Wood Drills

ENT and FAMAG Wood Drills

We offer the complete wood drill program from the market leader FAMAG, from Remscheid in Germany. FAMAG have been drillmaking specialists since 1865. The precision and high standards of FAMAG drill bits have been known, loved and above all proven for many years. The FAMAG drills are complemented in our range by drill bits from ENT and the English brand Trend.

WOOD DRILLING

In woodworking, drilling has always been one of the most important machining methods, along with sawing and planing. There are only a few traditional trades in which it does not play such a major role (such as turning or coopering), but holes are always drilled in carpentry, joinery and carpentry. In more modern areas of woodworking, such as interior finishing, drilling also plays a major role, even if it is only to drill guide holes and through holes for screws.

"Drilling thick boards" as a term for the patient but strenuous overcoming of great resistance still recalls the days of manual hand drills (drill winch, drill bit and the like), where the drilling tool was set in rotation by muscle power. Today, they are rarely used; as a rule, one will resort to an electric drill (stationary or as a hand drill corded or battery-powered). This way, even thick boards lose their fear. Provided you use a suitable wood drill.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT DRILL

Difference between wood drill and metal drill

Trying to drill wood with a metal or stone drill will almost always lead to unsatisfactory results, even though twist drills for wood and for metal, for example, look quite similar. Wood drills have certain characteristics that allow clean drill holes in the wood.

Wood differs from other materials by its inhomogeneous structure: the material consists of hard and soft fibres. For this reason, wood drills are usually equipped with a centre point that prevents the drill from being pushed or pulled to the side ('running') by hard fibres when the hole is being drilled. However, the wood fibres must also be cut through at the edge of the drill hole before the wood is cut with the cutting edges. Otherwise, the fibres would not be cut cleanly but would tear out. Therefore, wood drills have so-called pre-cutters of different shapes on the outer edge, with which the fibres are cut through. The other features of wood twist drills (shank, cutting edges, helix) largely correspond to the drills for metal and stone, but they differ in details of the cutting edge and helix geometry and often also in the material used.

Differences between wood drill types

Centre point and pre-cutter are features that are common to almost all wood drills. Beyond that, however, one can still distinguish certain shapes, some of which are optimised for specific areas of application.

The wood twist drill

The wood twist drill corresponds to the description given above. In our programme you will find wood twist drills from leading manufacturers such as FAMAG and ENT. Most variants are equipped with a cylindrical shank, but we also stock wood twist drills with a bit shank. The service life of the twist drills depends mainly on the tool material used, here you have the choice between chrome vanadium steel, tool steel, high-speed steel (HSS and HSS-G) and carbide-tipped drills.

Wood twist drills do come in diameters up to 16 mm and in lengths up to more than 450 mm, but for holes with very large diameters or very great depths, you are more likely to reach for two other types of drill that are better suited for these purposes.

The auger bit

The auger bit is the specialist for very deep holes (which may also have a large diameter - we stock auger bits up to a diameter of 50 mm).

What is the difference between the twist drill and the auger bit?

Despite superficial similarities, the auger bit differs from the twist drill in several respects: One distinguishing feature is the size. Not only in terms of diameter, but also with lengths of over 1000 mm, the auger bit far surpasses the twist drill. Unlike most auger bits, the centre point of the auger bit is usually threaded so that the bit pulls itself into the wood. Finally, the spiral flute of the auger bit is deeper and its pitch flatter to ensure easy chip evacuation even from deep holes.

The Forstner and Hinge Sinker

Forstner drills and hinge sinkers are the tools of choice when it comes to drilling large-diameter, tear-free holes or blind holes with a flat bottom.

Two common uses for both types of drill:

1. Drilling out knots or knotholes in solid wood.
2. Drilling receptacles for cup hinges and similar fittings in furniture making.

What is the difference between the Forstner bit and the artificial bit?

The Forstner bit has two circumferential cutting edges that allow the bit to be guided well even on workpiece edges where the hole is open on one side. The peripheral cutting edges and the centre point allow the Forstner drill to be used in the hand drill as well. In contrast, the hinge sinker should always be used in a stationary drilling machine (drill stand, pillar drilling machine), as they tend to run easily when guided by hand. Due to the lack of peripheral cutting edges, hinge sinkers have the advantage that they are easier to resharpen.