Know Your Drill Bits

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Do You Know Your Drill Bits?

Although a cordless drill is preferred by many for its ease of use and mobility, a corded drill is a great tool addition for your workshop as it generates more power making sure the higher drill speed makes light work of heavy duty drilling jobs with more accuracy.

A corded drill is also ideal for masonry work, tackling dense materials easily it can create larger holes that a cordless drill is incapable of. Depending on the work involved, it is a good idea to get to know your drill, corded drills range from 500W to 750W or more offering single speeds or multi speed functions.

The more professional drills will have a larger chuck, allowing for a wider range of drill bits to be used. These will be able to drill more precise, larger holes than their smaller counterparts.

As the corded drill is more powerful it is essential that you read the instructions, these will tell you which speed to choose for your project and how to select settings such as drilling, screw driving or hammer drilling, or forward and reverse gears. You will also need to ensure that any material you are drilling is clamped firmly in place; corded drills are heavy and more difficult to handle than cordless drills, so the danger of slipping is increased.

You may want to consider buying a drill stand, as this will keep your drill firmly in place and gives absolute precision for 90 degree angle drilling which is especially important when making cabinets, or forming dowel joints. Take your drill with you when you shop for a drill stand as not all of them fit all makes, for example, some drill stands will not accept drills with keyless chucks.

A drill stand can be fitted to a portable workbench, or fixed to a permanent workbench depending on your workshop setup. It will hold the drill in a moveable stand that is mounted on an upright pillar.

If you have relied on the cordless drill there may be some drill bits you don’t already own such as:

Dowel Drill Bits

Closely resembling twist drill bits these offer more precision for dowel joints, as they house a centre point and cutting spurs and are available in three sizes.

End Mill Bits

In a range of sizes these are preferred for cabinet making, they are used for shallow stopped holes like when fitting hinges into a recess.

Auger Drill bits

These are perfect for wood or material that is deeper than 25mm as they offer more precision than ordinary flat wood bits. The spiral cutting spurs ensure that any debris is swiftly removed, whilst the lead centre point provides accuracy at depth.

Always store your drill in the case you bought it in to keep it clean and moisture free. If you haven’t got a case you can easily buy one from any DIY store.

This post was originally written by Martina Mercer for toolbox.co.uk

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