Hole saws- which one is the best

[semenza]

Reviving this topic. I am looking for a large set. Something on the order of the Milwaukee 28 pc or the Lenox 21 pc.  Cutting mostly solid and sheet goods.

I would prefer carbide ( I have one Lenox high tooth count carbide). But can't find any large sets and building one up of individuals becomes costly. I am not going to be cutting a lot of holes so how well do the Bi-Metal hold up? I have a couple that seem to fine after a few holes each. But how about on metal should it ever come up?

I have never used the one to three tooth saws. I think I will want cleaner cuts.  One thing about them is that [member=2726]Tom Gensmer[/member]  said they bind less. It looks to me that that single or triple large tooth would catch / bind more than a higher tooth count?

Looking for input on the current brands / selections.

Seth

 

[rst]

I have and use the Milwaukee 28 pc set.  I am more than pleased with performance and I drill wood, plastic and metal from 18ga doors to 1/2" aluminum.  My gripe with hole saws is that there used to be pilot drills that only were ground for about 1/2" so that once you were through surface material the pilot would not run off and widen the pilot hole and allowing the hole saw to wander.  Craftsman and Milwaukee both had these.  I'm assuming some bean counting accountant that never drilled anything in their life decided that specialty drills like these were not optimal for the bottom line.

 

[TwelvebyTwenty]

Reviving this topic. I am looking for a large set. Something on the order of the Milwaukee 28 pc or the Lenox 21 pc.  Cutting mostly solid and sheet goods.

I would prefer carbide ( I have one Lenox high tooth count carbide). But can't find any large sets and building one up of individuals becomes costly. I am not going to be cutting a lot of holes so how well do the Bi-Metal hold up? I have a couple that seem to fine after a few holes each. But how about on metal should it ever come up?

I have never used the one to three tooth saws. I think I will want cleaner cuts.  One thing about them is that [member=2726]Tom Gensmer[/member]  said they bind less. It looks to me that that single or triple large tooth would catch / bind more than a higher tooth count?

Looking for input on the current brands / selections.

Seth

I favour Bosch in the UK - not sure how readily available they would be in your market - but they take a beating and keep on cutting.

 

[Maestronus]

Bosch indeed has super durable carbide hole saw sets of 8 or 13 pieces. Marketing name is ‘Endurance for heavy duty’. Availability in US might not be great as usual.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosch-Professional-2608594186-Universal-13-Piece/dp/B07H2D12QW/

 

[Peter_C]

Not a big fan of Milwaukee bits and blades as they kinda suck, but last year I needed so many new parts it was cheaper to just buy another complete set for $129 while it was on sale at HD, see below. Lennox are better quality for cutting metal, but you can get the kit, pre-drill with a cobalt bit in metal, then switch to the hole saw setup to save the weaker Milwaukee center bit wear and tear. Replace bits with better quality as they wear out. I buy 1 3/4" bits often as they are used for fish mouthing DOM tubing, and get at least 6+ cuts, in a jig mounted to the drill press, so I don't use the center bit, but do use a lot of oil.https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-28-Piece-49-22-4185/203113585

 

[AlexThePalex]

For everything drilling or cutting I always go for Bosch consumables. Drills, bits, hole saws, jigsaw blades, sawsall blades, Bosch never lets me down.

 

[AstroKeith]

Another vote for Bosch! I had a few odd Bosch hole saws but last year bought a set as it was on offer. They are the bimetal kind on a really effective quick change auger (powerchange). They have stayed sharp despite some hard use. Clean holes.They are labelled as 'progressor' as they have a progressive tooth design, whatever that is. Supposed to be good at chip removal. However this is their one weakness - in most hardwoods they do clog and bind if you are not careful. I've developed a technique to cope which is easy on a drill press but not so easy handheld.

 

[Michael Kellough]

Don’t get these thin shell Spider carbide hole saws.

The shell is too thin. When the tooth hits a knot the shell distorts(bends even) and the saw becomes oval. The it either creates too much friction or cuts a larger than specified hole.

They do cut extremely fast, until they deform.

 

[Cheese]

I have a collection of Milwaukee hole saws that go from 5/8" to 6" and span at least 20+ years. Besides wood I use them on aluminum, copper, plastic & rubber. The only issue I've had is getting the wooden plug out of the hole saw.

[attachimg=1]

Here's one that's been used so much that all of the paint is worn away, but it's still sharp.

[attachimg=2]

 

[Frank-Jan]

I use both the profit holesaws as the bosch bimetal holesaws depending on the material. When I got a few of the bosch quickchange holesaws I ordered a bunch of the adapters to make the standard holesaws I already had work with the quickchange chuck, and then I even made a systainer-insert for my holesaws (just drilling holes the size of the adapter made that easier.

The pro-fit saws work great on mdf, (on wood aswell, much less strain on the drill, but they leave a slightly more ragety edge) the bimetal saws teeth fill up fast, and I need to clean the teeth a lot to prevent burning otherwise.
I also tried the pro-fit saws on brick, and with the right centre-drill it works very well (better than I expected)

 

[Jiggy Joiner]

Most of my hole saws are Bosch, no complaints.

