The Ultimate Guide For Dremel Bits – All Dremel bits explained

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So, you bought yourself a Dremel. And since Dremels almost has unlimited uses it can be confusing to know what bit does what. At least I was confused when I first bought mine. I used grinding bits for woodcarving and didn’t even know how to lock the bit properly into place. At one point the bit came shooting out of the Dremel at me because I didn’t secure it properly.

Dremel bits can be used for grinding, polishing, cutting, wood carving, engraving, sanding, cleaning, grout removal, sharpening, routing, drilling, and much more. You can even make your own Dremel Bits.

All Official Dremel Bits are identified by a unique number. So I will add an # followed by a number referring to the bit throughout the article. This makes it easier for you to search up and find out more about the bit I am talking about.

If you want to learn more about the bit just google “Dremel + number”.But let us end the confusion of Dremel bits. So you know what you should use for your next project.

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The Collet For Your Dremel

The Collet is a tiny metal thingy that sits underneath the nut at the front of your Dremel or rotary tool. The job of the collet is to tighten around the bit and secure it in place. Some bits have different shank sizes which means that you sometimes have to change the Collet depending on the shank size of the bit.

The most common size for a Collet on a Dremel and rotary tool is 1/8″ ( 3.2mm) but Collets are also found in sizes 1/32″, 1/16″, and 3/32″.So if your bit keeps falling out of your Dremel or it won’t fit inside, you might need to change the collet to make it tighter or free up some space.

If you get tired of changing collets all the time there is an alternative. The Dremel Quick Change Chuck makes it easier and quicker to change different types of Dremel bits.

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Sanding Bits for Dremel

The Sanding bit is the bit I use the most for my Dremel. Sanding bits comes in many different sizes and shapes and can be used on most materials. The Sanding drum is the most commonly used sanding bit. Sanding drums have inexpensive removable sanding bands that can be switched out when they are worn out.

You can get sanding drums in many different sizes, but I find it useful to have one small #431 ( 1/4″ or 6,4mm ) and a large one large #432 ( 1/2″ or 13mm). A great tip is to buy a bunch of cheap Sanding drums and Sanding bands on Amazon, they wear out quicker than the higher quality ones but you will always have a backup to change to.

Another Sanding Bit is the sanding disc #411, the sanding disc is attached to a Mandrel #402 This is a flat sanding disc that can be used for sanding down surfaces and even sharpening knives. I find this bit less useful than the sanding drums. But it can still be useful depending on your needs.

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Cleaning/Polishing Bits For Dremel

There are several cleaning and polishing bits for the Dremel. They come in ranges from course metal brushes to soft polishing pads.

The Flat Bristle Brush #403 and The Cones Bristle Brush #404 are great for cleaning and polishing precious metals like silverware and deburring metal edges. It does the job for most metals and can also be used with a polishing compound. The design also makes it useful for getting into grooves and cracks.

The Carbon Steel Brush #428 is a rough brush designed to remove rust and clean up tough surfaces. When using the Carbon Steel Brush it will leave a matt finish that will have to be worked with finer brushes if you want to make the surface shiny. This brush is for those hard to get rid of spots.

For those smooth polishing finishes, Dremel has provided us a bunch of different polishing wheels and pads. I will group these together since it is only the shape that divides them. The Felt Polishing Wheel #414, Polishing Point #422, and Polishing Wheel #429 are great for use on metals to get a shiny and smooth finish. They are attached to a Mandrel #401 and easily removed and changed.

For smooth polishing, you will usually use a polishing compound. The polishing compound is in the center of the picture above.

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Engraving Bits For Dremel

Engraving is another great use for the Dremel. When engraving we need strong and durable bits that cut and etch into hard materials.

Diamond bits are used to engrave glass, metal, and stone. Carbide burrs are used to engrave and work with metal. The most used bits for engraving are diamond bits. They are durable, can cut into hard materials, and are actually pretty cheap.

Dremel has “some” official diamond bits that are designed for engravings like the #105 and #107 diamond bit. But I would recommend buying some off-brand diamond bit sets of Amazon when starting engraving with a Dremel. There are so many more choices there.

