old twist bits compared to new bits ?

[peacemaker]

so where i tap now is a good friend and he is who taught me to sugar but this year i picked up a new 5/16 bit platnium type i usaul use a auger bit in my screw gun for my tap line taps and a hand brace and bit for my buckets ... when i showed him the new bit he was giving me a hard time about it so i need some fuel for my argument since i havent really researched much about the difference and cant hold my ground about it ...

[peacemaker]

any one have any help

[Dave Y]

What is his complaint with the new bits?

[Fred Henderson]

Sometimes its hard to teach an old dog new tricks. There is a lot of research that goes into what we use in the maple industry. My self I use a ship auger with a wood block as a depth stop which lets the auger bottom out when it hits the bark. Thereby pulling all the chips out. Even some very old sugar makers around here never heard of that trick.

[peacemaker]

thinks there no good only way to tap is hand brace and auger bit to him

[Fred Henderson]

Well let him have all the fun of doing 500 or so with a brace.

[gmcooper]

Lets see if I remember all of it but here goes. The new style tapping bits are made to cut a very clean hole on all surfaces of the tap hole. If you look at the wood grain in a hole some is cut in a cross cut (top and bottom) and some is more a rip cut (sides). The new bits are sharper on the entire twist to help prevent "mashing " of the wood fibers. The twist is supposed to be slightly different to clear the wood out faster. I also think the angle on the point of the bit is different and do not use your Drill Dr. to sharpen them as it will change the bevel.What ever bit you use be sure it is sharp. The best tap holes are done with one plunge in and out. The more reaming done to get the hole deep enough the more damage to the wood fibers thus slowing down sap flow.

Peacemaker, show the old timer how your new bit works and let him keep up with a dull auger bit and brace. Help him out by filling down the self feed threads so he won't be taking to big of a bite. LOL

[peacemaker]

whats funny is he is younger then me lol just set in his ways

[ennismaple]

At around the same time the brace & bit went the way of the dodo bird our fathers and grandfathers thought DDT was a good thing. Old fashioned doesn`t always mean better. A lot of research has gone into the developments in maple over the past decade. I don`t understand all the science behind everything but I do know a bunch of really smart people have put enough time and money into developing better products for us that I`m willing to embrace new things as long as its not change for change`s sake.

[802maple]

Don't run the old timer down because he believes in his ways, I would bet that if you tapped a bucket with bit brace and "sharp" drill bit you wouldn't find any difference. My father and uncle when I was a youngster would tap our 2500 buckets in 2 days and we made just as much syrup then as we did when we got all of the modern tappers and such. We have just come so use to pulling a trigger that not many of us would ever think about using a auger and bit. A person that knows how to keep a bit sharp and the proper use of auger would surprise you folks. We would have 2 of us following the one that was drilling, one would be driving the spouts and the other one would be hanging the bucket and cover and if we missed a stroke we would get way behind and not be able to find the hole. The major reason that there are changes in the bit is not the production of the sap it is to make a bit that works best in the tool we use today. A auger type bit in a drill will burn the hole and seal it of when used in a high speed drill.

[Fred Henderson]

Is a gas powered Tanaka considered a high speed drill?

[802maple]

I would say not, but the majority of sugarmakers don't even use them any longer. I realize some do as I believe you do but most sugarmakers you cordless drill and yes they are high speed.

[ibby458]

I have an Amish friend that taps 2500 with a brace and bit. (Several of them, actually) He can tap out in 2 days with one other helper drilling and several kids hanging the buckets.

It must be working for him. He just bought a 5x16 Max Flue with preheater, and paid cash.