Funny enough just last week the neighbour was trying to put screws in , she was using a large drill bit to make the holes but the screws weren’t going In correctly, so I used my own drill with smaller drill bits (with a reverse function) and they went in no problem.
Benjamin Forstner was indeed born in Pennsylvania and migrated to Salem, Ore. at the end of the Civil War. By trade, he was a gunsmith. Boring and rifling gun barrels, he came up with a bit design (patented in 1874) that still carries his name. Forstner used the leading factories in New England to commercially produce his invention. One was the Colt Patent Fire Arms Co. of Hartford, CT.
I am so pleased with your comment. For two weeks I have been trying to think of the name Forstner! I was trying to describe them to hubby, for using on the lathe to hollow out vases etc. . And if I remembered to stop and pull out my set, while in the shop I could check. I had been pulling things together for years and years in my quest for turning wood. We got our lathe set up about 10 days ago! So exciting.
I just got a handyman’s apprentice job and this felt like I got a weeks learning in a single video. Thanks for being so good for my mind as a kid, and thank you even more for keeping it going Adam!
It has been two years, I hope the job worked out? There is great satisfaction in knowing how to do basic repairs and being competent to do so. And I believe a good living can be made doing handy man work, because so many people don’t even know how to adjust the temperature on their water heater, much less do a repair.
@@SlartiMarvinbartfast it's fantastic for estimation, it's would have lost a bit of accuracy as soon as it healed, but being able to check quickly if something is around about X size is invaluable.
@@ThistleThings It's never going to be very accurate, it's mostly useful for coarse measurements like how he uses it to check whether the bit is 2.5 or 3 inch. A few mm of sag over the years isn't going to make that much difference for measurements like that.
ADAM SAVAGE: Talks about drill bits ME, FOR 15 MINUTES, INCREASINGLY ANXIOUS: I know you're building up to your forstners give me the f o r s t n e r s
In addition to Forstner bits, my favorite woodworking addition was a pilot bit with a collar that makes a countersink at the same time. Saves a lot of time when screwing together a bunch of 2x4's.
Bloody good little tool that, drills and countersinks at the same time, and some have a skirt that you can set to give yo a certain size countersink too
a 2x4? you don't need to drill a counter sink for that. Standard construction screws will countersink themselves without splitting framing lumber. At least doug fir where I am.
@@HotForgeChaos just started setting my garage last week with french cleat shelves. Picked up a couple they work so nice. Im working with pine and i have counter sinks hole that a little to deep. Its really easy to do.
Forstner bitts changed my life! the attribute you didn't make much of, but was shown is the shape of the bottom of the hole. The center has a small divot and the outside edge has a small groove, but the rest is flat and smooth. This was GREAT news for me because I imbed T-Nuts in resin castings. With just a pick and a little sandpaper, I can get a very clean hole that centers and levels the T-Nut - something that the great honking divot and grooves of a spade bit made difficult.
This is what I bought my set - wanted to countersink bolts and nuts for some planters, so forstner made that easy. Honestly didn't know I was buying something so special, but I love the bits.
I could listen for hours to Adam describing his failed projects and mistakes. I often underappreciated that the many failed projects I have were an invaluable learning experience. Hearing Adam talk about his own mess ups reminds me that I'm in good company.
I can’t believe that I have spent half an hour watching this in place of washing the pots it was really good. My wife ask me what had I been doing I said “ watching bits and bobs, it was boring” “ why did you look at it then” I replied because it was so interesting” she just look perplexed, “ let’s continue with our cleaning drill” she said “ Taking about drill “ I said “I have interesting things to say to you”
Benjamin Forstner (25 March 1834 - 27 February 1897), was an American gunsmith, inventor, and dry goods merchant. In 1886, Forstner patented the Forstner bit. The bit was revolutionary as it did not feature the lead screw (which Forstner called the "gimlet-point") or the cutting lips of more conventional wood boring bits, and thus proved especially useful to gunsmiths and high-end woodworkers. The spade bit is most commonly used in construction to drill fast rough holes through studs and joists for routing wires and tubing. It blows through the soft would very fast, and you don't care how clean the holes is just for routing.
Old-timey augur bits, like the one Adam shows, potentially cut the cleanest holes in wood. They have two spurs around the edge that cut the wood fibres in advance of scraping the material out.
Something I loved about having had wood and metal shop in school was getting to work with several types of drill bits. Our final project in wood shop was the little race cars powered by a CO2 cartridge And we used a forstner bit to drill the cavity for the cylinder
Exactly, shop class is invaluable. I too did the CO2 cars in shop class. In junior high, no less. High school seniors are barely allowed to look at pictures of power tools nowadays. Which is very likely why it perplexed me very much to hear Adam say Forstner bits are obscure. Less well known than spade bits, sure, but nowhere near qualifying for a Buzzfeed clickbait list.
