Domino Bit Life

[Darrell Bade]

My 8mm Domino Bit has about 240 domino holes of use on it in oak. It is starting to cut rough, dominos are getting a little loose, bit is a little rough on the cutting edges.

What kind of life does everyone get out of a bit? It does appear to just be a steel bit so I'm not sure what to expect.

[Greg Quenneville]

My 12mm bit has cut 2,400+ holes. It looks chrome-all the black has been worn off. It still cuts well. Can’t speak about the smaller sizes. All of my work was in Western red Cedar, so not exactly challenging.

CMT sell their own brand of domino bits. Cheaper, but don’t know anything about relative quality.

Greg

[Eric Arnsdorff]

I'm interested to know what kind of life others are getting as well.

I would be a bit disappointed if 240 dominos is the best it does. My biscuit joiner has many times that and still cuts well. I even bought a replacement blade for it and changed back to the original because there was no change in cut.

Don't read that wrong - I like my Domino but at this cost the cutters should be made with the premier materials as well.

[Greg Quenneville]

I am far from home right now, bit just found and added the picture of my cutter. I see that it is labelled “HW” which indicates tungsten carbide. Are the smaller cutters the same?

This topic piqued my curiosity, so a bit of research on the Festool forum suggests that thousands, not hundreds, of cuts is normal, and that a good sharpening service can rectify a dull cutter.

I would expect a lot more than 240 plunges in oak.

Greg

[johnny means]

I get thousands of tight fitting mortises. In fact, I've never seen one wear out. The only ones I've had die were due to some user's error. They don't spin that fast and the oscillating motion prevents heating up, so they really shouldn't be encountering any conditions that cause wear on the bit material.

[Mark Wooden]

If the holes are getting bigger and you're getting a loose fit, I'd look to a bad bearing or chuck. An enlarged hole is usually not evidence of a dull bit

[Jim Dwight]

I have replaced several but always because I hit a fastener with them. I buy only Amana or CMT cutters and they are carbide. So if you hit a screw or even a nail, they chip. They are brittle. One CMT 14 mm broke. A festool 12mm that came with the machine chipped.

I really don't have an idea how many cuts my bits have made but I suspect the 6mm has made several hundred based upon the number of tenons I've made for it. It shows no sign of needing replacement.

Lifetime should be similar to router bits since they are made of the same thing. But router bits cut long lengths of cuts where domino cutters just make comparitively short slots.

[Darrell Bade]

Looking back on my question ...........
I also have a 4mm bit that has only cut a couple dozen holes that I used the other day. It cut way smoother than my 8mm bit which got me wondering. However that is a smaller hole, new so as sharp as it should get so that might be the difference I was feeling in the cut.

[johnny means]

Are you using dust collection?

[mreza Salav]

I have replaced two bits that I broke (my fault), I have yet to replace one because it was too dull and I think I have cut thousands with some bits....
240 holes is a small fraction of what I get from those bits.

[Albert Lee]

I had 3 x 5mm bits snapped, I think the problem are multiple:
incorrect handling of the machine
used on a DF700
used by employee not owner.

My 8 mm still cut good, 9 years
MY 14mm still cut good, 9 years.

I cut 10,000+ holes with these bits on softwood like pine.

[Jim Becker]

It could just be a defective cutter. Or it could have been dropped, hit metal, it a hard knot just the wrong way, etc. In general, these things tend to last a very long time so when one doesn't something is amiss. If you have not done so, you might want to reach out to Festool and explain that you seem to have a cutter that's degrading prematurely and get their input, too.

[Brian Burns VT]

Several thousand for me without noticable drop in quality

[ChrisA Edwards]

I've had my DF500 for about 12 years, still on the original 6mm bit.

I bought all the other bit sizes, but have only used the 4mm a couple of times.

[Jery Madigan]

My 6MM has cut thousands. Have not noticed any wear. Mostly in maple.