Starter Drill Bits?

George Hincapie

George Hincapie

George Hincapie

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Can anyone recommend a set (or sets) of drill bits for use around the home? I am thinking masonry, metal, wood bits etc. I have no idea whether I'd need several sets or if you can buy everything in one box.

I am useless at DIY. One thing I have never understood is which size drill bit, plug and screw I need to use for different things. Is there a general rule of thumb I can follow?
 
George Hincapie said:
Would something like this be OK?

http://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-dt...?cm_sp=Homepage-_-BottomBanner-_-DeWaltBitSet
Click to expand...

Hmm this has a load of wood drills, a load of metal drills and about 3 masonry drills. The bosch one has the same number of bits for each type - but careful I've seen a few different sizes of the bosch pack.

The wood drill would work for surface plaster but it's likely to blunt very quickly if you hit block and be destroyed by brick.

One thing I would urge you to get is a pipe/cable/stud sensor - I got a simple 20 quid one for B&Q http://www.diy.com/departments/bq-c...88_BQ&ef_id=UpnLZgAAAWS-T9VY:20150413142804:s but you can get them from screw fix: http://www.screwfix.com/p/bosch-pmd7-digital-detector/8046d

A not-so-DIY mate managed to drill through the AC cable on his lighting circuit putting up a picture..

Probably better would be the Makita set of drills - not brilliant quality but has lasted a decent time for basic DIY.. although putting large holes in wall it's better to get a single drill bit as they're better quality and don't blunt as easily.
 
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Bosch sets are good - and have everything you need. I've had a set for 10yrs (heavily used), only just about to replace now.
 
Cosimo said:
Maybe this:

http://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-p-67832-101-piece-accessory-set/96659
Click to expand...

That's the exact set I got about 4 years ago. The nice thing is it has bits for driver (i.e. my hand held drill) and a spirit level (magnetic). The actual quality of the bits is alright but not as good as the bosch ones. I've managed to break one of the carbide tips on the masonry bits (they're not great for hammer action). Also the masonry bit design isn't as good as the separate larger bits as they can clog with brick dust and the metal bits blunt quickly if they overheat.

On the good side is that you get lots which is more flexible for a novice DIYer. Just don't expect them to last as long.
 
For home DIY forget about a massive drill bit set you will use 1% of them. Instead get the following:

Good quality masonry 7mm drill bit. Dewalt extreme is a good choice. This is for your brown plugs.
Get a few pilot bits 2-6mm. That is all you will need.
 
Nedved11 said:
For home DIY forget about a massive drill bit set you will use 1% of them. Instead get the following:

Good quality masonry 7mm drill bit. Dewalt extreme is a good choice. This is for your brown plugs.
Get a few pilot bits 2-6mm. That is all you will need.
Click to expand...

This! Was just about to say the exact same thing.

Get a pack of decent brown Rawl plugs, not the cheapo ones.

I tend to use a 6.5mm masonry bit for brown plugs as I find theres less chance it'll spin the plug in softer bricks.
 
Nedved11 said:
For home DIY forget about a massive drill bit set you will use 1% of them. Instead get the following:

Good quality masonry 7mm drill bit. Dewalt extreme is a good choice. This is for your brown plugs.
Get a few pilot bits 2-6mm. That is all you will need.
Click to expand...

This, there really is no need for most of the bits in packs
 
Thing is I found initially I only used the wood bits for putting screws in.

The I started using the masonry ones and then the metal.. they were all jobs that I found suddenly I needed a different bit for. So unless you're near to a hardware retailer having them available is often a good move.
 
Just an update; I bought the DeWalt set I linked to originally. It's fine, but missing a 5/5.5 Masonry bit. I needed to pop some roller blinds up in our son's bedrooms today and our old Bosch drill died, so I popped up to Screwfix and bought this as well: http://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-dcd776c2-gb-18v-1-3ah-li-ion-cordless-combi-drill-xr/17648

I like it - very nice. I was going to buy a slightly more expensive Makita, but they didn't have the one I wanted in stock.
 
George Hincapie said:
Just an update; I bought the DeWalt set I linked to originally. It's fine, but missing a 5/5.5 Masonry bit. I needed to pop some roller blinds up in our son's bedrooms today and our old Bosch drill died, so I popped up to Screwfix and bought this as well: http://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-dcd776c2-gb-18v-1-3ah-li-ion-cordless-combi-drill-xr/17648

I like it - very nice. I was going to buy a slightly more expensive Makita, but they didn't have the one I wanted in stock.
Click to expand...

Good drill, I've got one and it seems decent for the around the house stuff, hammer action is very good.
 
I got the erbauer the other week, great for £80, 2 batteries and a bit more torque on the 2.0ah battery.

Don't do what most ppl do and only drill the depth of the rawl plug in a plaster and brick wall, go deeper and screw the rawl plug slightly on to a screw and hammer it all the way back, gets a far better fix
 
Ev0 said:
I had some Makita multi bit set that was ok, but since getting these I haven't really needed to use anything else as they cover pretty much all the stuff I need to do

http://www.axminster.co.uk/bosch-set-of-7-multi-construction-drill-bits
Click to expand...

The masonry bits I have use a better design for clearing the dust out of the hole - the shaft has no cutting ability at all - it's design is it move the waste out of the hole. The screw profile is very different to normal bits. The tip is all about the cut with a large chunk of carbide.

15355776823_14d8b28874_c.jpg


I used the SDS bit here yesterday - it took literally 2 seconds to put 1.5 inches of hole in brick with the Bosch SDS drill (i.e. the tape marker). I used one of the makita masonry bits to make a small dent - 4 seconds with the Bosch Li-ion 24V drill on hammer.. seriously there's no comparison to get the job done fast and efficiently.
 
I have one of the Bosch sets (not the cheapest one, I think it cost around £15-20), but it has had everything I have needed so far and I have used it for quite a few jobs, mainly wood and masonry drilling. The quality seems fine, I am not expert but I have no complaints so far :)
 
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