Small Diamond Core Drills Versus Small Diamond Drill Bits

Small Diamond core drills will glide through the material a little easier and more quickly than the solid ended small diamond drill bits making them the ideal choice for beginners. 

However, the small diamond coring drills have a smaller surface area of diamond grit and have a core running through them which makes them slightly less robust and not quite as durable as the small diamond drill bits.

Users often keep a combination of both core drill and diamond tipped drill bit types in their tool kit, or you may find a personal preference for using one over the other.  

How to use Diamond Drill Bits:

You will need an adjustable chuck or collet to hold these small diamond core drills, take a look under the 'Technical' tab below to find out the shank sizes of these drill bits. 

If you have a Dremel rotary tool, we recommend the Dremel Multi Chuck. This allows you to change drill bit sizes quickly and easily.

Tip: The following three crucial elements when drilling will prevent the diamond grit from wearing off too quickly or burning away, will prevent the drill bit from snapping (from too much pressure applied), prevent your material from cracking, and extend the life of your drill bits.

• Use with plenty of cold water (if drilling in a container, change the water when it turns cloudy)
  
• Use on a slow speed, not exceeding 10,000 RPM
  
• Use at low pressure , let the weight of the rotary tool do the work

To get the best from our diamond tipped drill bits, please ensure you read through the Tutorials section on our blog before attempting to use our drills for the first time. Here you will find tips and video footage on how to drill glass, how to drill gemstones, how to drill bottles, how to drill pebbles and how to drill sea glass. There are also helpful hints on the correct speeds and pressure to be used.

You might also like to read our article: 12 Things You Should Know about Diamond Drill Bits

What is a Core Drill?

Our diamond core drills are designed to drill holes in very hard materials and they do this by removing a cylinder of the material. 

When drilling, the core drill bit enables water or lubricant to swirl up inside the core, preventing overheating. Overheating can cause your material to crack or break and will shorten the life of the drill bit.

Many of our customers use our core drill bits to achieve a core rather than to drill a hole. We can't guarantee the precision with which you might achieve the perfect core but many have done so with success.

From time to time the debris may become stuck in the core of the drill bit. If this happens it will often become dislodged when you begin drilling your next hole. 

Alternatively, use a wire brush to clean out the core of the diamond drill bit. 

To prevent your diamond core drills from clogging, drill in and out (up and down) as you drill to dislodge the debris. This will prevent the debris from being pushed up the core of the diamond drill bit.

If you are new to these diamond drill bits then our Infographic 'How to Drill Through Glass' has easy-to-follow steps. 

"I work in the Dept. of Facilities at the Natural History Museum and operate electron microscopes and electron microprobes. The material we analyse are usually rocks and we use the small core drills as well as 5mm, 26mm, 30mm  and other sizes to cut cores" - John Spratt. Natural History Museum, London

"I use the diamond core drills on glass about 1mm-3mm thick and can normally drill between 200 and 300 hundred holes. The best ever result was 450 holes with one drill bit (impressive) I use slow speeds, always gently pumping up and down and drill constantly under water" - Ulrich Braunbeck"

Disclaimer. Using rotary tools near water has never been, to the best of our knowledge, endorsed by any of the rotary tool manufacturers. If you do choose to drill near water or with attachments under water connected to your drill then you do so at your own risk. Please be aware that mixing electricity and water can be very dangerous.