WHAT DRILL BIT AND COUTERSINK FOR IPE OR OTHER HARDWOOD DECK

R

Rusty nut

Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2024
Messages
1
I'm about to undertake my first IPE deck. Quadrive in one hand.

Wondering if anyone has some views on the BTA HW D 5 CE Carbide drill and countersink.https://www.festool.com/accessory/d...ll-bit-with-depth-stop/492522---bta-hw-d-5-ce

It has good things written about it - but I cant find anything on very hard woods like IPE.
Am I going to get a couple of hundred holes from each drill bit - or more and how many countersunk cuts?
Should I slow down the speed for the countersunk sections?

Also Im puzzled by the reverse cone tip on this drill - rather than the more classic BSTA HS D5 CEhttps://www.festool.fr/accessoires/perceuses-visseuses/alésoir-conique-et-alésoir-de-perçage/alésoir-conique/492523---bsta-hs-d-3,5-ce

It seems carbide is the way to go rather than even good quality HSS.

Any other options?

 
My experience with Ipe was in building 10 benches. I used the Festool countersink. I used DeWant steel bits.

I did wax the screws before screwing them in.

Be careful of the sawdust. It is bad stuff. I showered after working with Ipe. Also, the ends tend to check and split right after being cut. Seal the end cuts as quickly as you can. You will want to clean any glue joints with something to remove the oil. I used alcohol, not rubbing alcohol.

I used TBIII and a two part epoxy. After more than 10 years, both seem to be holding well.
 
I have done at least 5,000 screws into a similar product using a Festool C/S and along with thousands of other holes and it has done it has to be the single best Festool product I have bought because it still keeps on drilling. My eyes watered at the original price but that has long been forgiven.
 
In our last home I did 3 decks in Ipe in 2015-16 totaling about 900 square feet.  I bought Deckwise kits of #8 stainless screws, drills with countersinks and Ipe plugs for all of the post and rail trim and edge  and deck wrap screwing...the deck boards were attached with Deckwise clips and stainless screws with black heads into slotted deck board sides.  The Deckwise stuff was all sourced on the big river site.  A pack of 350 screws and plugs included 3 drills with countersinks sized for the screws and plugs and in most cases I only used one or two of the three to get through the pack.  It was a great system and 6 years later when we moved out everything was holding up beautifully.
 
It has been a long time since I built the Ipe benches.

What is a good source for Ipe now?
 
I bought all of the Ipe I used on the decks mentioned above from Advantage Lumber shipped out of their Buffalo, NY location.  The material was of very good quality and shipping was reasonably prompt...maybe 5 days from order to arrival.  Of course, Ipe wasn't cheap and from a quick glance at their website it still isn't.  A 10' pre-grooved 1x6 runs about $61.
 
The tool you linked is for drilling shelf pin holes and does not have a chamfer function. The second tool you referenced is the one with the chamfer but is a smaller drill size. You do not need carbide for Ipe. It drills nicely with HSS. It’s tough stuff but not kryptonite. HSS drills have been used on steel and iron for decades. Carbide drills in metalworking have only really started to dominate metal hole drilling in this century with the advent of CNC tool grinding because very precise geometry is critical. I would determine the hole size you need and see if you can find a drill chamfer combo in that size. I also did about a thousand sq.ft. Ipe deck and used HSS drills with no issues.
 
I have no experience of working with Ipe, but the finest countersinks l have used for the last 40 years are manufactured by WL Fuller.
 
Festool makes a special version of the countersink for use with very hard woods, with a longer 4 mm drill bit for hard woods. I'll edit this post later with the part number.

I had a job building some garden fences, a carport and a gate out of very hard wood; before that drill bit came out, and wished I had something like that. (I used the regular festool countersink in the 5 mm version on the boards, then a longer 4 mm drill for the posts, but the flutes clogged up and I had to use a nail to clean the flutes after almost every hole,... very tedious, next similar job I bought a bunch of the famag drills meant for those hard types of wood, and near the end of that job, that festool bit arrived, it was a bit more costly than the others especially with the replacement centers, but when it's needed it's really nice.
 
Link to drill bit on festool UK site

I remembered the first project was with Azobé and Angelhim Vermelho wood, second deck project was with Massaranduba.

I have only little experience with Ipé, I remember it being heavy, but not as terrible to drill into as the others. (I used it to finish openings and sides of a project with thermowood vertical siding boards.)
 
I've never used Fuller countersinks as I already have Amana, however the Fuller brad point drills are the best I've ever used. I like them so well that I purchased a set of imperial bits from 1/16" to 1/2" in 1/64" increments and a set of metric bits from 1mm to 13mm in .5mm increments....that's a lot of brad point drill bits.  [smile]

They arrive packaged in individual envelopes and the brad point is covered with a dip seal coating.

[attachimg=1]

Here's a comparison between 3 German manufactured brad points and a Fuller. Notice how much sharper the spurs are.

[attachimg=2]
 

Attachments

  • 13144.jpg
    13144.jpg
    1 MB · Views: 151
  • 13149 marked.jpg
    13149 marked.jpg
    591.9 KB · Views: 151
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

tbellemare
April Fools... Not Really! - New Pricing for April 1
Replies
15
Views
8K
tbellemare
tbellemare
Back
Top