Best Forstner bit for MDF?

[matthew]

I'm looking for a good forstner bit to drill out concealed hinges in kitchen cabinet doors. I've only used fairly cheap ones before and they are OK but don't last long (and when they are cheap I'm not too bothered to figure out how to resharpen them :| ). I like the look of the sawtooth ones, but have seen some stating they are not suitable for MDF. Any recommendations?

 

[Mike.S]

I recently bought the 35mm 'Fisch Wave Style Forstner Bit with Hex Shanks' from Axi. Used in my pillar drill (hex shank fine in the chuck - didn't bother with adapter) it performed well when cutting hinge holes in 18mm MDF. Only 12 holes cut so I can't yet comment on longevity.

 

[neilyweely]

send a message to grandad211. He is the man for all these things. He'll be able to tell you EXACTLY what you need; he helped me out no end.

As far as i know there is no-one who knows more about forstner and other woodwork drill bits. Hope he doesn't mind my telling all! :?

Neil

 

[Peter T]

I used the Colt Maxicut ones when I did my kitchen.

Very good hole quality with minimum effort. They're quite a bit more expensive than the cheapest Axi ones, £20 instead of £2, but well worth it in my opinion.

 

[Grahamshed]

I have some of the Axcaliber Long Series from Axi and am well pleased with them. They also have a special offer on them at the moment which brings the 35mm down from £19.90 to £16-90

 

[jasonB]

I'd use a TCT hinge bit rather than a fostner bit, the abrasive nature of teh MDF will soon take the edge off HSS drills.

The Wealdon ones work well in a cordless, drill press or router. Mine have done hundreads if not thousands of holes and still going strong.

http://www.wealdentool.com/acatalog/Onl ... ng_26.html

 

[matthew]

Many thanks for the replies, much appreciated!

I'd use a TCT hinge bit rather than a fostner bit, the abrasive nature of teh MDF will soon take the edge off HSS drills.

The Wealdon ones work well in a cordless, drill press or router. Mine have done hundreads if not thousands of holes and still going strong.

http://www.wealdentool.com/acatalog/Onl ... ng_26.html

Aha - Wealden is my usual stop for this stuff but somehow missed this section - I only looked at their Forstner bits which it says aren't good for MDF. These hinge bits look ideal! (Using them in a cordless drill sounds a little scary though... )

 

[jasonB]

They are quite easy to use handheld though to keep all your edge distances the same its best to knock up a simple jig, this one is for use with the router using a 40mm guide bush but I mostly do them with the cordless using a similar jig but the top is thicker.

Both methods are safer than trying to balance a wardrobe door on the drill press!!

J