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Tool Drill Doctor Experience
- Thread starter Tomc938
- Start date
Tool
darrin1200
Darrin
I love mine, because I am horrible with sharpening.
trlvn
Ultra Member
What range of sizes will it sharpen? 1/8" to 1/2"? Personally, I won't bother sharpening fractional drills under about 1/4". But I might sharpen a small number drill just because it is a hassle to get a replacement.
Will it handle reduced shank drills? (I have a set with 3/8" shanks for portable use.) Will it handle morse taper drills? Maybe that doesn't matter to you.
I've got a simple drill sharpening jig that I use with a 1-inch belt sander (Blue Zirconia belt):
www.leevalley.com
Very happy with it. Sharpens up to 3/4" diameter although I wish I could handle 1". Not great for reduced shank or taper shank drills. Takes up very little space. Cheap!
Craig
Will it handle reduced shank drills? (I have a set with 3/8" shanks for portable use.) Will it handle morse taper drills? Maybe that doesn't matter to you.
I've got a simple drill sharpening jig that I use with a 1-inch belt sander (Blue Zirconia belt):
Drill Grinding Guide - Lee Valley Tools
Discover the Drill Grinding Guide. Buy this product now on our Lee Valley online store.
www.leevalley.com
Very happy with it. Sharpens up to 3/4" diameter although I wish I could handle 1". Not great for reduced shank or taper shank drills. Takes up very little space. Cheap!
Craig
Ironman
Ultra Member
I have one, they do a beautiful job.
But so can I. I always promise myself to dust it off and set it up and use it, but if a bit goes dull and I am in the middle of some repair, I just go over to the grinder and touch it up and it's sharp again.
Then it is good til the next time I drill into a piece of hardened unobtanium.
But so can I. I always promise myself to dust it off and set it up and use it, but if a bit goes dull and I am in the middle of some repair, I just go over to the grinder and touch it up and it's sharp again.
Then it is good til the next time I drill into a piece of hardened unobtanium.
Ironman
Ultra Member
I have a Drill Doctor 750, it will handle 3/4" bits.
I'm not a big fan of Lee Valley, and I've seen and used that creation before. I do better holding a bit in my fingers. Split pointing is something I'm not good at and generally do that with my bigger morse tapers and S&D bits....which results in a slight rounded edge of the grindstone and makes doing split points on small bits impossible.
I believe mine is a 350X but not an XC.
I hate it. The housing and cam as well as the spring fingers don't fit well enough to give me good confidence in the outcome, and neither do the results. I've never sharpened a drill bit that came out much better than it went in.
I'd love to find something that actually worked.
I'm not very good at sharpening drills by hand even after significant research and dicking around. So I've been looking at fixtures and gizmos like the drill Doctor for quite some time without much success.
I'm intrigued by the fact that @DavidR8 and @Ironman have had good experiences. Maybe I'm just being a poor or overly fussy user.
Tomc938
Ultra Member
Interesting!
Sounds like the 750 would be the way to go.
Thanks for the link @trlvn - reminds me I have one of those already! I really should give it a try.
My hand sharpening maybe isn't as bad as I thought based on others experiences. About 20% of the time the drill works better than most of my other ones. 10% of the time I end up with a negative rake that does a lovely job of polishing a divot on the metal. The other 70%nof the time there is minimal improvement.
Sounds like the 750 would be the way to go.
Thanks for the link @trlvn - reminds me I have one of those already! I really should give it a try.
My hand sharpening maybe isn't as bad as I thought based on others experiences. About 20% of the time the drill works better than most of my other ones. 10% of the time I end up with a negative rake that does a lovely job of polishing a divot on the metal. The other 70%nof the time there is minimal improvement.
Please remember me after you get it and try it. I'm counting the minutes......
trlvn
Ultra Member
Incidentally, I grabbed a couple of random second-hand bits to refresh my memory. On one, the point was well off to one side and neither one had much clearance behind the cutting edge.
I'm in awe of those that can do it freehand. Keeping the angles the same from one flute to another is hard enough. Then getting the point centered. And getting decent clearance behind the cutting edge. Maybe I'm overthinking the process?