From Wikipedia: Benjamin Forstner (25 March 1834 - 27 February 1897), was an American gunsmith, inventor, and dry goods merchant. In 1886, Forstner patented the Forstner bit. The bit was revolutionary as it did not feature the lead screw (which Forstner called the "gimlet-point") or the cutting lips of more conventional wood boring bits, and thus proved especially useful to gunsmiths and high-end woodworkers. The bit was unsurpassed in drilling a smooth-sided hole with a flat bottom. It was also better than Russell Jennings twist bits for boring at an angle and not following the grain of the wood. Forstner eventually made arrangements for the manufacturing and sale of his bit with two Connecticut firms: Colt's Manufacturing Company of Hartford, and Bridgeport Gun Implement Company, successors to Union Metallic Cartridge Company. The Forstner bit continues to be manufactured, although it has evolved into a split-ring design. Also, modern Forstner bits normally feature a (non-screw) lead point (AKA "center spur"), unlike Forstner's original, although rim-guided bits are still available from some manufacturers.
I've been discovering the shortcomings of my various tools by making mistakes and was recently considering if that Forstner bit set would've saved me some headaches. Thank you Adam, for confirming my suspicions about them as well as the step bits I've been considering. And thank you for providing such informative and engaging content. It's difficult to do both when discussing tools.
@@fatfredthe28th would it be possible to grind down three flat sides on a belt sander, maybe create a groove on those sides, so a standard chuck can get a better grip on the shank?
@@zorbaseatery4745 , of course. Just makes more sense to me to sell them with a hex shank as they will work better and presumably sell better. Who knows, maybe manufacturing costs are notably higher versus smooth shanks.
Hey Adam doubt you’ll see this but I hope to let you know that you and Jamie both had an incredible impact in my childhood and I can’t thank you both enough for igniting that spark of passion I have for learning how the world works around me
I second this. I want to see it done right. I have friend who kicks around with filmmaking and I think I would be cool to surprise him with a little steadicam rig
Would be great to see him make 2. One of them being a "here's what I originally attempted, just with better tools and knowledge" The other could be more of an example for beginner makers and cinematographers who (like young Adam) don't have access to a full shop.
This video is actionable proof that I can sit down and listen to Adam talk for 25 minutes without really covering much I wasn't already aware of (not to be proud or anything, I've just been lucky to grow up around tools). Keep up the work, y'all
One important thing you left out about that auger is that the little screw-threaded tip (sometimes called the snail) draws the bit through the work. This means you don't have to apply any force in the direction of the bore, you just need to turn the brace. Longer throw braces (they go up to 14 inches AFAIK) make this really easy even in very hard woods.
It amazes me that somebody with Adam's experience and knowledge would ever think "I'll just drill into this piece while I hold it in the palm of my other hand."
Adam has learned a lot of bad habits by being under unrealistic time constraints. Do as he says, not as he does. Clamp work. It is worth the extra moment for the control and safety that clamping work offers. Adam had a bench vise right next to him. Would he think to use it? Of course not.
The timing on this video is incredible. I bought my first forstner bit a week ago for installing a one sided deadbolt. It's maybe the best and only bit for flat bottom holes.
I ran into Forstner bits a year or two ago when I built a pinball machine... they're great for putting flipper buttons into ply. Great thing about them is you can drill half way into the wood with a larger bit then finish it with a smaller bit and it'll still centre itself due to the brad centre and you end up with a stepped hole - for when you want the smaller hole to fit the flipper button, and the larger hole to recess the nut that keeps it in place.
i've always said... buy the cheapest you can...for stuff you hardly use... but stuff you use all the time, buy the most expensive you can afford. This is why I have $3 wrenches and $60 wire cutters... a $9 studfinder and a $700 multimeter.
Quality's all well and good, but you could buy a running used car PLUS a decent multimeter for that $700. Or 5 or 10 really great multimeters. You might have a spending problem there (or a research problem)...
Well... I know these professional builders that were really succesful, and appreciated for both prices and quality at the same time. They once told me they bought the cheapest brand of cement blenders in bulk, and threw them away after each project instead of cleaning them, because that would cost them more time and money than it was worth cleaning them... I think that goes for a lot of things in our society today. To use and discard is actually cheaper than buying quality and maintaning it.
