Bosch Daredevil Daredevil DSB5013P 13-Piece Spade Bit Set

 (20 customer reviews)

I had to cut a dozen 1 1/4" holes into 4X4s. I dulled two hole saws and asked my son to pick a spade bit while he was out. The guy at the hardware store swore these spades were the best tool he had seen in sometime. Being the skeptic I am I figured these were just another set of paddle bits. These bits cleanly and quickly drilled the dozen holes I was completely impressed. If you press into the wood the bits do grab a little but if you keep the RPMs up and allow the bit to feed in at it's own pace it cuts through wood like a hot knife through butter, very smooth with very little torque. I now agree with the guy at the hardware store; this is one of the best tools I have bought in some time.

These bits are made in China and the metal that was used is pitted. This did not affect the performance but may be an indication of the quality of the metal that is used. The bits have screw type tips which are quite different from the tips of my Craftsman bits which have v-shaped tips without threads. I decided to compare drilling results by using the same block of wood and the same Bosch cordless drill for the same size bits. The Bosch bits tore through the wood with amazing speed but left very ragged holes. This would be suitable for drilling holes in studs for electrical wiring and other such use. The Craftsman bit was a barely noticeable length of time slower in creating the hole but the result was a clean and smooth hole. I have been using Craftsman spade bits for woodworking projects and will continue to do so. When I need to drill holes where appearance is not a factor I will use the Bosch due to their speed.

These bits rip through studs, joists, and rafters easily. Hold on to your drill tight, especially with the larger bits. These will easily rip a drill out of your hand. I have read reviews of these not working well in cordless drills because of lack of power. Milwaukee M18, M12, and Craftsman Nextec 12v drills have no problem with the 3/4" bit on nearly dead batteries. With only 1 bar of life on my M18 hammer drill, I drilled through over 20 studs without it stopping or killing the battery. The M18 has no issue pushing the 1-1/2" bit through 2 stacked 2x4s.

I bought the 3-pack to replace 2 bent bits from this set. Even with the bent bits, they are a better value than cheaper bits that don't work as well (Irwin, Dewalt, Craftsman from my experiences).

Pros: very fast drilling and sharp.

Cons: The narrow shafts bend easily if the bit grabs. The points dull quite fast which slows them down. Once the screw pilot goes through, it take some force to finish...Read more