t-bone Posted March 12, 2011 Report Share Posted March 12, 2011 hi there, can someone tell me what kinds of forstner bits would be good to start out with? They have set's on woodcraft.com made by forstner and cmt. any help would be appriated T-BONE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlloydparks Posted March 12, 2011 Report Share Posted March 12, 2011 T-Bone, I have several HSS Forstner bits from Lee Valley. They have worker really well. I have also acquired a few of the maxi-cut forstner bits and they have been exceptional well worth the cost in my opinion. I know that maxi-cut are made in Germany. I am unsure where the HSS bits are made. I also have Freud forstner bit and find it better than the HSS Lee Valley bits and the maxi-cut bits. I picked this one up at my local hardware store. I have been on a USA only kick for drill bits, but haven't done must research on USA made forstner bits. However, I have been buying my twist and brad point bits from Montana Tools and they are awesome. Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted March 13, 2011 Report Share Posted March 13, 2011 I'm gonna keep an eye on this thread...the one's I have are...just ok. I'd like a really nice set. Those Maxi-Cuts look nice. Do they leave a smooth bottom, or not because of the chip breaking design? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sac Posted March 13, 2011 Report Share Posted March 13, 2011 I have two sets.. I have a Grizzly set and I have a Woodriver set. I have used them both a bit, and I have to say that I think that Woodriver set is a little better. The WR set has a little nicer cutter on them and leaves a slightly cleaner cut. I am pretty sure that both of the sets are HSS. You are obviously going to get longer life from a bit with carbide, but you pay for those as well.. Good luck with you decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlloydparks Posted March 14, 2011 Report Share Posted March 14, 2011 Vic, Honestly, I have never noticed a rougher cut with the maxi-cut. I am just amazed at how they hog out material and don't clog. I have never been able to overfeed them into the work. I pull the lever and they just remove the waste and don't get choked up. The bottoms look comparable to the other bits. Worth the price in my opinion and have slowly been replacing my original Lee Valley set with these. Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted March 14, 2011 Report Share Posted March 14, 2011 Vic, Honestly, I have never noticed a rougher cut with the maxi-cut. I am just amazed at how they hog out material and don't clog. I have never been able to overfeed them into the work. I pull the lever and they just remove the waste and don't get choked up. The bottoms look comparable to the other bits. Worth the price in my opinion and have slowly been replacing my original Lee Valley set with these. Josh Cool! Thanks for the feedback, Josh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bywc Posted March 14, 2011 Report Share Posted March 14, 2011 I guess im just a cheapo lol I figured for as little as I actually use these kind of bits, I just got the HF 10 piece set had them for about 3 years and they still work like a charm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Len Posted March 14, 2011 Report Share Posted March 14, 2011 hi there, can someone tell me what kinds of forstner bits would be good to start out with? They have set's on woodcraft.com made by forstner and cmt. any help would be appriated T-BONE T-Bone, I have to agree with Josh. The Colt MaxiCut Forstner Bits are probably the best out there. I don't think I would call then a starter set - if by "starter set" you mean throw aways. If you got the bucks, these will last for years. Check out this video from Chris Schwartz of Popular Woodworking http://www.popularwoodworking.com/video/colt_forstner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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