Hey Adam, I don't know if you'll ever read this, but I just wanted to say that you inspire me on all levels to be a better human. Your hard work, your attention to detail, your kindness, your patience, the reverence you have for creation and creativity, and your messaging about the power of the responsible application of science to enrich our lives, I've been giving it some thought and if everyone were like you, the world might be full of corny jokes and landfills filled to the brim with dorky trinkets, but the world would be prosperous, generous, beautiful, and at peace. My captain; my king!
For anyone else who has never read the manual for a DeWalt keyless chuck like Adam is using, they are designed to lock only once you rotate them slightly backwards. So turn the chuck clockwise until it seems fully tight, then rotate it backwards a couple of degrees and you will feel a click as it locks. A spinning drill bit will no longer cause the chuck to unlock and the bit to fly out.
No need for calibration, when only used for approximations, like he does. A great practical gimmick. If I were a maker, I'd probably get one, even though tattoos isn't really my thing.
@@videodistro To be fair, lab testing a tool, vs real world use can have variance. The most common failure in use is overheating the bits. People throw them in a drill at one speed and go from a 1/8 to 3/4, over speeding the bit. Also the walk the bit around trying to get it to cut faster. Both of these will dull a nice bit or a cheap bit just as easily.
@@ionstorm66 True which is why he repeats the same tests on each type so their strengyhs or weaknesses are exposed at least at THAT usage whereas they might perform different at a different speed but that would be a different test.
I totally get your love for the forstner bits. I bought my first a couple of years ago to drill holes for fittings I had made from steel pipe ends that needed to be fitted into oak furniture I was building. It turned a job I was struggling with into something truly enjoyable. I agree with the cheap ones being fine, I have a set and none get used regularly but its great to have all the sizes available. I find the lower priced ones perform just as well, where they lack is in durability. I got a bit more expensive one in a size I use all the time. they are also great for fitting hinges.
Center cutting end mills are even flatter. But you kind of need a machine to use those. There's also some router bits that are for making flat bottoms. People use them to level CNC spoil boards.
@@1pcfred Your right about end mills, they don't go as big as forester bits though (at least not on a normal person budget, and then you need a tool with a massive chuck to use it). Spoilboard bits however normally don't plunge cut, they are meant to sweep in from the side and that a layer of material off and wont cut if you push them straight down.
Annular Cutters, another one of Adam’s faves. They are the metal version of forstner bits. Extremely accurate hole diameters, and they have no problem cutting holes that aren’t surrounded by material, which allows you to make accurate radii in parts.
Forstner bits also make a nice flat bottomed hole. If you need to glue (say) a large diameter dowel into a small depth of hole - that flat bottom gives you a much better glue surface. My problem is that you can't really get a set in every diameter in (say) 1/32nd or 1/64th steps. So you end up using them for the common sizes - and having to resort to regular wood bits for the rarer ones.
Best tool for drilling studs/joists for running cables or pipework too. Auger bit in a decently powerful corded drill will do the job in half the time it would take with a spade bit in a rattle gun, and no messing about with batteries.
Thanks Adam for your insight and experiences in this subject! I love your direction or lack thereof while you explain. It feels like I'm listening to a friend share their knowledge with me. I truly enjoy these videos.
I’ve been doing a lot more hand tool woodwork recently, so when he mentioned auger bits my ears perked. Surprised he didn’t mention the snail at the tip of the bit, it is just a fantastic lil idea that works soo well
Me too! Auger bits are boss for lower speed drilling, and the spurs leave a nice finish across the grain. If you use a brace you can relatively accurately get depths by counting turns. And the old ones aren't that expensive online or from the right thrift store/antique mall. I think they just don't fit into Adam's main style of work as well as Forstners do (metal machine shop, quick drill chucking, lots of different materials, larger holes, etc.).
That snail looks like the speed tip Bosch stick on their spade bits, I take it it's the same thing? Albeit it probably doesnt then tear right through whatever you are drilling!
There's a few similar books about but, one I've been referring to, for about 30 years is, The Reader's Digest Book of Skills and Tools. It's more suited for novice to intermediate, rather than the more experienced user. 360 pages. About 80 pages devoted to identifying tools. That includes the drill bits Adam covered plus, a few more. There's a Hardware section, including types of nails, screws, bolts, fasteners and, many other fixtures. It covers materials and, the use of tools to work with those material. Clamping, soldering, sharpening... Heaps of home and garden projects. It's a very good resource for figuring out what you may need for a job. ..or, building a wish list.
Hey Adam, I do a lot of work with electricians and the spade bit you mentioned does make a mess but its great at drilling a lot of holes quick, which comes in handy! The good ones have a threaded "point" to them, to help pull the spade into the cut.