So far, the drills I've sharpened with the jig seem to cut well. They cut quickly and with roughly equal chips from each side of the drill. I can also regrind a drill to 135 degrees (or other angles) if I need them for a special purpose.
Craig
I'm in awe of those that can do it freehand. Keeping the angles the same from one flute to another is hard enough. Then getting the point centered. And getting decent clearance behind the cutting edge. Maybe I'm overthinking the process?
So far, the drills I've sharpened with the jig seem to cut well. They cut quickly and with roughly equal chips from each side of the drill. I can also regrind a drill to 135 degrees (or other angles) if I need them for a special purpose.
Craig
I too have a 750 and for me it works well because I can’t hand grind a drill for beans.
My only real complaint is that the diamond grit wheel in it could be finer. Before getting mine I used one at the office that was well used and it gave a smoother finish, I think that was because the wheel was probably worn down. You can’t get a finer wheel for it.
Setting the drill bit in the machine’s chuck is a bit fiddly too but can be managed.
If you can’t hand grind for beans then the 750 is worth it.
D
My only real complaint is that the diamond grit wheel in it could be finer. Before getting mine I used one at the office that was well used and it gave a smoother finish, I think that was because the wheel was probably worn down. You can’t get a finer wheel for it.
Setting the drill bit in the machine’s chuck is a bit fiddly too but can be managed.
If you can’t hand grind for beans then the 750 is worth it.
D
ChazzC
Ultra Member
I have a 750X, which out of the box will sharpen 3/32” - 1/2”; with a different chuck it will handle up to 3/4”. It will grind 118 & 135 (and any angle between 115 - 140), will make split points and has the capability to change the amount of material removed during sharpening. As the chuck grasps the working end of the bit, it will sharpen reduced shank bits, and therefore also do MT or other special shank bits and long bits. The 350 will only grind 118 degree, the 500 adds 135 and split-point.What range of sizes will it sharpen? 1/8" to 1/2"? Personally, I won't bother sharpening fractional drills under about 1/4". But I might sharpen a small number drill just because it is a hassle to get a replacement.
Will it handle reduced shank drills? (I have a set with 3/8" shanks for portable use.) Will it handle morse taper drills? Maybe that doesn't matter to you.
I've got a simple drill sharpening jig that I use with a 1-inch belt sander (Blue Zirconia belt):
Drill Grinding Guide - Lee Valley Tools
Discover the Drill Grinding Guide. Buy this product now on our Lee Valley online store.
Very happy with it. Sharpens up to 3/4" diameter although I wish I could handle 1". Not great for reduced shank or taper shank drills. Takes up very little space. Cheap!
Craig
ChazzC
Ultra Member
As noted in post #19, I have a 750X, with the 1/2” chuck. I also have a 100 grit wheel for large bits/heavy duty removal, but haven’t had to use it (may get a 220 grit after market wheel, though). 3/4” capacity and left-hand chucks are available.
To be honest, I have only used it lightly over the last 15+ years, and then only on 118 degree regular bits. It does a great job touching up dull bits, and I also rescued this reduced shank 1/2” bit that a millwright thought would drill concrete (apologies for the quality of the photos):
Web-thinning/reliefs are equal and the grind is centered. It has been awhile, but IIRC the bit cuts well in steel (otherwise I would have re-sharpened or chucked it since it was free and I have 1/2" Cobalt bits).
Bottom line: while not for a production operation, for a hobbyist I think this is a good choice.
To be honest, I have only used it lightly over the last 15+ years, and then only on 118 degree regular bits. It does a great job touching up dull bits, and I also rescued this reduced shank 1/2” bit that a millwright thought would drill concrete (apologies for the quality of the photos):
Web-thinning/reliefs are equal and the grind is centered. It has been awhile, but IIRC the bit cuts well in steel (otherwise I would have re-sharpened or chucked it since it was free and I have 1/2" Cobalt bits).
Bottom line: while not for a production operation, for a hobbyist I think this is a good choice.