At that price, I couldn't pass it up.
I must have 200 or so bits that I kept tossing in a can over the years as they became dull. Some of the larger ones were $10-$15 each, not to mention the masonry bits, so I figured it might be worth trying.
Anyway, the Drill Doctor works great. It has easily paid for itself already - and then some - and I haven't even put a large dent in my old bits.
What I like is that it takes about 1 minute to sharpen a bit - longer as the size increases. The angle is perfect (as far as I can tell) and the very dull bits come out razor sharp - even broken bits!
I highly recommend this "device".
Lou
Hey, thanks! I just visited their (HD's) website and it's still on sale. I had thought about getting the model 500 but for this kind of price I wouldn't be able to justify it. Plus now I know the model 300 can do what I need it to do since I spent yesterday evening sharpening bits on my neighbor's.
Probably the best is Drill Doctor. Problem is the cost. It does not to brad points and forstners though. I've yet to spend enough money on bits to justify a sharpener myself.
Just for additional info, for brad point and forstner bits, I have been successful so far using a medium and fine diamond sharpening cards. They work fast and produce a great edge on carbide router bits and turning chisles as well.
On Wed, 4 Aug 2004 03:13:00 -0400, "Mortimer Schnerd, RN" calmly ranted:
So how does it do with WOODWORKING bits? Spade? Forstner? Auger? Brad-points?
Why are all of you fawning over a sharpener for -metal- drilling bits? Jus cuz it's Handyman of America Approved? (Nomex-ON)
LJ: Who sharpens his occasional metal drill bits to usability by hand on the 1" belt sandah; hand-files auger, forstner and brad point bits to perfection with a Nicholson auger file bit ($8.50 from Lee Valley) and/or a 4" triangular file; and doesn't understand ANY of the hoopla over Drill Doctors (which are made 43 miles down the street from me).
- - Let Exxon send their own troops -
-------------------------------------------------------
I have a drill doctor. My parents got it for me for a birthday present.
Now I would not be without it. No it doesn't do brad or forstner bits, that's okay. It keeps my carbon steel bits incredibly sharp. Better than new in fact! I sharpened everything. Wow!
John
John Freeman wrote:
Upscale wrote: [snip]
I have owned the second one ("drill grinding guide") for a lot of years. It does a good job. Kind of a PITA to set up, but in a half hour, you can get a bunch of twist drills sharpened up nicely. It would be nice to have an inexpensive machine that would do twists, Forstners, brad points, spades,... Oh well. If you're going to dream, you might as well dream big. mahalo, jo4hn
"Larry Jaques" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com...
I'm sorta at your same conclusion but a different path. I've invested in good brad-points and forstners. Drill Doctor's (DD) can't sharpen those. I treat those well.
For twists, I sully down to Wal-Mart once a year and buy a set of Black n' Decker for $9. At that rate, I can buy almost 5-10 years worth before it would have made more sense to invest in a DD.
I second the positive review. I did a write up on mine;
When I screw up a bit, it's almost always at a time when the store is either closed or inconvenient to go visit. If for no other reason, I'd just as soon resharpen mine if I could. I don't have any trouble justifying (in my own mind) spending $50 to be able to do this.
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