It's very worth mentioning that *stepper bits can save you from a really bad wrist sprain* when drilling metal, especially multiple layers of thick gauge springy sheet metal. The progressive and more circularly-supported stepper bits self support (= force not through you) and don't allow a sudden deep punch through. A regular twist drill is very inclined to punch through instead of cutting the last little bit of material and will suddenly twist the drill fast and hard. I as well as quite a few people I know have sprained our wrists this way. And I'm not talking about reckless people. I've done metal fabrication all my life, and knowing it was risky, was being really careful with a bit I thought was borderline size-wise. That was a 1-step learning process for me, when simply switching to a stepper bit would have saved me from missing several weeks of perfect motorcycle riding weather and I was lucky with no permanent ligament damage. If you are concerned about cutting speed, the tighter bits cut faster, while the wider style cut slower with less stick through.
Hello Adam, I was strengthening some IKEA cabinets with extra bolts. I used shallow cap-head inhex bolts so I could inlay them into the chipboard. The on thing capable of doing that, was the brace & bit. So I had a 60 year old brace, used a modern hex-drive chuck, in the brace chuck and a modern hex-drive Forstner Bit for cutting the hole. It produced a perfect, flat inlay for the cap head bolt to fit. _Nothing else_ would have worked. A brace and a Forstner Bit is one of the most under-rated tool combinations out there. It is almost impossible to get good quality Metric auger bits.
Adam think you should start watching Project Farm. He has tested a lot of different products that you use. Like drill bits, tools, glues, and other everyday problem solving products
In woodworking, the thing I've seen most people just not have any awareness of is the process of milling lumber. People seem quite significantly keyed in to the home depot, dimensional lumber process, more than the raw sawmill lumber style that hardwoods are more typically found in.
I'd say that's understandable, given that "raw" boards just aren't as casually available as the "cleaned up" pine that normally gets used for home improvement stuff.
It's because the cost of getting into milling lumber is substantial. A quality planner and jointer runs on 220v which most homes are not prewired for. Depending on the location of your panel, running the wire is expensive. Additionally, you panel may not support any extra load. As you can see, the cost can quickly run away from what most DIYers can afford.
@@RadicalEdwardStudios You are right, you can get a lunch box planner, like a Dewalt 733/4, that runs on 110v however they present a number of issues (snipe, underpowered, limited capacity, slow feed rate, etc). For someone that is running that small of amount of board feet, the price tag of the planner usually is fairly high compared to the cost of paying for S4S lumber at a big box store.
I so enjoyed your video today Sir. When I was in Jr.-High, and High-School, I had access to Woodworking (in Jr high) and Auto body and paint, and welding and machining.! But, these programs over time, have been removed from the school system. Thankfully, you mentioned kiwico. Now, I can share things I learned growing up, that my boys haven't. And thank you for reminding me that I must have a set of Forstner-Drill-Bits, or my life won't be complete. Like a combination of a hole-saw, a speedbore bit, and a spade bit all in one.! Makes a hole-saw just hugely inaccurate and archaic by comparison. Found a set on Amazon for $30.00.! YES!
Yes indeed! I am right there with you on those forstner bits! I have an inexpensive set I got from Lowes, and they are great! I mostly use them in my drill press, and I love 'em!
Great advise regarding the cheap vs expensive Forstner bits. I bought a cheap 16 piece set years ago. One or two sizes, I've probably never used yet. Four or five sizes that I use all the time were used and resharpened over and over until they wore out and I replaced with higher quality individual bits. All the sizes in between "the rarely used" and the "always used" are there if I need them on the rare occasion. Some sizes will last a lifetime.
My advise is always to buy a big cheap set in a nicely labeled case and when they wear out replace with a nice bit. It’ll transform until you’ll have a good case to hold your most common sizes that also has cheap extras. Really great advise for router bits, too.
It depends on the grind whether a twist drill has a chisel point, or not. You can split the points on twist drills and then they do not have a chisel. So just call them twist drills. Because that's what they are.
I have a great drill bit story to share here. My dad is a tool maker and engineer by trait. He used to work with a local racer and motorcycle tuner. One time they were trying to drill holes in the flyweight of a crankshaft to in order rebalance the crankshaft with tungsten. The purpose of this was to increase inertia, because the bike was too sharp on throttle response, while decreasing the overall weight. However, the crankshaft was hardened on it's outer layer and they just couldn't get through that hardened layer with anything in their machine shop. So finally they just drove to the hardware store and bought an ordinary drill for concrete drilling and with that and a lot of cooling liquid they go through. The reason obviously being that super hard plate inserted into the tip of a drill like that.
