ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Best 7/8's auger youv'e found

I just got the new milwaukee super hole hawg, it's cut hole production time nearly in half, except it also burns through bits twice as fast. I nead to find the best 7/8 auger bits out there. the other option is to change bits when they heat up too much, but that'd take some time out of my production. The units I'm working on now, are 8 family multiplexes, wood construction and we drill these units out each week and a half. Thanks take care Brian

Greenlee Nail Eaters -
http://198.247.193.8/wwwroot/greenlee/holemaking.pdf

Check out Page 52.

They're quick, durable, and _go_through_ nails without dulling too badly, like a regular auger bit. They also come in different lengths for cross-drilling, or going through sole plates.

I'm with Doug on that one.

The contractor I work for uses Lennox auger bits (white with a blue wolf) for our primary auger bits all 1 1/8 or 7/8 we do log homes as our primary contract so 4-5 feet in 1 continuous hole is usual. Sharpen only when hit a spike or sinker nail!! we are still looking for a good holesaw bit or forstener bit set. We have recently gone to the super hawg as well- love that machine, it replaced the regular hawg hands down, a 2-3 minute hole is now 45-55 sec. chips fly now!! annual hawg burn up at about 2 a year - superhawg has gone year and half only tore out 3 handles on the head.

[This message has been edited by sparkystudent (edited 04-15-2004).]

I have found the Greeblee and Lenox auger bits to be quite good.

Sparkystudent,


If you are "burning up" that many hole hawgs in a year, then they are getting some serious abuse. Have you been tossing them or getting them rebuilt? $700 a year just on drills seems like an awful waste.

Peter

I have used a regular hole hawg for a long time, what are the differences?
and what price range are the supers

Lenox, hands down. We've even been using a dremel to sharpen the screw when it gets dull, and getting way more time out of them than the Greenlee bits.. For the holes over 1" now were using Greenlee "Mod" bits with the 6" extension, seem to break the worms on them quite a bit though.

GreenLee all the way! All my guys have tried virtually every auger on the market and we conclude that Greenlees are the toughest and stay sharpest the longest. Steer clear of lesser known brands (Raptor, and most store brands).

We've also had good success with the Ideal bits, but overall like Greenlee the best.

I use Greenlee if available or the Lenox. I don't see one lasting any longer than the other.
I also don't use a bit smaller than the 1 1/8th unless clearence is tight. Makes wire pulling much easier due to the larger hole.

... ONLY Greenlee!!!!!!! They can't be matched!!! In our opinion...
Russ