Where'd you get your precision ground forstner bits? Who makes them? What'd you pay?
I bought one at lowes, 1", can't recall brand right now, and it cut REALLY smooth... but not for very long. I'm needing one that will last and cut smooth as silk.
Ben, I buy Freud Precision from Lowe's. I think a 1 1/2" cost me about $22. I also use a small diamond hone to keep it sharp. Been using the same one for 1 1/2 years with no loss of precision, it still cuts flat and true.
I agree. Freud is what I buy, but I got mine from Woodcraft I just freshen up the cutting surface with a diamond hone about every 6 months and it stays sharp and smooth.
hmm... you guys make it sound like it's not a delicate procedure to sharpen these... I would think (from my own clumsy experience) that they'd be easy to, at the very least, screw up on their 90º angle...
I think it would be a very delicate procedure to sharpen. Not difficult to hone the cutting edges though. Honing just dresses the edge and takes out any surface scratches. Very little, if any material is removed. Equal pressure and same number of strokes on each side should keep the cutting surfaces perpendicular. But the bit will eventually wear down. When the bit doesn't cut true anymore its time to replace.
