Drill Bit Sharpeners?

Perhaps it would be more helpful to know exactly what folks with negative experiences of the DD have to share, and exactly what they felt didn't work. Please be specific.

David

I was taught to hand sharpen back in the early 60's as an apprentice, and have always been happy with the result, and proud of the skill. However I find as I get older it becomes harder, especially the smaller sizes, it's not the ability to do it, it's just the eye sight is not as good as it used to be. And for the same reason that I recently swapped the vernier caliper for digital, I decided it was time I bought a drill doctor, so a few months ago I did. BTW they are a lot dearer here in downunder than USA, about 2.5 times the price.

However back to the question of how well they work, I have only used it a few times, and with mixed results. I have come to the conclusion that you have to be very careful with setting it up, particularly fitting the bits into the collet type holder. I have used other, cheaper and nastier collet type sharpening tools that are easier to set up, however they are are inferior in other ways which is a pity. Having said that, the DD does do a very good job if you take the time and make sure the bit is absolutely correct in the collet. Once set up correctly, the sharpening is quick and accurate, and the ability to quickly and accurately split the point is a bonus.

The second time I used it I decided to sharpen a whole set of drills that were old and had been neglected. the mistake I made was to rush the job, and most of them had to be resharpened again, lesson learned.
 
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