Official Luthiers Forum! :: View topic - 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.

I'd just soften it up so it won't break, and resharpen as necessary. I have a set of cheap Chinese long-reach bits I bought off ebay years ago, which are not hardened. They bend easily, and have served me well for the occasional deep hole in wood (no resharpening yet). Ideal would be to temper it into a spring. Not so easy to bend or break, and reasonably abrasion resistant. That is assuming it is straight and remains straight after tempering. One nice thing about having them soft is that you can bend them until they are straight.

Author:	guitarjtb [ Tue Jul 22, 2025 12:12 pm ]
Post subject:	6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
I have been using some 6" X 3/32" bits that I found online, but they are very brittle, and will snap if you look at them wrong:>). What type of wood bit can I buy that will not be so easy to break. Source? Thanks, James

Author:	meddlingfool [ Tue Jul 22, 2025 1:28 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
I just use whatever I find at Rona/HD/Summit/KMS etc. Just off the shelf bits.

Author:	rbuddy [ Tue Jul 22, 2025 3:18 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
You can't beat USA or German drill bits for quality metallurgy. I've had no luck with Asian/China bits. When they are too hard they may drill OK but break way too easily. When they break off in something it's a problem for sure. I guard my USA bit sets like gold and snap them up when I find them. McMaster-Carr has a few variations of 3/32 x 6" like - https://www.mcmaster.com/2986A14/ (edit typo) They may cost more but they are worth it.

Author:	Mike_P [ Tue Jul 22, 2025 5:49 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
3/32... 6" is awful long for such a small diameter and to be honest I didn't know a 6" version was even available, the smallest I find is 1/8", though admittedly that's a DeWalt from the Borg and they don't even offer anything other than 1/16" increments...that being said while I've broken a few 1/8 bits I don't think I've ever broken a 3/16 even at a length of 12" perhaps try drilling as deep as possible with a shorter bit then use the long one to get to the depth you desire. huh...your post made me get offa my lazy butt and do some simple searching and yeah, 3/32 and a slew of other odd diameters are available...I'd try a few different brands until you find a good one...hell, they're relatively cheap from my viewpoint so I'd splurge and get a Bosch bit as I doubt they supply junk bits

Author:	phavriluk [ Tue Jul 22, 2025 10:26 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
Stay away from cheap sources, you already know what happens when you buy the cheapest ones you can find. That means Amazon, too. I've accidentally bought some real junk from Amazon, although they were good about returns. I've been buying my drills from 'drills and cutters'. I'm sure there's other specialty sources. Mass-market, as someone's mentioned, Bosch seems to be a good brand. There's no free lunch and we pay for quality.

Official Luthiers Forum! http://www-.luthiersforum.com/forum/

6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle. http://www-.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=57136	Page 1 of 1

Author:	DennisK [ Wed Jul 23, 2025 12:03 am ]
Post subject:	Re: 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
I'd just soften it up so it won't break, and resharpen as necessary. I have a set of cheap Chinese long-reach bits I bought off ebay years ago, which are not hardened. They bend easily, and have served me well for the occasional deep hole in wood (no resharpening yet). Ideal would be to temper it into a spring. Not so easy to bend or break, and reasonably abrasion resistant. That is assuming it is straight and remains straight after tempering. One nice thing about having them soft is that you can bend them until they are straight.

Author:	phavriluk [ Mon Jul 28, 2025 10:53 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 6" X 3/32" drill bits that are not so brittle.
DennisK wrote: I'd just soften it up so it won't break, and resharpen as necessary. I have a set of cheap Chinese long-reach bits I bought off ebay years ago, which are not hardened. They bend easily, and have served me well for the occasional deep hole in wood (no resharpening yet). Ideal would be to temper it into a spring. Not so easy to bend or break, and reasonably abrasion resistant. That is assuming it is straight and remains straight after tempering. One nice thing about having them soft is that you can bend them until they are straight. Speaking for myself, my life's too short to spend any of it messing with substandard tools. I'd pass and spend a bit more to obtain good drill bits. My purpose is to build something.

Page 1 of 1	All times are UTC - 5 hours
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group http://www.phpbb.com/