# hole saw



## paul d. (Jul 13, 2008)

how many holes you guys typically get out of a good quality hole saw ? say a , 3/4. in regular usage like panel cans or j-boxes. i say 80-100. paul


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## TOOL_5150 (Aug 27, 2007)

sounds about right. I prefer the lennox brand as it seems they tend to last [stay the sharpest] the longest.

~Matt


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## paul d. (Jul 13, 2008)

saw a " electrician " yesterday burn up 2 -3/4 hole saws drilling 10 holes in a panel can. broke 1 pilot bit.  oh well.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

I have a 1/2" and 3/4" hole saw that I use all of the time and have had them for many years.
I do have an old 1/2" one retired for use in drywall for toggle bolts and wood.
I sometimes clean it out and use it on metal.
I use tap magic every chance I get.
I had to cut a hole in some thin angle for a generator base not too long ago using a 2" hole saw. I used a battery drill and some WD40. Worked fine. The hole saw is still good.

Something seems to be happening with the threads of a few larger holesaws that I have noticed with in the last year or so.
Seems like they thread on OK but will "wobble" around and bugger up the thread of the holesaw. The arbor seems to look OK but, not the hole saw threads. This is the type that screws on and has a collar with two pins that go into the base of the holesaw.
Has anybody else experienced this?


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## davis9 (Mar 21, 2009)

Try the Carbide Hole Saw KIT from Greenlee, that set is the cat's meow. I used it on a metal stud project and easily drilled 1500 holes no problem with the 1" size(BUSHINGS).

TOM


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

I really like the unibits for 1/2 and 3/4 knockouts. Never really liked to hole saw too many of them. Matter of fack, I really don't like to hole saw knockouts, period, unless there's a real good reason not to use a slugbuster. 

Stud bushings? I think it's crazy to not use a steel stud punch. For 1500 holes, the thing would have paid for itself two or three times over.


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## davis9 (Mar 21, 2009)

I have a stud punch, but you cant always use them on the top plate. Those bases and tops are usually taller and the punch has a hard time clearing the sides.

The carbide kit is fast has a spring to eject the plug and lasts. Much faster than a punch, cheaper too.

I use the slug buster for anything over 1.5" now. The Carbide kit works well for 1/2-1.5" holes. If you are going to have lots of holes in thicker steel(panels) on a large project then yes the slugbuster is king but for the quick and dirty 1-4 panel drill out then the carbide cutter will be done before you finish with the unibit.

Tom


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## paul d. (Jul 13, 2008)

one of them carbide sets would'nt last a day on a construction job, i work on. it would be broke or " lost ". uni-bit same way. rotten shame too.


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## davis9 (Mar 21, 2009)

How would you break it?

Lost or growing legs is more likely.

I keep 'em close when I take them out.LOL

Tom


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## Jeff000 (Jun 18, 2008)

I wish I got the carbide kit, I just have the bimetal set. Works great though, I use cutting oil with it. 
But I would much prefer to use a slug buster.

And for steel stud, one of those hand punch things only take 2 seconds to punch the hole.


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

paul d. said:


> one of them carbide sets would'nt last a day on a construction job, i work on. it would be broke or " lost ". uni-bit same way. rotten shame too.


 
I carried one of those carbide hole saw kits for years and never had any trouble at all out of them. IMO the carbide tip hole saws are the BEST hands down.:thumbup:


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

paul d. said:


> saw a " electrician " yesterday burn up 2 -3/4 hole saws drilling 10 holes in a panel can. broke 1 pilot bit.  oh well.


 
It sure is nice to know that. I thought that I used to work with all of those electrician's.:laughing:


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## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

paul d. said:


> how many holes you guys typically get out of a good quality hole saw ? say a , 3/4. in regular usage like panel cans or j-boxes. i say 80-100. paul


 
Using the carbide tip hole saws I would get Thousands of holes out of each hole saw. I think they are well worth the money.:thumbsup:


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## mattsilkwood (Sep 21, 2008)

i like the carbide tip ones, they last a long time for me. but then again i rarely use them. id much rather use a unibit or ko.


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## Lz_69 (Nov 1, 2007)

davis9 said:


> How would you break it?
> 
> Lost or growing legs is more likely.
> 
> ...


The carbide teeth will bust off or chip if someone runs them too fast.


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## davis9 (Mar 21, 2009)

Lz_69 said:


> The carbide teeth will bust off or chip if someone runs them too fast.



Well, You need to follow the directions.LOL

Just like a regular hole saw, I bet most run them too fast.

Tom:thumbup:


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## randomkiller (Sep 28, 2007)

I use a unibit or knock out most of the time for 1/2" and 3/4" holes. The speed you run a holesaw at is the whole thing in a nutshell. Most guys melt them.


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