Is the Drill Doctor any good?

[jim4065]

I'm kind of frustrated with a lot of dull drill bits. Hate to throw 'em away, but not many options here. I see that the 750X Drill Doctor is about $150 with freight. Anyone have experience with it and is it worth buying?

[Storydude]

Yes. It is.

[ANeat]

I like mine. I have an older "500" model that still works great

[870TC]

I tried the cheap Drill Doctor, (can't remember the model) it ruined every bit I put in it...returned it and bought more bits with the money.

[dragonrider]

I have one, don't remember the model #, does quite well, however the grinding wheel that comes with it is too fine, they offer a coarse wheel that speeds things up considerable, I got the coarse wheel it does work better.

[high standard 40]

I have a Drill Doctor, don't remember the model Number but it's not the cheap one.
Mine does a great job. It has paid for itself already.

[largom]

I used to sharpen all of my bits by hand but old eyes won't let me do that anymore. I bought the Drill Doctor 750 and it does a great job, especially with split points. The fine wheel works good unless bits have been chipped or ground off center. I bought the course wheel also but havn't used it yet. Still sharpen my large bits by eye that won't fit the Drill Doc.

Larry

[jmsj]

I've got one, not sure what the mofel number is. It will go up 3/4" not sure how small the low end is. It does a great job on all but the bits below 1/8". My eyes probably don't see good enough to align the small flats anymore.
I think it is a pretty good tool. Usually when you need a sharp bit the stores are already closed. jmsj

[looseprojectile]

Had a gift card from Sears. Had it about two years. It is still sealed in the box.
Sharpen them all by hand and eye.

Life is good.

[Wally]

It is best to use the Drill Doctor often---IOW sharpen up every bit after you use it; that's why it comes with a fine wheel.

[missionary5155]

Good morning
I have a drill Doc in the state of ILL and here in Peru. Yes they work excellent. Mine are older models 5 years or so. I have sharpened and resharpened numerous drill and they cut as well as new. I have sharpened broken off drills with absolute ease.
The only drawback is trying to sharpen very small bits.. that gets difficult. But I am attempting bits smaller than te directions say I should.
I used to sharpen on my bench grinder using guages I have used for 40 years. I was OK at it. 75 % OK. With my DD it is fast easy and I can not do any better with the grinder.
I have no stock in the company but I should.

[redneckdan]

I used one at work before with depressing results. I stick with sharpening on the pedestal grinder. Then again....consider that the 'tards I work with regularly break rubber hammers. They probably figured out a way to mess up the drill doctor.

[rickster]

I have an old style (tall blue) DD500X. Works great. Like someone else said, the trick is to touch up the bits every time ( or nearly every time) you use them. It will spoil you.

[MtGun44]

yes.

Bill

[geargnasher]

I'm kind of frustrated with a lot of dull drill bits. Hate to throw 'em away, but not many options here. I see that the 750X Drill Doctor is about $150 with freight. Anyone have experience with it and is it worth buying?

Yes it is an EXTREMELY good machine. There is a slight learning curve. The end user's ability determines the results. If you can trim cartridge brass you can put a better-than-new edge on your bits, even the broken ones. As has been said sharpen your bits every time you use them, you won't believe how much longer your tools and elbows will last. The only thing it can't fix is if the tip has been overheated or the bit is just too short for the collet.

Gear

[Lee]

I'd say no, but I work with the guys who got fired from redneckdan's place. We got one, they got a hold of it. In 2 weeks the fine wheel had a coarse groove in it.
I think if you know what you're doing, take care of it, it would work very well. I still use the eye and pedestal grinder, 'till the eyes give out...sigh

[wilddog45]

I think everyone should have one in their workshop.They even sharpen masonary bits.

[JIMinPHX]

The big thing with sharpening drill bits is to understand the proper geometry of the drill point. If you can look at the point of a drill bit from the end & read the clearance angle by seeing the intersection of the cross grind mark with the cutting surfaces, then you can probably sharpen almost any drill bit with or without a grinding fixture. A good fixture makes it easier to do a good job. A drill point gage (about $10) is usually enough to help a knowledgeable person get good results on bits that are over 1/8" in diameter. If you plan to resharpen the bits, then don't buy heavy duty bits with extra thick webs. They aren't worth a darn unless you split the points & that isn't as easy to do unless you have a really good fixture.

Edit:
This particular gage can often be found in the tool corral at Home Depot - http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNSRIT...MT4NO=80716848

[Nuke Boy]

Yes they work excellent. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS!!!! And you will be happy.

[Beagler]

I got mine a while ago when the inclosed video was still a VHS tape. It still works like a champ. The guys at work try to sharpen there bits and end up lookin like arrow points. I scrounge them out of the trash bucket and bring them back to life at home and add to the collection. They did buy one for our shop once it got gang raped for two weeks and it would sharpen correctly. There not made for that much abuse and it dosent help that half of our maint/mechanics can hardly spell there own name in English.