I’m a big fan of a good drill bit, like anyone else who’s having to drill holes. But there are some serious differences in bits, regardless of the price. With all the different coatings, tip designs, and more available it is often hard to decide which ones you need in your tool box. The nicest bits I’ve used in recent years are the stepped tip bits, which power through thinner materials. One thing that I learned many years ago was that the drill bit only needs to be long enough to go through the material you are drilling a hole in. Why have a 6 inch long drill bit when you are trying to drill a hole in 16g sheet metal? If you have a Drill Doctor or other drill bit sharpener, you can take broken or old bits and make nice short bits for your thin material drilling needs.
So when I saw these short little bits for the first time, and realized they had a tap built in that would thread the hole you just drilled, all in one operation, I was immediately interested. These drill bits really are something special, because you never have to worry about having the right size drill bit for the tap size you want to use. Since it is already built in, you know you have it right. But as usual, as soon as I saw them I also saw 14 other brands that ranged in price from way too cheap to stupid expensive. So what’s a DIY car guy or gal to do?
Like many folks, I ended up not making a decision on which ones to buy and so I don’t have them in my toolbox.
But now Project Farm is testing them! In the video below you’ll see testing and reviews on a bunch of different drill tap combos so you know what you are getting for your hard earned money. Check out the video and let us know what you think.
Video Description:
Klein Tools, Milwaukee, IVY Classic, NEIKO, IDEAL, Greenlee, DeWalt, AUTOTOOLHOME, HighFire, Hercules, Junreox, DKIBBITH, THINKWORK, VALKYNOS, GMTOOLS, HIDOTOL, and OCR were tested for their ability drill through 1/8 Inch Aluminum, for the torque required create threads in 1/8 Inch Aluminum, and for their ability to drill and tap ½ Inch mild steel.
I purchased all the Drill and Tap Sets to ensure an unbiased review.
