Ship Auger Bits Overview/Comparison & Drilling Test

This is a general introduction to ship augers which are used for making deep straight holes in wood. I compared some older as well as modern designs and show some differences in geometry as well as do a drilling demonstration.
B & A, DeWalt, Irwin SpeedBor, GreenLee . .

[@Elcobong]

What kind of drill are you using here? De Walt type? Nice video!

[@degenwow]

Educational and entertaining videos at once, I jsut watched the spade bits and now I am here with the Auger bits, / my favourites. THanks for publishing these vids

[@redsquirrelftw]

I always have trouble with these, it gets about 1cm in, then it just spins without drilling further. The screw basically breaks the wood instead of pulling it through. Is there a trick to using these right?

[@cardo1111]

As always an interesting vid and learned something new.

[@hullion]

Hi man, which ones would you recommend for tropical hardwoods?

[@ofthewoods137]

I'm on a budget and I am installing 3/4 balusters on my deck rails. I bought an Irwin 3/4" SPEEDBOR 6" Tri Flute. I will be drilling about 300+ holes. Do you recommend a better bit near this price range? The railing is already on the deck. I'll be able to take the bottom rail off.

[@rico1319]

Love your videos, but how do you know all this stuff? I would be very interested to know what you do for a living? I own a few of these bits... 👍👍👍😎🇨🇱

[@mwilliamshs]

Irwin "bought" the patent on the center rod auger from a blacksmith that invented it. He "bought" it by trading the alcoholic smith's bartab for the patent. That tab he owed was at Irwin's pharmacy.

[@dpt4402]

You should demonstrate using spade and ship bits with in a hole hawg while on a ladder working above in the process an old nail is discovered. A great segway into hole saws.

[@damianmorales7891]

You got that right

[@carsonrowe8948]

What could go wrong.

[@wemcal]

Great video and information

[@morokeiboethia6749]

Question about the "cone tip" (I forgot the name of that part of a ship auger) - We use Irwin ship augers to drill the holes in dock pilings for through-bolts to be inserted for framing support. Often we're working with old pilings that still have old nails/screws and they will wear the cone tip out and then depending on how worn down the cone tip is, either you have to push really hard to get it to cut/bore through the piling or you can't get it to bore at all b/c the flattened cone tip is preventing the cutting end of the auger bit from contacting the wood. If you took something like a grinder with a cutting wheel and cut the cone tip off (only when its worn out and is preventing the cutting end from contacting the wood) would that help the bit out b/c it seems like that would allow the cutting/boring ends to contact the wood and resume drilling (but of course you would have to push it by hand). Or would that make it even worse? Just looking for ways to get more mileage out of a auger bit thats damaged from screws/nails.

[@CatusMaximus]

That is what you have to deal with, just grinding the worn out feed tip to a sharp point and making sure your cutting edge is sharp and pressing harder. On old Plantor (I forget the spelling but they are 2 wing self feed bits) had a replaceable feed screw.

[@morokeiboethia6749]

@@CatusMaximus But if the feeder head is not pulling anymore after you grind it back to a point whats the point of having it at all b/c i thought that is all it did was pull the bit and if its not pulling my logic was then cut it off down to the cutting edges (base of the cone) and just push-drill. I figured the cone would be hindering you if its not able to pull your bit anymore so just cut it off. I had heard the old auger bits did not have a cone tip on them and you had to push-drill. By cutting a worn cone tip off my thinking was you're turning it into an old style auger bit with no cone tip since the one that was on there is shot.

[@morokeiboethia6749]

Can you sharpen them with a grinder to where it's pulling again or do you need a machine sharpener for that?@@CatusMaximus

[@rightlanehog3151]

Fascinating.

[@carterscustomrods]

I love auger style bits. Woodowl makes really great, lower cost bits. The Famag's are awesome... but, like all Famag products, make certain you secure the interest rate for the loan you need to buy the Famag bit. Lol

[@patrickcasey6231]

Anyone know where to get a 5 ft long wood auger bit? I want to bolt a large splitting maple tree with rod, washer and nut. Problem is I can't find a super long bit 😕

[@CatusMaximus]

They are out there but really expensive your best bet would be to get a 12" auger and then an extension or a couple quick release 7/16" drive extension. Although The quick release chucks tend to be around 7/8 of an inch and diameter if you need a small really deep hole I would recommend contacting a local contractor supply or maybe white hat which is home depot's commercial division

[@patrickcasey6231]

@@CatusMaximus well thank you very much for the reply and advice. Ideally i would need a 3/4 " diameter bit, then use a 5/8 diameter rod. I did see the extensions here in a local store, the problem is that there is a fat part on it which is a fair bit wider than 3/4 in, which is peculiar, also i dont know if i can trust the straightness of this system and / or if something might break, disconnect or otherwise cause a problem while deep down the hole lol. Really needs to be straight so rod will follow in well. I suppose i would be open to a bit larger hole, then find a larger diam rod. thanks again

[@mdovideo1414]

Home Depot used to sell Irwin drill bits.