Milwuakee selfeed bit problem.....

Your description of the screw seems typical. How far out did you leave the screw? The farther you leave the screw out, the better it feeds. I have bored through maple flooring with a 3-1/2" self feed bit, and right angle drill. The poor drill barely would turn the bit! Greg

I can't speak to Amazon's or anyone else's, but I know that when I got my big Milwaukee D-handle and bought one of their bits for it (also for electrical) it wasn't long before I broke it. Hit a nail, I think. And I hadn't been all that thrilled with the self feeding, either.

Someone (maybe here) recommended trying a Grenlee Nail Eater. Wow! Let me tell you they do. Finsihed the job with it, did a couple more and four years later (intermittent duty) it's still ready to bore through any timber I want to throw at it.

As good as Milwaukee's power tools are, I wouldn't give you a plugged nickel for one of their self feeding bits. You may have to go to a supply house to get it--I don't think the big boxes have them (although it's been a while).

I have the Milwaukee Hole Hawg and 3 of the self-feed bits from 1-1/8 to 2-9/16. I have experienced this same problem that is due to the feedscrew extending too far out ahead of the teeth on the perimeter. Push that screw back in as far as it will go and secure it well with the locking screw. As soon as the feedscrew clears the opposite surface, it can grip nothing to pull the bit through the material. Once I got the feedscrew properly positioned, it worked much better.

Actually, the ship auger bits, such as the Nail Eater, are preferable in terms of removing only as much material in the center of the stud as needed for the wiring. Something in the 5/8" to 3/4" range will be adequate for most wiring.

The other consideration for RAD drill motors without clutches (such as the original Hole Hawg) is that if the self-feed bit binds (as would occur if the bit were rocked off-centerline), the drill just keeps right on steaming - it does NOT stall. The ship auger has less perimeter to bind in the hole due to the spiral flutes.

If you are running plumbing or gas supply, then you need bits like the

Milwaukee responds......

At one time, we offered a regular or fine threaded feed screw