"deep *drive" ahaaa I see what you did there :p I was wanting to get a step-drill the other day for making holes, but a pretty basic one was like 30-40$ here in a local store.. surprisingly expensive, when an entire set from 1-14mm can be as cheap as 10-15$
I learned about and used Forstner bits in middle school woodshop (about 1989-1991). As an adult, I was a little surprised to not see a whole aisle of them in the big box HW stores.
Over the years as a DIY homeowner I've had to approach a lot of projects requiring drilling. Early on my wife needed holes in the bottom of her planters. Plastics not a problem there you go! But eventually and she did bring me a ceramic planter??? It required a glass drill bit. And later trying to organize all of my Woodworking magazines in a 3 ring binder I required a paper punch drill bit. And when I installed hinges on my gates I needed a hinge drill bit. Coinciding with the gate build I had to drill a 3/4" hole into concrete with a masonry bit. I also had to use a step drill bit to modify a light fixture I was putting up. And of course while I was building my deck I used an 1-1/2" forstner drill bit to recess the hole so that the flat washer lock washer and nut could reach the bolt coming from the other side. Alongside the other drill bits Adam talked about that's a lot of specialty used drill bits. Who'd a thunk? Thanks for putting this up Adam!
I've been machining quite a while and had never seen nor heard of a Forstner drill. I'm going to add some to my box! I was hoping you'd talk a bit about TX drills too, I've been a huge fan of those lately.
@@assassinlexx1993 - I haven’t hit rebar with it yet. I do have some pretty serious masonry I wanted to cut through to mount some cameras, and I had already burned out a couple of standard Masonry bits on similar stuff. So, I wanted something that I was confident would be likely to be able to handle anything I threw at it. This one bit cost about as much as my SDS hammer drill, so I’m hoping it will perform well. At the moment, it is still safely ensconced in the heavy duty plastic case that it came in. I’m not going to bring out this bad boy until I’ve got all my ducks in a row and I’m as ready as I can be for what I hope to do.
@@shubinternet Do you have a spray bottle. Shoot water in the hole and of course a big cup of water to cool the bit. I find drinking coffee with drilling just take your time. But I am curious what insert you use?
@@assassinlexx1993 - in fairness, the first set was probably the cheapest masonry drill bits I could find at Home Depot. Something like these, maybe: www.amazon.com/dp/B071WYJ7P7/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_GVBY5NW3WR1E4MC8PX59 and they burned out pretty easily. Then I think I found this set from Hilti: www.amazon.com/dp/B00MVML0FE/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_JNBEWF7A8X8P4EKVK5TC So, it was the set that cost almost as much as my SDS hammer drill, not just a single bit. My bad.
Spade bits are great for rough construction work. Like when you have to run wire in the walls and you need a hole in your studs. Forstner bits are great for work where you need a very precise hole for a project.
Adam, you didn’t mention the other awesome thing about Forstener bits…maybe because it’s too obvious? Flat. Bottom. Holes. I myself only learned about these bits because I needed to make counterbores in a wood project, and had no idea what tool I was looking for. Luckily, the fellow at HD did, and I can now say that I have seen the light.
I've used the 1-3/8" Forstner bit literally thousands of times to drill holes for hidden hinges (cup hinges). The depth of the head is the perfect thickness for getting the perfect depth hole to place hinge. When it is flush with the surface, the depth is perfect in 3/4" thick material. I think the taper on the sides is to prevent binding and also aids in wobbling the bit to cut faster (at the expense of accuracy). You can also touch up the cutting parts with a diamond file.
My favourite thing to use Forstner bits for is using a bolt on soft wood. If the bolt shaft is say 1/4" then I will get a steel washer with a 5/16" hole in the centre (for the bolt to go through). The outer diameter of the washer might be 1". So I will drill a 1" hole with a 1" Forstner bit. If the bolt head is 1/8" high and the washer is 1/32" high then I drill in 1/8" plus 1/32" plus a slight bit more. Once I have 1" wide hole (for the washer) then I will take a 1/4" Forstner bit and drill completely through the wood using the same pilot hole the first Forstner bit created. Now I can drop the washer in the hole, put the bolt through the washer and wood. I do the same thing on the other side for the nut that goes on the bolt. Now when I tighten the bolt and nut, it spreads the pressure on the washer and the washer spreads out the pressure on more of the wood. If the wood is REALLY soft (like pine) then you can just use a bigger washer and corresponding Forstner bit.
Forstner bits have been my favorite since I had to stand on a stool to use my dads band saw. When I was growing up my dad showed me how you could use forstner bits to hollow out a block of wood in the shape of a boat such that it would float like the real thing. A far cry from hammering at a block with a chisel for hours on hours. Thank you for sharing that wisdom with everyone else!
