Customer Reviews

Milwaukee 49-22-0130 Contractor's Kit 7 Bit 1-Inch to 2 9/16-Inch Selfeed Drill Bit Assortment with 5 1/2-Inch Extension and Plastic Carrying Case

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I only have two of the Milwaukee Contractor's bits and I love them, I will buy this set soon. I use them for cutting the many holes required to run house electrical and plumbing. They are perfect for the hard to reach out of position holes that you can't push on a auger bit to cut through. They will eat their way though the center of a tree with a 3' extension.

Since they are self feeding they will not stop untill you let off the trigger and you need a reverse on the drillmotor to back them out of deep holes. Chips will back up and plug deep holes so use the reverse and clear out the chips on deep holes.

These things tear through wood like there is no tomorrow. Yes, everything the other poster said is true. You do have to put some pressure to make that last little cut through the stud, and they can clog themselves going through multiple plates. But man do these things work. They literally pull themselves through 90% of the board. Not that you want to, but you can also cut through nails with these bits. After having used them to rough in various wires and pipes on my house, I couldn't imagine not having them for future rough-in work. They work superbly. You do need a drill with a 1/2" chuck if you are not using a Hole-Dawg.

Overall this is a great product. They drill really fast and do the job right. I will agree though at times when your drilling through a stud that towards the end, when the spur is past the end and already sticking out of the other side, you do have to put alot of pressure on the bit in order to finish drilling the hole. Compared to what these bits do for me, this minor setback really doesn't bother me at all. These bits will not cut through nails so what I like to do is carry an extra set of bi-metal hole saws to cut out the nail then go back to using these bits because they're alot faster than hole saws.

These bits are made in China yet there is absolutely no indication anywhere on the bit itself or the packaging of country of origin. I have seen individually packaged bits at Home Depot and some of them are made in USA and some of them are made in China. The USA ones have USA on the packaging and engraved on the bit. The Chinese ones have "made in China" in tiny print on the packaging and no marking whatsoever on the bit itself. The marking on the bit itself where it says the size is laser etched and NOT engraved like the USA ones. So, I know after this examination how to tell which of these bits are which. I do not buy Chinese made tools and certainly not expensive drill bits like these. The Chinese may make some things OK but in my experience tools are not one of those things. Buy Chinese metal and it will break on you and it is simply not safe to use. Real pros know what I am saying is true.

I called Milwaukee on the phone to inquire as to why there was no country of origin on this set and they flat out lied to me and told me that the bits are made in the USA. I told this person that I have never seen a US made tool in my life that did not bear "made in USA" markings and that these bits have no such markings. I also told her that her information cannot be correct as I have seen "made in China" on individual bits in Home Depot. These bits are simply too expensive to be made in China.

Look elsewhere.

Milwaukee Tools makes great cases and often excellent tools but these are an exception. Carbon steel cutting blades dull quickly and chip if a nail is hit. They take about as much drill power as a regular hole saw and chew up batteries just as quickly.

Problem with all these selfeed drill bits is that the lead in screw thread is a compromise, too fast for some wood and too slow for others. When it is too fast as with hard woods the bit jambs and then the drill spins in the opposite direction which is no fun with a 1/2" stud drill.

For holes smaller than 1" I prefer the wood augers and for bigger holes the big gullet aggressive hole cutters like the Milwaukee Hawg and the Blue Boar (many more sizes than the Hawgs) make drilling faster and I get a lot more holes per battery charge. Actually use a 18v DeWalt 970 drill instead of the old stud drill most of the time.

This set is really usefull considering it comes in carrying case. Neat and organised, good quality, durable, comes with extra replacement, and I think you can sharpenn it as well. It is not made in USA, it's really hard find any tools that were made here. But I love it It is still Milwaukee no matter how you look at it.
By the way it is cheaper to buy it in this set, usually you will be paying around 25-35 dollars per bit, so you do the math. I give it 10 stars and contractors quality...

The bit works well if in soft wood. When cutting through stud wall I find the bit getting stuck in the wall from the tear out on the back side of the stud. Once the spur in through the wood you need to apply a lot of pressure on the drill for the bit to cut through the stud. When cutting deep holes the cuttings making the bit hard to get it out of the drilled hole.