Impact Bits and Drill Bits

[Mike Goetzke]

My drill bit set is aged and needing replacement. Looking for a 29 piece set. Mine were HSS but now I see Ti and Cobalt. Suggestions welcome.



I bought a new impact driver and with all the settings to tame it down I use it all the time. Looking for a decent set of impact rated fastener bits.



Thanks

[Rich Engelhardt]

I picked up some Makita Phillips bits from Menards for $1 a piece. Double ended #1,#2 and #3 sizes.
They fit my Makita 18V driver perfect, but, not my Milwaukee 12V driver. They don't lock into place on that.

I also picked up some DeWalt star bits at Home Depot - T25 and T30. They fit both Makita and Milwaukee fine.

There's a few Youtubes about the DeWalt & Makita bits.

I guess what I'm trying to say is - any and/or all of the "big three" will probably work about the same, but, you might run into some fit issues.
I avoid buying sets of anything anymore & prefer to just buy what I need if/when I need it. I usually lose or misplace the stuff and can never seem to find it when I need it...

Also - FWIW - come Black Friday - I'm looking to replace my Milwaukee 12V impact & drill set with a Makita 12V set.
Not because of any problems, but, I bought a 12V Makita 3.5" circular saw - sort of by mistake - and I bought a pair of 12V batteries and charger for it.
The Milwaukee set is going on 7/8 years old I believe and the batteries are getting up there.

P.S. - wise move to "upgrade"....last house rehab I did last Winter I tore up all my driver bits using the 18V Makita.

[Adam Herman]

TI and Cobart are just coatings. the bits will still be made of HSS.

i like the Milwaukee sets, they have held up much better than the dewalt or ryobi bit sets i have. I usually just pick up whatever larger kit is on sale around a holiday. I have one box that is my everyday, and when one brakes i grab a bit out of one of the backup boxes.

i also like their drivers and extensions over the others.

i do need to get a set dedicated for drilling steel, if anyone has a recommendation there. the Ryobi coated bits may as well be made of cheese, it's more like you are friction drilling than cutting a chip. the Milwaukee did much better, but not super like a dedicated set would be. Only drilling 3/8 hot roll too. nothing exotic.

[Tom M King]

https://www.wihatools.com/bits/impact-bits Or for "star drive" screws, the ones that come in colors (can never remember the brand name), sold in Lowes, are good too. Those are the only bits I consider any good at all sold in the box stores. I bought some Milwaukee bits once, and ended up tossing them because they didn't fit tightly in screw heads.

For twist drill bits, I've had Hanson indexes full of them for over 35 years. Our local Ace Hardware carries all the individual bits, so if one gets broken, it's easily replaced.

[Doug Dawson]

My drill bit set is aged and needing replacement. Looking for a 29 piece set. Mine were HSS but now I see Ti and Cobalt. Suggestions welcome.

I bought a new impact driver and with all the settings to tame it down I use it all the time. Looking for a decent set of impact rated fastener bits.


The Milwaukee impact bits are not in the same league as the DeWalts IMO. Problems with cam-out. OTOH, Milwaukee's Ti drill bits are actually pretty decent.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

The Milwaukee impact bits are not in the same league as the DeWalts IMO. Problems with cam-out. OTOH, Milwaukee's Ti drill bits are actually pretty decent.

+1. I bought a "jobber pack" of the red philip's bit and noticed the same thing. After only a few hits with the impact driver they would cam out. No flames please, just what I noted and my OPINION....... Much happier with the DWs. The drill bits although are super.

[Frank Pratt]

The Milwaukee impact bits are not in the same league as the DeWalts IMO. Problems with cam-out.

I wholeheartedly agree. I like Milwaukee tools a lot, but they have really crapped the bed with their driver bits. Not just cam out, but they don't fit the fasteners quite right either. Dewalt, or just about any other brand are much better

[Tom M King]

That's why I tossed the Milwaukee bits. They were the worst I've ever used. I think the only Dewalt bit I've kept is one #2 Phillips.

The Wiha bits may seem expensive, but they last Many times longer than most of the ones you find in box stores. I bought some square drive bits to put a standing seam roof on with. It's still in the roofing tool box, has installed several roofs since that first very large, complicated one, and the others are still new in the package.

edited to add: I found the brand of the Star Drive (TORX) bits that are pretty good, and sold in box stores. It's really convenient to have them color coded for size. They work fine. They don't last as long as the Wiha's, but are the ones we use because it's obvious which one is the right size.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/GRK-0-x-2-in-Green-Polymer-Trim-Interior-Exterior-Wood-Screws-2-Count/50303273?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-prd-_-hdw-_-google-_-lia-_-126-_-nailsandscrews-_-50303273-_-0&store_code=1815&cm_mmc=src-_-c-_-prd-_-hdw-_-google-_-hardware-_-MHLIA_HDW_Hardware_High%20Priority-_--_-0-_-0&gclid=Cj0KCQiAtf_tBRDtARIsAIbAKe0zp2XEj1LyP97DA7k3 kZ7ghBjrIWybBJZsrgWTGNpFNBa-wabnnPsaAtrKEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

[Frank Pratt]

I've never used Wiha bits, but I will be trying them. Thanks for the recommendation Tom.

[Osvaldo Cristo]

TI and Cobart are just coatings. the bits will still be made of HSS.

[...]


Ti usually is a coat but not the case of cobalt that is part of alloy. There are a reasonable variety of physical properties for cobalt alloys...

[Osvaldo Cristo]

[...]

I bought a new impact driver and with all the settings to tame it down I use it all the time. Looking for a decent set of impact rated fastener bits.

Thanks

IMO impact bits from either Wera or Wiha are the first tier for quality.

Felo and top lines from Bosch and Makita are second tier.

DeWalt and some selected better Chinese brands are third tier... probably they came from the same manufacturing plants.

My experience with Milwaukee are limited for a couple of accessories but from my readings they look slightly above DeWalt for quality in their impact bits.

[roger wiegand]

I was astonished by how much better the Wiha Phillips bits were than the Dewalt/Milwaukee bits I had been using. I used to buy them by the dozens, and go through a few a day when I was doing a construction project. I've been using the same Wiha bit for at least four months and it still has nice sharp corners that drive the screws without any cam out.

[Bob Falk]

I have broken the tips on several DeWalt bits.....I still buy them, but there is the occasional bad one.

[Darcy Warner]

Been buying the Milwaukee impact bit sets, I loose the bits before I break anything

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Whatever you choose, don't be reluctant to toss one when it starts to wear. A wore out driver bit isn't worth the headache.

My $.02 from lots of heavy use of impact drivers, even within brands you can run into a dud bit. 99% of what we drive are torx (not counting drywall). You will need a new T25 for every 750-1000 screws. Phillips are way worse, probably half that life. I buy the lumber yard bulk bits, usually Sabre. Honestly, they usually get lost before they wear completely out.

[Darcy Warner]

Whatever you choose, don't be reluctant to toss one when it starts to wear. A wore out driver bit isn't worth the headache.

My $.02 from lots of heavy use of impact drivers, even within brands you can run into a dud bit. 99% of what we drive are torx (not counting drywall). You will need a new T25 for every 750-1000 screws. Phillips are way worse, probably half that life. I buy the lumber yard bulk bits, usually Sabre. Honestly, they usually get lost before they wear completely out.

The best tips have always been the ones that come with my GRK screws. Whia a close second.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

The best tips have always been the ones that come with my GRK screws. Whia a close second.

I agree in the GRK. They usually go missing fastest though as it's easy to see who has what driver across the jobsite and they get "borrowed".