From The Boss

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Ever start up a project only to realize that your drill bits are dull, broken or otherwise useless to you? Ever have a project that required so much drilling that you burned through bits, causing delays and other problems? Well, the Drill Doctor is your solution. In minutes you can sharpen and repair dozens of otherwise junk drill bits with this nifty tool. Standard bits, masonry bits, TiN, carbide, Cobalt and even left hand bits with an optional accessory.

The tool comes in an injection molded case, with spaces for two (2) chucks, the unit, an instructional video and booklet, and maintenance tool. This particular unit includes two (2) chucks, one for 3/32" to 1/2" bits and the other for 1/2" to 3/4" bits.

Setting up the Drill Doctor is easy. Simply loosen the chuck, insert the bit and slightly tighten the chuck, allowing the bit to be moved by hand. The chucks fully support the bit for 2" and with 6 individual teeth. The chuck and bit are inserted into the face of the unit to adjust the bit for proper alignment with the stone. You can even adjust the amount of the heel cut into the tip. Here you can see the bit in the chuck prior to adjustment. The next image is the chuck inserted in the adjusting port.

Once the bit is setup in the chuck, you can check the angle of the bit tip. Standard angles are 118* and 135*. The sharpening port is adjustable to either of these angles and the unit is capable of converting bits from one angle to the other. Once setup, the chuck can be placed into the sharpening port once the unit is turned on. After several 1/2 turns, the bit is sharp. The bit size determines the number of recommended rotations. For severely damaged bits, you may need to make several passes, adjusting the bit in the chuck on occasion to ensure proper angles. These images show the properly adjusted bit and the chuck in the sharpening port.

The Drill Doctor also has the ability to create or repair split point bits. Split point bits are basically self-centering and typically do not require a center punch to maintain alignment of the tip. Opposite the sharpening port is the split-point port. Simply slide the chuck in and tap the bit onto the stone twice, remove chuck, rotate 180* and tap the stone two more times. Here you can see a split point cut into a 5/8" bit.

The unit is also very good at repairing broken bits. Here you can see a small bit with a broken tip.

Here is the bit after 20 seconds in the Drill Doctor. Looks new!

The unit is also good for 200 sharpenings on a single wheel. Sharpening wheels are easily changed with minimal hand tools and are available from Drill Doctor.

So, what are my thoughts? Well... this thing is pretty awesome. While the instructions made the setup process seem somewhat tedious, it is actually a really fast process to setup, sharpen and create the split point. In fact, I sharpened 13 regular bits under 1/2", one masonry bit, three 1/2", one 9/16" and one 5/8" standard bit in under 20 minutes. It is also much quieter than I expected, no worse than a hair dryer actually. Definately worth having if you are always ending up with dull bits. It shouldn't take long to pay for itself if you fab a lot of stuff yourself. Just think about how much time it would save you just keeping you from having to run to the hardware store in the middle of a project when you break a bit or burn the tip.

How's it compare to other units? Well, I took it across the street to my neighbor. I showed him how it worked and how fast it was. He then walked over to his cabinet and pulled out an old Black and Decker Model 4300 Drill Bit Sharpener. Wow, that was a pain in the rear to setup. It was very imprecise and took several trial and error attempts to get the bit properly setup. By the time he got one bit setup, I had already finished sharpening 5 bits of his. That old unit was also much heavier and much larger. He was impressed with the Drill Doctor's simplicity and capabilities.

Pro Tools Mfg., LLC
Drill Doctor
PO Box 730
Ashland, OR 97520
800-597-6170