Every time I head back home from Nebraska, my Dad tries to load me up with "things". Whatever he's ready to get rid of, suddenly I need these things. The latest is the Drill Doctor sharpening unit. So, tonight, I tried it. It's the XP2 model and it seems to give a decent edge. So.. Has anyone used one? Any tips or tricks to getting the best grind? Thanks, JB
Ive had one for years. It kinda works, but nothing close to the same as a factory edge or hand sharpening if you know how.
Thanks Nate. Yeah, looks like the relief isn't angled enough but I only tried a few bits. Can this thing be adjusted?
I have not had any luck with those, but I learned to hand sharpen, and it's definitely a skill worth learning.
Mine came with a VCR tape that shows how to work it. I went to check and mine is the 750x model, which I think is a bit older. Does bits from 1/16" to 1" I believe. It works ok enough that I've kept it. It "roughs in" the bit ok, and if I go back and fix it by hand its not bad. The main issue I've had is it sharpens the point at the wrong angle and doesn't remove enough material behind the cutting edge. www.machinistblog.com/review-drill-doctor-750/
if you need to sharpen bits that often; 1) you need to get better quality bits or 2) you need to learn to drill at the proper speed / pressure 3) correct cutting fluid for the material being drilled
I've got one at work and it's a piece of junk that literally has sat since I have run the department. It's far easier and sharper to use a bench grinder and a bit holder...
As said relief isn't quite enough on the non industrial units, the split point function is handy. got one of the real early models . mostly use it for splitting points on small drills and the carbide tip drills for masonry work. I have other drill grinders which do a better job ( industrial units) and yes I can do free hand as well. Their industrial units seem to be ok ( 2000 series I think) leastwise I know a couple shops with them and haven't heard any major complaints. Course they are not 50k machines either. I sharpen commercial so the bits I get are really trashed ,for those these units will not work as a lot of times I have cut them off and start from scratch.
Used to work for a guy that was a hand sharpener at Morse twist drill.. He showed me how to sharpen using a vertical band sander or a disk sander.. Grinders work but are harder to work with.. Easy once you get the technique down.. Understanding the geometry helps much too.. I can show someone how to do it but not explain in text..
Ok, I said screw it and ran 75-100 bits through it. And then... started punching holes in some 1-1/2" Cold rolled round. I had 4 pieces @ 4" I had to open up to 5/8"+ ID. #2 center drill for a pilot, then 5 stepped sizes until I hit .625. I was not gentle nor was I slow. I did not have the lathe in back-gear, I went Med. high and slower on the feed. And they cut fine. Not smooth, but they made a hole. I used a straight flute reamer to clean up the holes, but it really didn't do anything. All-n-all, for rough boring, it worked fine for sharpening. JB Oh yeah, I never had to sharpen any bit I used during this process, so 16" of CRR and they're still Ok.
