🔩 Advanced Woodworking Smart Bit BDA140: Pre-Drilling & Countersinking Solution Review

I've been using this drill bit for a week now while building a series of decks. It came with a bucket of screws from the TimberTech Reliaboard. This is the best countersink I have ever used and I have been using them for years. Ideal for wood or polymer. Widely used (all screws MUST be pre-drilled) without sacrificing performance. The only downside is that the depth gauge doesn't account for steep turns or bottlenecks. Otherwise I love this beat. Highly recommended. jtp

Works well but bits break fairly easily. Be sure to drill straight down and when changing the drill bit, make sure the flat side of the drill bit is facing the screw that is tightened with the hex key. The bit must not be fully inserted, otherwise part of the round part will be in front of the retaining screw. Unscrew the screw all the way and take a look and you'll see what I mean.

Even if bits break from time to time, I think it's worth it. I built two high quality decks for clients and these beats allowed for a high quality finish without the extra steps. Big time saver and, for that matter, time saver. I used #7 on the first deck and #8 on the second. Stick to #8 if you can. My #8 only broke once on a 20x30 foot deck, I replaced 8 or 10 bits with #7 on a similar sized deck. I'll probably use them in my trim as well, but haven't been able to yet. Also, I really think…