Diamonds bits come in all different sizes, shapes, and grits. Make sure you choose the right one for your project.

Carbide burrs can also be used for engraving. These are more heavy-duty than the diamond bits and are mostly used for engraving in metals and working with metals. Carbide burrs are highly durable and can be bought fairly cheap on amazon.

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Cutting Bits for Dremel

Dremel has its own cutting discs for cutting metal, wood, and plastic. Always wear eye protection when cutting with a Dremel.

For Cutting Plastic we use the Plastic Cut-off Wheel #SC476. This is a great and durable bit for cutting plastic and is used with a Mandrel #SC402.

For cutting metal, there is a couple of options. We can use the low-quality Cutting Discs #409 #420 #540 for the Dremel. The low-quality cutting discs are used with Mandrel #402 and break easily.

I recommend using the Fiberglass Reinforced Cut-Off Wheels #426 #SC456 which are much more durable, safer, and simpler to use.

For cutting wood we use the Wood Cutting Wheel #SC544. This is a great carbide wheel that can be used for small cuts in wood.

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Grinding/Sharpening Bits For Dremel

Dremel has a huge range of sharpening grinding wheels and bits. These can be used for sharpening things like knives, chainsaw blades, scissors, and anything that needs to stay sharp. The grinding wheels come in all different shapes, sizes, and grit. I rarely use these since I have a grinding block, but they can be useful.

Sometimes you see this little strange block among your bits. This is a dressing stone for your grinding bits. The dressing stone is used to bring new life to worn-out grinding and sharpening bits. When the bits get clogged up with metal debris or become uneven just use the dressing stone and they will be as good as new.

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Drilling Bits for Dremel

The drilling bits for a Dremel are used to make small holes. Dremels are really great for using small drills and making wholes that require precision. But Dremels can not use big drills because it does not have the power required and the collet is not big enough. The #628 Dremel Drill Set is great to have in your toolkit for your Dremel. But keep in mind that you will have to change collet whenever you change a drill bit. That is unless you have the Dremel Quick Change Chuck.

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Routing Bits for Dremel

You can do some simple routing with a Dremel. The Routing Bits are uniquely designed to do routing and will most of the time be used for that. A great routing bit kit to get when starting is the Dremel 7 Piece Routing Bit Set #660. Dremel routing bits will be used with the Dremel Plunge Router Attachment #335 or the Dremel Shaper and Router Table #231.

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Mandrel Bits for Dremel

There are some bits for the Dremel that are just used for securing materials that wear out frequently and need to be changed out, like sanding bands and polishing pads. These intermediary parts are called mandrels. The #401 mandrel is mainly used to secure polishing pads. The #402 mandrel is mainly used to hold cut-off wheels and flat sanding discs. The #SC402 mandrel is mainly used to hold cut-off wheels. The #407 and #430 is used to hold Sanding Bands Ex. #431

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Best Wood Carving Bits For a Dremel

Wood carving is what I usually use my Dremel for. To add to the list I will add some of the best wood carving bits that are used for wood carving.

Kutzall Bits and Burrs are one of the best, if not the best bits on the market for wood carving with a Dremel. Kutzall bits are designed to last longer, cut wood fast, and require less cleaning than other burrs. Kutzall bits come in all shapes and sizes and are a must-have for anyone doing woodcarving with a Dremel. The bits can be quite expensive compared to other cheaper sets but they are definitely worth the investment. Here’s a link to Kutzall’s Website and their woodcarving bits.

Sanding Bits are surprisingly great for small wood carving projects like pendants and ornaments. You can use a coarse sanding band for shaping and to remove a lot of material quickly or you could use a fine-grit sanding band to clean up your wood carving and make it beautiful. I love sanding bands for wood carving because of their versatility and simpleness. Sanding bands are cheap and are simple to use.

The only downside with using sanding bands for woodcarving is that you become very bound to the shape of the sanding drum and have to make your object follow the shape of the drum.

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Conclusion

Okay. So I know I said I was going to explain “ALL” Dremel Bits. But there is an unlimited amount of bits for the Dremel out there so that would be impossible. But I have provided an explanation of the most important categories of bits that are useful to know when getting to know the Dremel. So I hope you learned something from this article.

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