So I bought a Drill Sharpener from Aldi

[SteveW]

Guys,

I am pants at sharpening drills so when I spotted a FERREX drill sharpener in Aldi at seventeen quid I bought one. I haven't tried it yet but add my observations below.

The bumf tells me it'll do chisels, small planer blades to 51mm and importantly for me sharpen drills from 3mm to 13mm and spins at 7000 rpm. It uses a couple of plastic jigs to support accurate setup and grinding.

I was a bit disappointed to find that the bit that does the grinding is a simple pressed steel disc with rim coated with grit so maybe a little care needed when using it. The disc seems to be held by a longitudinal nut which could be a collet system given the speed it runs. It has a limited duty cycle of just 8 minutes but I'm likely to need a pee well before then.

The unit comes with a three year warrantly assuming I don't loose the receipt and it doesn't just fade away by then.

It does occur to me that if push comes to shuv it would be very simple to turn up a alloy disc that I can stick a bit of sticky backed abbrasive sheet on. Could just improve the thing.

If you see one of these things feel free to make your own decision. Hope the outline above is of use.

[ilvaporista]

I have had one for about three years. It does what it says it does and is great for simple jobs. Remember what you paid for it and that will tell you the limitations.
You will not get a drill sharpened to cut an exact sized hole. A 6.2mm drill may not be accurate again. But for general sharpening of drills in 1/2mm steps it is fine. I do tend to stone off the edges to avoid snatching.
Flat bladed tools usually need a few rubs on an oilstone to finish.
Screwdrivers can be touched up but it won't take out the bending after screws won't budge!
All in all I find it useful for quick simple things without the need to clear a way to the grinding station which tends to get submerged as it is nearest the door.

[SteveW]

Adrian,

Yep, good points and as you describe is what I want it for. Simply a quick and dirty engine to tart up my cheap drills when I need to and perhaps extend their usefulness a bit.

This thing ain't no Quorn Mk3 Universal Tool & Cutter Grinder but for seventeen quid ...

I keep a quality set of pristine drills for when I need an accurate hole. I clean them up and put them safely away again.