Festool Quick Release Bit Holder BHS 65 CE video impression

[veramis]

Festool Quick Release Bit Holder Impressions

Please forgive the high-pitched voice, the camera's built-in microphone makes everyone sound high-pitched.

Overall I give this item 3/5 stars, it's a nice drill accessory but for $30 I expected more. Most importantly it does the job of preventing drill bits from falling out, but I was really hoping for more stable centering when using ordinary hex drill bits. I will be using it nonetheless because simply to lock onto a drill bit is worth more than eliminating wobble. I hope this gives people an idea of the advantages and disadvantages of this accessory.

One final thing I forgot to mention in the video, the short driver bits are quite hard to remove from this bit holder, absolutely requires two hands and possibly a napkin or something else for grip. Long driver bit are much easier to remove. The quick draw adapter I showed is not magnetic and driver bits fall right out when the sleeve is pulled, which Festool should consider implementing in a drill accessory in the future, even though this would make it difficult for it to hold onto centrotec drill bits.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Veramis, you speak constantly about "ordinary hex bits", but are you aware that there are two types of hex bits?

First, there's a wire detent bit:

[attachimg=1]

and second, there's the ball detent bit:

[attachimg=2]

They both need their own type of bit holder, and the Festool holder BHS 65 is simply meant for wire detent bits. You can't expect it to hold ball detent bits just as good, because the wire and the ball detent system are not 100% compatible. Just like you can't expect the other way around either, a ball detent bit holder won't hold wire detent bits very good (if at all, I never used one actually).

Festool uses it's own ball detent system, because that's what the centrotec system with it's special chuck is basically based on. I can't imagine why you wouldn't want to use the centrotec bits, they're awesome. Perhaps only the price is a bit steep, but for that, you get such a high quality and such ease of operation, that I wouldn't want anything else right now.

But if you want to use your own type of ball detent bit holders, you can as you have shown in your own movie: just use the Jacobs chuck and the Festool drill is just like any other drill on the market. So I don't understand why you're complaining. Seems like you want Festool to make two incompatible systems into one bit holder, and that's like marrying an elephant with a mouse.

I do share your gripe with the BHS 65's magnet. It's too strong and makes it difficult to get a bit out. Personally, I hardly use the BHS 65. I prefer the long BH 150 non-locking bit holder or the pure centrotec driver bits.

 

[Brice Burrell]

I agree with Alex here, the BHS is meant for wire detent bits.  I can understand the confusion, Festool should probably make that clear in their description.

 

[greg mann]

I agree with Alex here, the BHS is meant for wire detent bits.  I can understand the confusion, Festool should probably make that clear in their description.

By golly, Brice, does that mean I can hold a square drive in the BHS?  ;D ;D ;D ;D

 

[Brice Burrell]

I agree with Alex here, the BHS is meant for wire detent bits.  I can understand the confusion, Festool should probably make that clear in their description.

By golly, Brice, does that mean I can hold a square drive in the BHS?  ;D ;D ;D ;D

You better be careful Greg, you're skating on thin ice. [tongue]

 

[Frank-Jan]

Alex, there's also this type of hex bit:

That locks into both the ball-detent and wire-detent holders.  (It was really a eureka-moment when I discovered it worked in the ball-detent chuck of my bosch I-driver when I needed a little more room)

Sidenote: the excentre head has a regular ball-detent chuck (which means the centrotec drills get pulled out easily when retracting them)
The C12 with the 1.3Ah li-ion batteries is my only festool drill, so the excentre chuck makes it feel very topheavy/unballanced, but maybe with the T-drills with the heavier batteries it feels less awkward.

The BHS 65 ce bitholder that was in my protool 18v pdc drill broke in two when it landed on it after a fall (it broke at the location of the little rubber ring)

 

[Alan m]

Alex, there's also this type of hex bit:

That locks into both the ball-detent and wire-detent holders.  (It was really a eureka-moment when I discovered it worked in the ball-detent chuck of my bosch I-driver when I needed a little more room)

Sidenote: the excentre head has a regular ball-detent chuck (which means the centrotec drills get pulled out easily when retracting them)
The C12 with the 1.3Ah li-ion batteries is my only festool drill, so the excentre chuck makes it feel very topheavy/unballanced, but maybe with the T-drills with the heavier batteries it feels less awkward.