 

[six-point socket II]

Hey Seth,

The one tooth (small diameter), or three teeth (larger diameters) carbide hole saws can absolutely do clean cuts. It's only crucial that they are up to speed before they make contact with whatever you want to cut. For this I prefer a center/pilot drill bit that protrudes the hole saw quite a bit. (Of course this only applies to/works with through holes)

It's a steep learning curve, once you anticipate/expect the "recoil" correctly - the cuts are perfect.

Another big advantage is that they won't cake as much, especially on MDF (and materials that use MDF as base/backing material), like the Bi-Metal ones. Because chips/shavings are much easier removed.

I also have used carbide hole saws that offer as many teeth as BIM do, they are a little harder to control and demand quite a bit of the drill that is used to power them. The results are not per se cleaner than those achieved with the one/three tooth/teeth carbide hole saws.

I only use BIM on sheet metal. Be aware that Bosch offers "progressor type" carbide hole saws now also, these are, according to my sources, of questionable quality and don't live up to the expected life span/number of holes you'd expect from carbide tools. I have not used them myself, because I also had mixed results with the newer carbide consumables. (This does not affect the mentioned "Endurance for Multi Construction, these are older/ a long standing quality product)

Additionally I do keep one of those multi diameter, sheet metal type hole saws around, that's sometimes useful for light use.

My experience with Bosch lies with what they used to call "Endurance for Multi Construction" over here in Europe, they were absolutely worth buying. I have no idea if that is what they call "Daredevil" in the U.S. . The available quick change adapters are another plus. When buying, ask for the newest version, the older one had trouble locking the pilot drill bit. Also the hole enlargement quick change adapter is worth if look, if you do retro-fits. (You can use a smaller hole saw for piloting with it.)

Another brand I have had great results with is MPS from Germany, but their hole saws are third party buyout products (Manufactured in/ COO: CHN).

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[Cheese]

Reviving this topic.

If you're exclusively cutting metal, some annular cutters would be a better choice. These are better than a traditional drill because they need to remove less material, in the same way that hole saws only cut the periphery of the hole.

There are small diameter ones for use with a conventional cordless drill and larger ones for use with equipment that will accept Weldon shanks.

[attachimg=1]

[attachimg=2]

 

[semenza]

Reviving this topic.

If you're exclusively cutting metal, some annular cutters would be a better choice. These are better than a traditional drill because they need to remove less material, in the same way that hole saws only cut the periphery of the hole.

There are small diameter ones for use with a conventional cordless drill and larger ones for use with equipment that will accept Weldon shanks.

No, almost exclusively wood.

Seth

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

Reviving this topic. I am looking for a large set. Something on the order of the Milwaukee 28 pc or the Lenox 21 pc.  Cutting mostly solid and sheet goods.

I would prefer carbide ( I have one Lenox high tooth count carbide). But can't find any large sets and building one up of individuals becomes costly. I am not going to be cutting a lot of holes so how well do the Bi-Metal hold up? I have a couple that seem to fine after a few holes each. But how about on metal should it ever come up?

I have never used the one to three tooth saws. I think I will want cleaner cuts.  One thing about them is that [member=2726]Tom Gensmer[/member]  said they bind less. It looks to me that that single or triple large tooth would catch / bind more than a higher tooth count?

Looking for input on the current brands / selections.

Seth

Hi Seth! Much like a band saw blade, the wider kerf of the low-tooth carbide tipped hole saws means the body of the tool is less likely to bind in the cut. That being said, I tend to only have a handful of these, typically a 2-9/16" and a 4-1/4".

Beyond that, I tend to acquire good-quality bi-metal hole saws (usually Milwaukee). Depending on cost I've had them resharpened for less than the cost of new.

 

[rvieceli]

[member=1619]SRSemenza[/member]

Hey Seth Home Depot has some seemingly good pricing on the Milwaukee hole saw kits TODAY 7/13. It’s the special buy of the day. So today only.
https://www.homedepot.com/s/milwaukee%20hole%20saw%20kit?searchtype=suggest&NCNI-5
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-28-Piece-49-22-4185/203113585
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-20-Piece-49-22-4170/305966971

Ron

 

[Cheese]

Hey Seth Home Depot has some seemingly good pricing on the Milwaukee hole saw kits TODAY 7/13. It’s the special buy of the day. So today only.
https://www.homedepot.com/s/milwaukee%20hole%20saw%20kit?searchtype=suggest&NCNI-5
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-28-Piece-49-22-4185/203113585
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-20-Piece-49-22-4170/305966971

Those Hole Dozer blades are a lot easier to remove the wooden plug. That's the one thing I hate about hole saws.  [mad]

 

[semenza]

[member=1619]SRSemenza[/member]

Hey Seth Home Depot has some seemingly good pricing on the Milwaukee hole saw kits TODAY 7/13. It’s the special buy of the day. So today only.
https://www.homedepot.com/s/milwaukee%20hole%20saw%20kit?searchtype=suggest&NCNI-5
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-28-Piece-49-22-4185/203113585
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...al-Hole-Saw-Set-20-Piece-49-22-4170/305966971

Ron

The Zoro price was still $30 less.

Seth

 

[Svar]

Those Hole Dozer blades are a lot easier to remove the wooden plug. That's the one thing I hate about hole saws.  [mad]

What's different about them? Geometry or access holes?

 

[rst]

I've been using that 28 pc set for a couple years now, cut plastic, wood, steel and aluminum.  It's great, still haven't gotten around to putting into systainer however.