Countersinking

[morrisminordriver]

I recently saw a bit of advice regarding countersinking your holes for screws. It advised to countersink first and drill your hole afterwards to avoid the ragged finish.
I tried that today and what a difference!
You UK Workshoppers probably all know this already but i thought I’d pass on my revelation of the day as I thought it was brill!
ps this was a rough bit of wood I tried it out on.

 

[Spectric]

If you use these then you can get precise location by using a simple jig and very clean holes. V Point Drill Countersink

You could also go deeper to produce a counterbored hole in which you could put a plug in to hide the fixing completely. To make plug use these TCT Parallel

 

[Phil Pascoe]

It's good for larger hinges as well - put the hinge in place and countersink the holes, which lets the drill bit automatically run to dead centre and cleans up any irregularity in the hinge holes.

 

[Sgian Dubh]

The snail countersink bits also cut very cleanly after you've bored the screw's clearance hole. The image below is from Tilgear, and the example at this link is less than £10. Slainte.

 

[Peter Sefton]

I always drill first and countersink after, as above using a snail or three flute countersink

 

[Myfordman]

I always drill first and countersink after, as above using a snail or three flute countersink

+1 for all those plus reduced speed to avoid the start of chatter which is almost impossible to stop once it starts.

 

[HDC83]

I have good results with snappy tct drill countersinks in hard and soft woods SNAP/CS/6MMTC - Trend Snappy Countersink 6mm x 12.7mm TCT
This one is particularly good for fixing frames using concrete screws and then use the corresponding snappy plug cutter to conceal the holes

 

[Ollie78]

Drill first then a snail countersink. I was amazed the first time I got a snail type, before I was using a "normal one" with unsatisfactory results.

I use a dewalt flip over bit which is good as it has a sharp counter sink built in. Well actually its a counterbore if you keep going, properly sharp though and a good shape unlike some.

Ollie

 

[Rodpr]

Running a 'normal' countersink bit in reverse also gives a cleaner finish.

 

[smugdruggler]

I agree with Ollie, I changed to a snail countersink and have not looked back.

 

[Nelly111s]

Drilling a countersink first isn't great with brad point bits either.

 

[Phill05]

As a kid I was shown to mark, spot punch if in metal, pilot drill, countersink, then drill to size, and tap if required.
Always worked for me all my working life.