Step Drill Bits 2020 Test: Which Brand Wins?
In our 2020 test we compared 13 step drill bits options head to head. DeWalt came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
DeWalt
Price shown in test: $42.99
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Temo
Price shown in test: $29.99
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Temo
Price shown in test: $29.99
Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The quick take
The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.
“DeWalt is definitely the best bit we've tested in my opinion.”
The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.
Mild steel (1/4 inch) drilling time
- 1DeWalt8 seconds
fastest overall including its own twist drill baseline
- 2Temo11 seconds
nearly matching the DeWalt twist drill baseline
- 3Bosch Turbo14 seconds
- 4Hercules17 seconds
- 5Makita10 seconds2nd
- 6Milwaukee Shockwave10 seconds
tied with Makita
- 7Lennox VB814 seconds
- 8Irwin Unibit30 seconds
single flute design held it back
- 9Diablo18 seconds
- 10Klein34 seconds
best of the first four brands tested chronologically at that point
- 11Bauer
no exact time given; described as more than twice as long as the Harbor Freight Drill Master's 51 seconds, and separately described in a recap as roughly 10 times longer than the fastest brand's time. These two approximations do not fully agree with each other and the transcript never states an exact figure, so both are recorded rather than one being guessed.
- 12Neiko62 seconds
slower than the cheaper Harbor Freight Drill Master despite a smaller 3/16 inch size advantage
- 13Harbor Freight Drill Master51 seconds
Medium hardness steel (1/8 inch) first step break through time
- 1DeWalt8 seconds
fastest of all seven finalists
- 2Temo13 seconds
tied with Bosch Turbo
- 3Bosch Turbo13 seconds
tied with Temo
- 4Hercules18 seconds
stalled at 7/16 inch and did not complete the full 7/8 inch bore
- 5Makita17 seconds
bogged down at 11/16 inch and did not complete the full 7/8 inch bore
- 6Milwaukee Shockwave23 seconds
got hung up at 26 seconds and did not complete the full 7/8 inch bore despite several release attempts
- 7Lennox VB834 seconds
slowest of the seven finalists, stalled at 1/2 inch and did not complete the full 7/8 inch bore
- 8Irwin Unibit
did not penetrate, eliminated before the armor plating round
- 9Diablo
stalled out, did not penetrate, eliminated before the armor plating round
- 10Klein
did not penetrate, eliminated before the armor plating round
- 11Bauer
did not penetrate, eliminated before the armor plating round
- 12Neiko
did not penetrate, eliminated before the armor plating round
- 13Harbor Freight Drill Master
did not penetrate, eliminated before the armor plating round
AR400 armor plating drilling time
- 1DeWalt20 seconds
on the first pass, fastest of all; retested a second time right next to the Milwaukee at 21 to 22 seconds, confirming the performance
- 2Temo26 seconds
a close second to DeWalt, only minor abrasions on the chisel and leading edge
- 3Bosch Turbo41 seconds
- 4Hercules44 seconds
slowest of the four brands that completed the armor plating test; caused notable wear, flattening the chisel and dulling the leading edge
- 5Makita
did not drill through, narrator calls the geometry an unfair test for this bit but notes it almost made it through with very little wear to the leading edge and flutes
- 6Milwaukee Shockwave
did not drill through; heavy wear to the chisel but the leading edge and flutes remained in good condition
- 7Lennox VB8
too hard for this bit, did not drill through; chisel completely destroyed
- 8Irwin Unibitnot tested
- 9Diablonot tested
- 10Kleinnot tested
- 11Bauernot tested
- 12Neikonot tested
- 13Harbor Freight Drill Masternot tested
Medium hardness steel (1/8 inch) full 7/8 inch bore time
- 1DeWalt15 seconds
fastest of the three brands that completed the full bore
- 2Temo23 seconds
- 3Bosch Turbo25 seconds
- 4Herculesnot tested
- 5Makitanot tested
- 6Milwaukee Shockwavenot tested
- 7Lennox VB8not tested
- 8Irwin Unibitnot tested
- 9Diablonot tested
- 10Kleinnot tested
- 11Bauernot tested
- 12Neikonot tested
- 13Harbor Freight Drill Masternot tested
How it was tested
- mild steel (1/4 inch) drilling time versus a DeWalt twist drill baseline
- medium hardness steel (1/8 inch) first step break through time
- medium hardness steel (1/8 inch) full 7/8 inch bore time for brands that advanced
- AR400 armor plating drilling time for the top 7 surviving brands, versus a Bosch 7/32 twist drill baseline
“DeWalt is definitely the best bit we've tested in my opinion.”
Brand head-to-head scoreboards featuring this test
Data notes and caveats
Thirteen step drill bits tested across three escalating tests (mild steel, medium hardness bed frame steel, AR400 armor plating), with only 7 brands (Hercules, Temo, Makita, Bosch Turbo, DeWalt, Lennox, Milwaukee) advancing to the armor plating round; the other 6 (Harbor Freight Drill Master, Neiko, Bauer, Klein, Irwin, Diablo) were eliminated for failing to fully penetrate the medium hardness steel. The transcript spells Temo as Teemo throughout; resolved to Temo per the description. The DeWalt's medium hardness steel numbers were reconciled using the video's own closing recap sentences: an early mention of DeWalt breaking through in 15 seconds actually matches the later recap's full 7/8 inch bore time (15 seconds), while the true first step break through time is 8 seconds per a separate recap sentence that lists all seven finalists' first step times together (DeWalt 8, Temo and Bosch tied at 13, Makita 17, Hercules 18, Milwaukee 23, Lennox 34). Bauer's mild steel time is never stated exactly; two different approximations are given in the transcript (more than twice the Drill Master's 51 seconds, and separately about 10 times the fastest brand's time) and both are preserved rather than resolving to one number. Narrator declares DeWalt the winner outright and frames Temo as a close, cheaper runner up, which doubles as the closest thing to a budget or value pick in this video.
