Daily Tip

Specialty bits can be used to simplify your projects, and there are probably more type out there then you ever imagined.

My friend John Polhemus told me about a company called MSC Direct that sells among other things specialty drill bits. A drill bit is a drill bit right? WRONG

MSC Direct sells half round bits and parabolic bits not to mention bits in just about any length you could possibly ever want.

A half round bit is shaped like a D, which is different then anything I have ever seen. While I can't begin to understand the logic behind this the bits track straighter even the very small wire type bits. Drift is substantially reduced and the D shaped bit cuts an extremely clean hole.

A parabolic bit is a bit with a tighter then normal twist, similar to a screw. The logic behind these bits makes sense to me, as the tighter twist acts similar to a screw helping to pull the bit down through the wood. Parabolic bits also cut an extremely clean hole.

I often have problems when I stack cut with the bits not being long enough to get through my stack, as most of the time I am using a number #68 which is very short. You can even find longer bits to help you drill that hole a normal bit isn't long enough for.

Oh yeah I forgot to mention they will send you a free catalog that you can use as a boat anchor... It is about 4 inches thick and probably weighs 15 pounds! Give their web site a look and see if they have something to help make your scrolling easier.

MSC DIRECT