Brad point bits - Norseman, Fuller, LV, other?

[Jonathan Jung]

What's the latest opinion on a quality brad point set?

Norseman, Lee Valley, Fuller, or another?

I am looking at one of these small-diameter sets, and a few other singles in larger diameters.

https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/power-tool-accessories/drill-bits/42247-hss-lipped-imperial-brad-point-drills?item=07J0112

https://www.holbren.com/bradpoint-drill-bits/norseman-14-piece-brad-point-drill-bit-set/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw4NujBhC5ARIsAF4Iv6dul-drzXBoEBr724aPPdcEkS3NxmZiDb6OgdguHwlcxXk7WHWPxVka AvdOEALw_wcB

https://hardwickandsons.com/products/wl-fuller-hss-brad-point-drill-bit-set-metric-9-pc?_pos=1&_sid=27d2783ba&_ss=r

[John Ziebron]

I've had quite a few sets over the years but the best one I use now is Fisch. And like any brand name quality product there are a lot of counterfeits out there. If you end up deciding on them make sure you purchase from a sponsored dealer.

[Pat Rice]

Second vote for Fisch

[Frederick Skelly]

I don’t think you can go wrong with any of them. I have a set of LV and a set of Norseman.

[Holmes Anderson]

I have that 14 piece Norseman set and it is good but I often find that I need the diameters that are missing from the set and they are not as easy to find as single bits as you might think. My guess is that Fuller and Lee Valley are similar. A long shank set would be nice.

[Alan Lightstone]

I have the larger LV set and it's been fine. But, as was said above, when they break, it's not easy to find single bits.

I also have Norseman and Fisch bits (not brad point), and they both are very high quality.

[Mike O'Keefe]

Fuller . Mike O'Keefe

[Kent A Bathurst]

I have the larger LV set and it's been fine. But, as was said above, when they break, it's not easy to find single bits.


I'm pretty sure that LV offers as singles every dia. bit included in their set, and then some - nearly 40 individual sizes.

[Jonathan Jung]

I'm pretty sure that LV offers as singles every dia. bit included in their set, and then some - nearly 40 individual sizes.

Yes, and Fuller also offers all the replacements, plus several different lengths. I'm leaning towards Fuller mostly because then all my brad points will be one brand and they are easier to get replacements.

[Edwin Santos]

I've been happy with the LV set. But the nature of the scoring tips leaves them susceptible to heat damage, so it's a good idea to keep that in mind when using them.

It's not what you asked, but grinding your own brad points from twist drills is not as hard as it would seem. Here is a video put out by FWW with Michael Fortune where he demonstrates the process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcwOBL0tTbc

[George Yetka]

Im happy with the LV set.

[Mike Stelts]

Does anyone have experience with WoodRiver? They're on sale in June.

[Greg Parrish]

I bought the Fisch set last month when on sale at woodcraft. I think they were like $50 off. So far I’m pleased with them. They’ve gone up in price but if they are real, Amazon has them got a deal.

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/29-piece-imperial-chrome-vanadium-steel-brad-point-drill-index?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIspu4naei_wIVQtyGCh1nFQy-EAQYASABEgLfOvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Fisch Chrome Vanadium Wood Twist Drill Bits, 29-Piece Set, Imperial Sizes 1/16-1/2 Inches, FSF-364757 https://a.co/d/gCZhiUJ

[Rob Luter]

I got these (https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/power-tool-accessories/drill-bits/42247-hss-lipped-imperial-brad-point-drills?item=07J0128) from Lee Valley in 2018. They've been awesome. A little spendy for the kit but they are sharp and drill true. Not a single complaint.


https://assets.leevalley.com/Size4/10082/07J0128-boxed-set-of-28-5-64-inch-to-1-2-inch-brass-plate-drills-f-12.jpg

[Kent A Bathurst]

........because then all my brad points will be one brand and they are easier to get replacements.

OK - I am for sure not following your thoughts. How does owning 10 of a brand make it easier to replace #11?

I guess if the objective is to always have a matched set, then that fits.

And yet....when I needed to replace, or add, one forstner bit I took that as an opportunity to try a different high-quality brand. I switched allegiances because of that, Fisch to Colt And then years later, the same thing repeated itself.

I still have a few of my very original Fisch in my "spares" box, and my primary set is a mix of Colt Maxi-Cut and FAMAG pre-wave. All 3 brands are in the spares box - there is no bit too dull to drill a hole in pressure treated lumber. They seem to get along well in the box - no fistfights.

I have a mix of bradpoint as well - most are LV.

[Cameron Wood]

As an aside, it takes only a few minutes to put a brad point on a drill bit with a bench grinder.



Here's a few done by hand. A couple of commercial ones in the background. You sharpen drill bits anyway, right?

502181

[Jonathan Jung]

Does anyone have experience with WoodRiver? They're on sale in June.

I have, they are terrible. Several out of the 29pc set are significantly wobbly, they break more easily than others, and dull quickly.

[Johannes Becker]

First of all, buying quality drills makes a difference and I am sure any of the ones you listed will do fine. I have some Fisch, LV, Colt FCE, Heller and a set of Fullers among other brands as brad point drills. The Fullers are my favorites in hardwood. They are excellent but some of that excellence may be that they only come out when I need a precise hole and hence they are still razor sharp. They did come individually dipped in protective coating as you see with router bits or machine tools so clearly the manufacturer thinks they should be and stay sharp. The Colt FCE appear to be better than others in being able to produce relatively clean exit holes in softwood (provided you keep the pressure down). The Hellers are amazing in that I bought the small metric set almost thirty years ago, used them on everything and they are still doing well.

Unfortunately there are not many comparison tests out there providing data rather than anecdotes. Here is one I looked at before I bought my set of Fullers: http://www.woodworking.org/WC/GArchive00/2_19bobdrillbits.html

And to confuse the topic some more, many manufacturers like Fuller and especially Fisch produce different brad point bits at different price levels. Some of them are specialty bits but Fisch is clearly having different features and quality levels when looking at their website.

[Mike Henderson]

I have the Norseman but they're not brad point. They've been very good bits for me. I never tried the Fisch.

Mike

[Larry Frank]

I have a Colt set that performs extremely well.

[Bob Hinden]

I have been buying Fuller Brad Points Drill Bits for Hardwood bits here:

https://toolsforworkingwood.com/store/dept/TD/item/MS-BPD.XX

They have sets and individual bits, both in imperial and metric. Made in the USA.

[Patty Hann]

I have the 28 piece Index by Fuller, the one Bob Hinden links to. I bought it a few years ago.
I have used the first two rows (smaller bits), never used the big ones (yet).
I thought (and still think) it was a good buy. I'm happy with it.

My second choice was the LV set. I Also I looked into Fisch Brad points
Some Fisch Brad points are now made in China/Taiwan ( I emailed Fisch a few years back and asked)... I don't know what the mfr-ing situation is at the moment.
But the Fuller ones are made in the US.

[Joe Adams]

I bought the 28pc Fuller set from Tools for Working Wood several years ago. They cut like butter and are arrow straight. Very pleased and highly recommend.