W.T.F. Oppo, seriously?

"deekster_caddy" (deekster_caddy)
10/16/2017 at 09:14 • Filed to: New tools

I’ve been working on cars for over 25 years. 10 of those I spent my day job at an industrial machine shop, 10 of those I worked at an auto parts store... this past weekend I was prepping my trailer for a new wiring harness. How is it that this is the first time I’ve ever used one of these magic drill bits?

I mean, W T F. Happy, but so unhappy I never tried this before!!!!

DISCUSSION (30)

PartyPooper2012 > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:24

those things are amazing!

CalzoneGolem > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:29

I learned about these bits from watching the early mighty car mods episodes.

Nibby > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:35

don’t use them for sex, it’s gonna hurt

deekster_caddy > CalzoneGolem
10/16/2017 at 09:36

I think I first saw them used watching Orange County Chopper, but never tried them until this weekend. What a massive timesaver!

deekster_caddy > Nibby
10/16/2017 at 09:36

Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind! #lifehacks

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:47

For bloody ages I always dreaded drilling stuff. Even good drill bits would either not last or snap.

These things have cured all of that. They’re brilliant, brilliant things :)

Censored > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:52

They are great, but you will be completely blown away by a quality one. Try a Lenox or a Milwaukee. They are quite pricey, but last for eons as long as you use a bit of cutting fluid on them.

Can you imagine drilling a 7/8 or 1-1/8 hole with a twist bit. Just thinking about it I broke my wrist.

barnie > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:57

Haven’t watched Project Binky then, have ya? Or Engine Masters or Dirt Every Day or... All these guys use them. Glad to see ya in the fold now - life will get much easier.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:58

I have still never used one, we purchased a couple a few months ago, but they haven’t been used yet. Sounds like we need to bust them out and give them a shot.

Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 09:58

I recently bought a quality chinese made set of those from Amazon. They were cheap, so I thought whatever.
Haven’t had to use them for now. But I’m concerned about durability

Michael > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 10:07

We used them at the machine shop at my first job.

The best part is when you don’t need to go up to the next step, so it can de-burr the hole with the next size step

Aaron M - MasoFiST > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 10:18

I first used a step bit on a drill press in my machining class sophomore year of college. In other words, I have no idea how you’ve gone this long before using one.

deekster_caddy > merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc
10/16/2017 at 10:35

They definitely have a place. For larger holes I usually drill the small holes, then change bits a few times to get to the final size. It is easy to keep going and over-size the hole with this, but still... so much time saved!

deekster_caddy > Rustholes-Are-Weight-Reduction
10/16/2017 at 10:36

As far as durability, just make sure you use a drilling/tapping oil, and give them a rest every now and then. But so far so good, I ran through about 12 holes for these wiring passages and didn’t notice any dulling, the last cut was as easy as the first!

deekster_caddy > Michael
10/16/2017 at 10:38

Yes! No followup deburring needed! (Even though I did run my deburring tool around all of them just to be sure, as these holes are for wires...)

deekster_caddy > Aaron M - MasoFiST
10/16/2017 at 10:39

I remember seeing somebody at our machine shop use one, and somebody else making fun of them for it... that was 15-20 years ago, and for some reason I just never tried them. Some stigma about them being crappy. I think the making fun part came from idiot union labor ideas, something like “don’t do it so quickly you’ll make the rest of us look bad”... I was happily impressed.

deekster_caddy > barnie
10/16/2017 at 10:40

admittedly I’ve never seen any of those shows. I’ll have to look them up.

450X_FTW > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 11:17

I’ve got 2 sets from Harbor Freight and I hate to say it, they work AMAZING.

deekster_caddy > 450X_FTW
10/16/2017 at 11:20

Craftsmen has come way down in quality over the years, I wouldn’t be surprised if these are exactly the same as the H.F. ones. Amazing is how I felt after opening up these holes. I was giddy the whole time I was using them!

shop-teacher > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 11:50

That’s where I first saw them too. They are indeed amazing.

WiscoProud > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 12:14

They are quite magical. Just drill that pilot hole and scale it up as needed.

deekster_caddy > WiscoProud
10/16/2017 at 12:16

The best part of this job was that the pilot holes were all there from long ago. I just rammed the narrow bit through to open them all up to 1/2, then rammed the large bit through until I could fit the wire loom in the hole, and done!

Brickman > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 12:28

I been meaning to get me a set of those. Haven’t needed one yet, but I have a feeling I may need them :)

deekster_caddy > Brickman
10/16/2017 at 12:30

I grabbed them on a black friday sale at Sears like two or three years ago and remembered thinking that I’ve seen them looking useful. Just opened the package for the first time! Why did I wait so long?!?!

Frank Grimes > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 13:29

I wonder if its because they are more of a hack job way of drilling holes? Im guessing pro shops would have a multitude of drill bits to choose from. Of course slightly enlarging a hole is a pain maybe the step drills are ideal.

DiExMachina > deekster_caddy
10/16/2017 at 13:54

They are great. The best improvement that could happen for them would be to change the design to a 3 flute design. They can wobble a bit due to only having one flute.

You see it on cheap countersinks with one flute too. I have some 6 flute ones at work that are awesome.

deekster_caddy > Frank Grimes
10/16/2017 at 14:45

I had to go through 3/16 steel (the angle iron of the trailer structure). That’s a lot of step-ups in drill bits, and a lot of my larger bits are getting duller as the years go on. These step-drill bits are much cheaper than a bunch of large drill bits!

Frank Grimes > deekster_caddy
10/19/2017 at 13:32

Thats true. I have a cheap harbor freight set and am surprised how quick they can embiggen a hole in 1/4" plate.

Frenchlicker > deekster_caddy
10/19/2017 at 20:29

I’ve been meaning to get some of those. I’ve seen enough pro’s use them in videos that it makes me put a bit of faith into them.

deekster_caddy > Frenchlicker
10/24/2017 at 16:18

Worth every penny. I’m very happy with them!