Are drill doctors worth it, for carbide bits?

Stacy,

I take those to a diamond wheel and touch them up by hand.
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Could you please elaborate. I figure you know that the Drill Doctor has a diamond wheel as well (all but a small one) so why not just use the DD ? Maybe the wheel is too coarse on the DD for carbide drills ?

Thanks
 
using a nice sharp bit is enjoyable.
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There is nothing like seeing two nice even ribbons of metal coming off a properly sharpened drill bit.
AND it doesn't take all that much pressure on the drill press handles or the hand drill if the hole location is properly prepared.

Ha, ha the thing is MOST bits the average person gets ahold of are SOOOO poorly sharpened by the manufacture that few people even know how a REAL drill bit should cut.

The total aha comes when you take a trashed bit that just rubs and won't cut at all to a grinder and then touch it up with some diamond paddles or slip stones and get two big even ribbons . . .

I am less inclined to lend a drill bit than my pocket knife or other mechanics tool. Partly because most people don't know how to prepare the hole location let alone sharpen the bit(s) once they destroy it.
 
I love my Drill Dr.

I still pop out the instructions to get it right.

Do it wrong and it sucks, or you suck, but it sucks if done incorrectly
 
Back in the day when most high schools had metal shop, the first skill we learned on the bench grinder was sharpening drill bits. That was followed by making lathe bits.
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Ha, ha, ha

I will probably get the thread closed for saying this but . . .
in this day and age of young'ins lack of exposure to doing the simplest things with their hands and tools (not their fault just the lack of exposure to a good role model and no shed full of tools and junk to practice on) and no interest to struggle to learn . . .

teaching one to sharpen a drill bit BY HAND . . . in a class situation where one on one time is so limited . . . in a class of 45 minutes or less . . . and I have done quite a bit of teaching adults in a similar situation (give me a class room full of doctors wives any day THOSE GALS ARE SHARP ! ! ! ) . . .
notice most carefully that I did not say a class room full of doctors . . . heavens NO . . .

well
nah dude, nah
I think I will just end it all right here rather than try to teach a current day teenager to sharpen a drill bit by hand on a grinder !
 
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Wowbagger said:
Ha, ha, ha

I will probably get the thread closed for saying this but . . .
in this day and age of young'ins lack of exposure to doing the simplest things with their hands and tools (not their fault just the lack of exposure to a good role model and no shed full of tools and junk to practice on) and no interest to struggle to learn . . .

teaching one to sharpen a drill bit BY HAND . . . in a class situation where one on one time is so limited . . . in a class of 45 minutes or less . . . and I have done quite a bit of teaching adults in a similar situation (give me a class room full of doctors wives any day THOSE GALS ARE SHARP ! ! ! ) . . .
notice most carefully that I did not say a class room full of doctors . . . heavens NO . . .

well
nah dude, nah
I think I will just end it all right here rather than try to teach a current day teenager to sharpen a drill bit by hand on a grinder !
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Women, Ladies in general are far easier to instruction than males because, first the have less preconceived notions about a topic they know little to nothing about and they shut up and listen to whatever you are instructing them in. :)

The Drill Doctor I purchased was such a waste of time, money & effort, because I do far better on a grind stone in a couple of minutes.

Patrice,
I destroyed mine over 10 years ago. ;)
 
Wowbagger said:
I think I will just end it all right here rather than try to teach a current day teenager to sharpen a drill bit by hand on a grinder !
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It seems like the kids I meet these days have a lot better head on their shoulders than we did when I was kid. Don't get me wrong, they're dumb, but we were really dumb.
 
Nathan the Machinist said:
It seems like the kids I meet these days have a lot better head on their shoulders than we did when I was kid. Don't get me wrong, they're dumb, but we were really dumb.
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As someone who works with teenagers as a profession I can tell you that they are MUCH brighter than many of us were at that age. But their "brightness" depends largely upon what has been asked, or required, of them by parents. High expectations and trust = amazing kids. Low expectations and no trust = kids who are scared to make mistakes and who quit trying. They are largely a product of parenting.
 
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