Ceramic Drill Bit - Hawera Power Ceramics, Ø5 mm, Hex Shank, 266444

Hawera Power Ceramics Tile Drill Bit, Ø5 mm, Hex Shank, 266444

Hawera Power Ceramics 266444 is a ceramic drill bit of Ø5 mm with a carbide tip and a 1/4 inch hex shank. It is made for ceramic tile, wall tile, porcelain stoneware and other hard ceramic materials.

Why ceramics need their own bit

The glaze on a tile is harder and more brittle than the ceramic beneath it. An ordinary masonry bit has a wide, blunt tip - it does not cut the glaze but presses until it cracks, breaking a piece out around the hole. A ceramic bit has a sharp spear point that bites into the glaze from the first moment and cuts rather than shatters.

No hammer

This is the rule broken most often: in tile you work on rotation only. Hammer action applies to the glaze exactly the load it cannot take - the result is a star-shaped crack around the hole that shows for good. If the machine has no way to switch hammering off, use an ordinary drill.

Starting the hole

A smooth glaze is slippery and the bit wanders on first contact, leaving a scratch. The two reliable methods are tape over the spot to give grip, or starting at an angle and gradually righting the drill once the point has bitten.

Cooling

Ceramic carries no heat away. Drilling dry, the tip reaches a temperature at which carbide loses its hardness within seconds. Work at low speed, with light pressure and water or a wet sponge at the spot. A bit that has turned blue no longer cuts.

The hex shank

The shank is a 1/4 inch hex - the same fitting as a screwdriver bit. That lets the drill go into a quick-change holder or straight into a driver, rather than only a chuck. At Ø5 mm that is practical: swapping between drill and bit takes one movement.

Porcelain stoneware is another matter

In porcelain stoneware the material is dense right through rather than only at the surface. Drilling is slow for the whole depth and cooling matters more still - this is the material that eats the most bits.

Technical specifications

Questions and Answers