Cordless Drill Resources
This resource page is designed to help you evaluate various drill related items including battery chargers, various drill bits and drill bit sharpeners. Hopefully you will find the answers to questions you may have when it comes to cordless drills and drill bit accessories. It is our desire that all of your woodworking and other home DIY projects are successful. Having the proper tools can make all of the difference in the world. This cordless drill resources page should help you be prepared for the toughest projects.
Contents
- 1 Finding the Best Cordless Drill
- 2 Getting the Best Cordless Drill Accessories
- 3 Which Drill Bit Should You Use?
- 4 Wood Drill Bits and Their Uses
- 5 Special Wood Drill Bits
- 6 Metal Drill Bits
- 7 Specialty Metal Drill Bits
- 8 Keeping a Drill Bit Sharp
- 9 Drilling Through Masonry
- 10 Tile Drill Bits
- 11 Step Drill Bits
Finding the Best Cordless Drill
When looking for the proper drill to use on your projects, a cordless drill has many advantages. What cordless drills bring to the table is convenience. You do not need an electrical outlet and you don’t have to worry about any cords getting in the way while you are doing your work. These are the most popular for home use and hold up really well. The 18 volt cordless drills are best fitted to home DIY projects of every kind.
But which is the best cordless drill for your situation? It’s important to evaluate and compare various 18v cordless drills. There are several top cordless drills made by different manufacturers that will give you long life and great results. When it comes to buying a cordless drill, you might as well get the best one for you. Cost isn’t the only factor. Another aspect to consider when buying a cordless drill is to get the proper cordless drill accessories. This information should help guide you along that path as well.
Getting the Best Cordless Drill Accessories
Often times when buying a cordless drill, the cordless drill charger comes with it. In the event that isn’t the case, or if you need a new charger, you will want to get the cordless drill charger that is made for your drill. Each manufacturer designs the batteries specifically for their drill. Check this carefully before ordering a new charger.
Which Drill Bit Should You Use?
You can have the best cordless drill in the world but without proper drill bits, you will never get the job done, and if you do, you will suffer a lot of grief. It’s important to have the right drill bit sizes for each project. Choosing the right drill bit for the job is essential. Every drill bit has a unique size. There are two basic measurements for drill bits. The standard drill bits are based on the American inch. The size of each of these bits is measured on a fraction of an inch. These bits may be as small as 1/64 of an inch to well over 1 inch in diameter. Metric drill bit sizes define the width or the diameter of the bits in metric standards. Standard organizations define the most common sets of sizes that are produced and commonly available. British standard BS 328 defines sizes ranging from 0.2mm to 25 mm. It isn’t only the diameter that is measured, but also the drill bit length.
The size of the bit isn’t the only important thing. Depending on what kind of material you are needing to drill will determine what type of drill bit you need. If you are beginning a woodworking project, you will need to purchase wood drill bits.
If you are planning on doing a number of projects over the coming years, you may find it advantageous to purchase a drill bit set, or even a number of drill bit sets. Having to run to the local hardware store for each home project may add up. In a drill bit set, each drill bit in the set is different in size. They are normally in a case of some kind, which places the bits in the order of their size. Drill bit sets are best purchased when you may need a large variety of sizes, but don’t know what all sizes you will need.
Wood Drill Bits and Their Uses
There are a number of different wood drill bits available, varying in length and diameter. Even though there is a difference in the hardness of various types of wood, a good sharpened wood drill bit should drill easily through any kind of wood. As mentioned above, diameter isn’t the only measurement used when deciding which drill bit is best. If you are drilling through very thick material, a long drill bit may be required. Long drill bits are the most popular tool to drill deep and accurate holes into various hard, as well as soft objects. Especially when it comes to boring accurate holes and crafting round holes in metals, woods of all types or any other hard substance, these long drill bits come in very handy. They normally eliminate the need for a drill bit extension. Just in case you do need to drill through substances that are deeper than the long drill bit will reach, a drill bit extension will give you that extra drilling length. It attaches to the end of a normal drill bit, increasing its length for cleaner and faster drilling.
Special Wood Drill Bits
There are times, especially in wood construction, which you may need to drill around corners or at least curve your drilling pattern. Flexible drill bits work great for this kind of drilling. These bits are designed for drilling inside walls and around corners. They are also designed to drill into various types of material.
