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Bosch 34 Piece X-Line Classic Drill and Screwdriver Bit Set
by blissman70
I have many tools as I tend to do a bit of DIY and finding the right tools for the job is a bit of a job in itself.
Over the years I have bought, been given or, for some reason, just simply come across several tools, including quite a few drills, both electric and battery operated ones, so finding some good quality drill bits for ... these drills can be a bit of what is called 'hit and miss'.
I have bought many types of drill bits, from single masonry from a rather large DIY store, to packs of bits from my local store, with some being good quality whilst others being as useful as, well, as a chocolate fireguard, or even an ashtray on a motorbike.
In the passed I went on the theory that a good quality drill bit could only be found if it had a good quality name embedded onto it, but I've come to realise that that is not the case as I've used some very well known names and found them as sturdy as a jelly and as strong as a day old kitten. Whilst getting hold of some 'cheap' bits which I'm still using now as they have stood the test of time, (although I have had to sharpen a few of them).
Anyway, sometimes it's cheaper to buy in bulk, sort of: buying these bits in the form of sets, with some of these sets having more than drill bits in them, but it still works out cheaper than buying the bits separately... are you with me?
And it is one certain drill bit set that I bought a while back and went about using it in the hope of finding happiness whilst drilling and screwing my way through the house.
This particular bit set even had a very well known name on it which made me feel that it would last more time than some bits I've bought, with this brand being Bosch who have a rather good reputation for such things as DIY tools and accessories. This particular set being called the Bosch 2607010608 34-Piece X-Line Classic Drill and Screwdriver Bit Set, which, from with in the name, is a bit set containing 34 pieces, and not just drill bits either.
So what is in this set then..?
Well, you get a few things, such as
5 x wood drill bits from 4mm to 8mm
4 x masonry drill bits from 5mm to 8mm
4 x metal drill bits from 2mm to 5mm
9 x screw driver bits, cross and flat heads
3 x socket heads with attachment
4 x torx bits
1 x countersink bit
1 x extension attachment for screw driver bits.
All these bits and bobs fit inside a rather fetching green coloured plastic case, which is about 170mm long by 165mm high and only 45mm deep, weighing in at a lightweight half a kilo. You can actually see the bits and bobs inside the case through an X shaped little plastic window on the lid, which is where the X in the name comes from.
The case locks firmly shut with a large and quite sturdy orange plastic catch making the things inside safe and sound with no fear of anything falling out.
When you open the lid you are presented with the bits inside, which all fit into there own little special places around the box, with the drill bits being in the bottom section, together with the socket heads. Then in the top section there are the screw driver bits, extension bar and countersink bit. With each piece either slotting into its corresponding hole or snapped into the firm plastic mould of the case itself.
My opinion...
I've got a bit of a mixed feeling about this bit set, mainly due to the fact that the drills bits did what they were supposed to do whilst the screwdriver bits seemed to last as long as a politicians promise.
The socket bits are, well, socket head, even if there's only a few of them, but, if you're like me, you'll have many other socket heads knocking about so these will just add to that collection.
Then there's the counter sink bit which is designed to help sink those counter sunk screw heads into place so that the heads fit flush on the surface. This little 'strange' looking piece of metal, with its sharp edges on the sides of the chunk of metal.
As I said, I am quite happy with the bits and have used them several times since buying this set.
The masonry bits drill easily into brickwork without too much trouble, although it's nice to have a good drill to punch the things in. although I do have to say that the little red colouring on the ends disappears the first time you drill into anything, but the small 'straight' tips last quite some time. This is a bonus as I've used some masonry bits that have either turned black from over heating, just after glowing red and smoking like a man on his way to a court appearance. Others I've used have simply given up and snapped, making drilling through bricks more dangerous than walking through a field full of cowpats on a rainy day, but these bits in this set seem to be lasting quite well indeed.
As for the wood bits, well these are as good as they should be, making drilling through wood as easy as buttering bread, with the little sharp 'knobbles' on the end seeming to stand the test of time and managing to stay as sharp 'knobbles' instead of blobs of mush. These little sharp 'knobbles' are pretty handy when you want to mark the wood before drilling through so it's nice to have them staying sharp.
Then there's the other bits, for metal, which have done a fair few round with such metal as aluminium, steel, copper and others without any trouble at all, managing to come out of the other end with their pride intact.
So we're now onto the other bits in the box, which I'll tell you about the good ones first, such as the counter sink bit, which, if used properly, can give a nice hole in your wood so that the countersunk screw head drops into it and remains below the surface of your works, allowing you to maybe cover the head with filler to hide the entire thing.
The three socket pieces are well made and are the more popular sizes that you may use, which is very useful indeed, and with the extension bar to connect them to your drill they stay in place and can unbolt/bolt even the most stubborn of nuts.
Now here's the downside to this set... the screwdriver bits, which, for me, have been more trouble than they're worth, causing me to either laugh or cry.
Let me explain.
The 'straight' ends snap at the slightest resistance, and so do the 'cross' bits, which makes screwing a real problem when pieces of the bits you're using stay embedded in the screw heads, leaving you with what I can only say is a piece of sharp metal in the end of your drill.