The BHS 65 ce bitholder that was in my protool 18v pdc drill broke in two when it landed on it after a fall (it broke at the location of the little rubber ring)

i was a bit purplexed by this debate because i never had any issues with any of the bits or bit holders i use until i saw that wera pic.
i usually only use wera bits( unless i need a specific bit that i dont use very often) , i have a bit holder thats designed for the impact driver so i use the bits from that for all my driving work.

whats wrong with the standard bit holder that comes with the drill. i have one for my c12 and i dont nemember ever having a bit come out unexpectedly. it holds all the bits

 

[GhostFist]

I had this confusion as well when i first bought this bit holder. Ball detent bits flop all over the place, wire detent works fine, though I'll admit I'm on my second expensive bit holder since i bought my cxs when they came out. Using Robertson bits, which actually hold the screw on the bit, the standard magnet only bit holder tends to leave the bit in the screw and not on the end of your drill. The keyless chuck has to be used for anything with a ball detent. Not such a big deal but you kind of have to learn to deal with it.

 

[veramis]

The reason why I want so bad to use my own drill bits and not centrotec is because I purchased a lot of good drill bits and it seems like a real shame to not be able to use them optimally with my T12. After this product I see the only way to use them properly would be to use the jacobs chuck, even though I don't like the weight. And I do know that there's two different hex shanks, but the quick-change drill bits I've seen use the one I was using in the video. I can't imagine many circumstances to use this accessory for driver bits, since I've never had driver bits pull out on me, so I think this has limited uses, maybe some people may still benefit from it. I will still use it sometimes for drill bits since it is lighter than the jacobs chuck.

 

[veramis]

One more thing, the reason why I posted the video was 1. I was hoping it would work well with quick-change drill bits and it didn't so I wanted people to be aware of the uses and limitations, and 2. I wanted to compare two design mechanisms which I think should be considered for some applications. I showed a quick-draw adapter by Montana Brand, and imo it is almost as good as I can imagine a hex quick-draw adapter to be, very easy to insert and remove both drill and driver bits with decent centering. I didn't link it to bash the BHS 65 CE, but because I like Festool now and would like to see them make even better tools in the future.

 

[Brice Burrell]

One more thing, the reason why I posted the video was 1. I was hoping it would work well with quick-change drill bits and it didn't so I wanted people to be aware of the uses and limitations, and 2. I wanted to compare two design mechanisms which I think should be considered for some applications. I showed a quick-draw adapter by Montana Brand, and imo it is almost as good as I can imagine a hex quick-draw adapter to be, very easy to insert and remove both drill and driver bits with decent centering. I didn't link it to bash the BHS 65 CE, but because I like Festool now and would like to see them make even better tools in the future.

Your video does show the limitations for sure and that's probably a good thing considering Festool doesn't say what this accessory is intended for.  I hope you didn't feel like we were beating up on you.

BTW, I bought this item specifically because driver bits would pull out of the regular bit holder with certain types screws.

 

[GhostFist]

veramis, just to reiterate I agree with you

 

[fshanno]

So, you were serious about the paper clip.  I thought it was a joke designed to needle Festool.

Festool will never support 6.35mm ball detent hex bits.  It would cost them money.  They will probably never supply square head bits because Europeans don't use them and Festool doesn't sell enough drills in North America to justify the headache.  So you're stuck. 

But you aren't really losing anything.  The other professional grade cordless drills available in North America don't measure up to the Festool line so you'd be buying a lesser drill.  You'd have to have an adapter for ball detent bits for any other 18v and up drill/driver.  So buy a few Centrotec bits for the right angle chuck and the offset chuck and you'll be good to go.

Black and Decker has an interesting product.  The Firestorm FS1800D.  Here's a link.  The keyless chuck will pop off revealing a little locking chuck for 1/4" ball detend bits.  My son has one and I've used it quite a bit helping him fix up his rent house.  He supplies the tools and materials and I supply some muscle and experience.  It's not a professional grade tool but has the most clever and useful chucking system I've seen.  I wish one of the major makers offered something like it.  That's what I'd buy.

 

[GhostFist]

festool does support ball detent bits in the eccentric chuck.......