There are some wood projects that require drilling out a hole up to two inches in diameter or more. A core drill bit is a tool used to bore holes in to hard substances like concrete, rocks, metal platters and other hard substances. There are wood core drill bits too. The core drill bit, apart from drilling solid materials, can also be used to widen or enlarge the existing hole which is probably the biggest and important feature of using a core bit. A common use of a core drill bit for woodworkers is drilling out the large hole for a door knob. If you drill a lot of different sizes of holes, you may want to invest in several core drill bits or get an adjustable core drill bit. Core drill bits are useful in drilling holes in anything with perfection. These drill bits can literally drill through anything from the toughest things to the most delicate, with perfection, ease and comfort.
Metal Drill Bits
Outside of woodworking projects, the most popular drill bit is one designed for drilling into metal. Metal drill bits are designed to drill into all kinds of metal. Some of these bits are coated with carbide and some with cobalt to increase the efficiency and bit life. Prominent feature of metal drill bits are that they can be re-sharpened to be used time and again and thus results in reduced cost to its users and better efficiency. These bits can cut flat holes, deep holes and diagonal holes into the metal sheets, no matter how thick and tough the sheet is because they are solidly structured with sharp shafts and cutting edges. Drill bits for metal provide efficient drilling through most any kind of metal with ease. Depending on what kind of coating these metal bits have will determine which metals they are best suited for.
Specialty Metal Drill Bits
When you plan on doing a lot of drilling through metal, a carbide drill bit may be best. One of the advantages of carbide drill bits, which are made up of tungsten with carbon coating, is it makes the bit very tough and gives it the ability to pierce metallic substances easily if appropriate pressure is applied.
For special applications, cobalt drill bits may be preferable. These bits are commonly used when manufacturing aircraft as well as throughout the aviation industries. The cobalt drill bits are high-speed steel drill bits which have cobalt added to their steel. These drill bits are available in two different grades: M35 is a grade which has 5% cobalt as one of its constituents. This helps to increase heat resistance. M42 is a grade which has 8% cobalt added to its formula. This helps it to resist wear, and makes it less prone to chipping as compared to the other bits made of carbide.
If you are going to do a lot of serious drilling with these bits, you may want to invest in a cobalt drill bit set. I mention invest because these drill bits aren’t real cheap. But if you regularly drill through metals such as stainless steel, it would probably be worth your while to get a set. There are various benefits of using a cobalt drill bit set. This is one of the strongest types of drill bits available.
Keeping a Drill Bit Sharp
As drill bits are used, the friction caused by the material being drilled causes them to eventually become dull. This makes it hard to get good use from the drill bits. The drill bit sharpeners restore the bits to a condition that is close to new. Rather than buying more and more drill bits as they become dull, you can purchase one of these drill bit sharpeners instead. It is a small investment up front, but will save you a lot of money in the long run.
Drilling Through Masonry
Metal isn’t the only hard substance that is drilled through. Masonry products such as cement, concrete blocks, bricks, stone or even quarry tiles at times need to be drilled through. Yes there is a special bit made especially for this kind of material. A masonry drill bit is a heavy-duty drill bit used to get the job done well and with precision. These drill bits are available in various types. One type of masonry drill bit is used with hammer drills in order to more easily drill through the hard materials. The hammer drill delivers a strong impact while rotating into the hard material.
Tile Drill Bits
Even though these were mentioned with masonry drill bits, the tile drill bit is a specialty bit of its own. Tiles are solid, clay or sand made plates creamed with a hard layer of silica. This is done in a way that makes them delicate, and as a result, they can shatter easily when exposed to hard drilling or to the wrong drill bit. Therefore, it is essential to select an appropriate tile drill bits when drilling these holes. Tile is regarded as one of the most delicate and gentle substances to bore holes into. If you don’t use the appropriate tile drill bit you may very easily break the tile, causing heartache in your project. A regular masonry drill bit would easily shatter this tile.
Step Drill Bits
A step drill bit is in the shape of a cone and is comprised of various multiple sizes or steps. These step bits are available with 2 to 13 different step sizes that can measure between 1/32” to 1/2” inch, or 4mm to 12mm. They are easy to use and have an efficient hole making impact on metals and hard articles. One can easily push the drill into the required metal to be drilled and can push the bit until the width of the desired hole has been crafted.
As you can see, there is a lot more to cordless drills and their accessories than you would think. We hope that this cordless drill resources page has helped on your journey down the woodworking or home project trail. Remember to use the associated links to check out more detailed information. There is a vast wealth of information available for you to check out.
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