The Torx bits are just as bad, although I've not used all of these as yet, but the ones I have used have failed within a few turns so I'm guessing the rest are going to break if I sneeze to hard near them.
It just seems that these bits are simply made of some bad material, making them look good but about as reliable as a weatherman's prediction, which, for me, has given Bosch a bit of a bad name as they usually make strong, sturdy and very reliable things.
But them again, as it is the drill bits I was wanting, and these in this set are nice and strong, I'm not going to stop using Bosch items just because of a few 'dodgy' screwdriver bits.
As for the box itself, this is pretty sturdy and the bits fit snugly into place, either straight into the pre-moulded sections or into the removable slots that are housed with-in.
There's no carrying handle for this but as it's nice and compact carrying it shouldn't be a problem at all.
So, what's the price of this set of drill accessories..?
This green box of bits sells for around the £10.00 mark, which, for the drill bits alone, is well worth the money indeed, even if the screwdriver bits crack under the slightest bit of pressure.
Is it worth buying?
Yes, for the drill bits alone as it seems to be cheaper than buying them separately. But if you're after the screwdriver bits then go elsewhere as these aren't very strong and will last you about one turn before crumbling into pieces.
In all, a nice set at a good price with a name you can trust... what more can I say?
NOTE:
There are other sets in this range offering different amounts of bits in the set, such as a 50 piece, a 70 piece and even a 100 piece set, which I'm guessing contains the same items only a few more of each ones.
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Bosch 34 Piece X-Line Classic Drill and Screwdriver Bit Set
by JohnJoeSmith
As your days of DIY progress and you graduate to hanging doors or installing a wooden floor you'll quickly come to realise the importance of genuine tools, and few tools are more essential than a good set of drill bits and screwdriver heads.
Bosch is a company which has been producing quality woodworking, metalworking and ... generic DIY equipment for as long as any of us can remember. Bosch tends to produce a good quality piece at a reasonable price, and while this may sound like the dream combination it does come with a caveat. If you plan on doing a large number of projects or work with tougher materials such as dense hardwoods you would be better suited to buying something from the Craftsman or Draper Pro ranges or another of the higher end companies.
This set is a good all round package for the intermediate DIY enthusiast. The box contains 34 individual pieces, a number which is completely unintelligible unless you know what bits make up the list!
5 x wood drill bits 4-8 mm
These bits are you standard wood variety with a locater pin on the top, allowing for less slippage on the work surface. Few DIY projects require you to drill anything larger than 10mm in wood and so up to 8mm is plenty to start with. Quality is of the usual Bosch standard here and all bits have held up to being wiggled around to widen holes and being unceremoniously thrown to the ground in the middle of jobs.
5 x HSS metal drill bits 2-5 mm
Possibly the weakest of the bunch. Drilling metal is a specialist task and these bits are not really suited to anything harder than mild steel or greater than 1mm thick. Chances are however that if you're buying this set you're not drilling big holes in I-Beams!
5 x masonry drill bits 5-8 mm
Okay set, they feel a bit flimsy and I'd fear for them in my large DeWalt drill. They're also not the right shape for my SDS drill so I don't use them. They have stirred paint on occasion and worked out just fine.
3 x socket wrenches 7/8/10 mm
1 x adapter for socket wrench
I wonder about the man who uses these to tighten nuts. You couldn't put much torque through the skinny necks without shearing them off, and why would you be torquing anything with a drill? Buy a ratchet set instead. I guess that they could be useful for flatpack furniture that had a lot of nuts in its construction?
1 x magnetic universal holder
Every man, woman and child should own one of these by law. These little lifesavers pop into your drill chuck at one end and have a hexagonal holder at the other. If you were unaware, nowadays every drill bit accessory comes with a hexagonal end, including the screwdriver bits in this set. This allows you to use parts from other companies with your drill without having to buy another holder. And it's magnetic, allowing you to work from all angles without dropping that tiny screwdriver bit.
1 x countersink bit
I already own a considerably better, albeit more expensive version of this so I've only used it once or twice. It's good enough for day to day use in joinery but keep it away from your furniture projects, it leaves a rather jagged finish which would be a real pain to sand out.
12 screwdriver bits; Philipshead, Pozidrive, Straight and T (3 Sizes each, 4T's)
All except for the "T" set regularly get use around my house and have stood up well to the task so far. As long as you use them with respect and don't jam them into anything and everything you'll be fine. They are made of a good quality metal though and will shear your standard wood screw without so much as a whimper if you press too hard however so take your time with them.
Overall I'm pretty happy with this set, I received it as a gift form the OH for my birthday a while back and have been using it since. I already owned a lot of the equipment from it but it's always nice to have spares and an added bonus is having them all accessible in one location. The storage box is well made and comes in the classic green and red colours of BOSCH. I've dropped the box on my concrete floor more than once and it still closes properly, so I guess you can't get a better, albeit clumsy, recommendation than that!
£10.99 on Amazon at the minute; a bargain!
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