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Forstner bit set: what to check before you pay

Updated: 23 October 2026

You are looking at a sixteen-piece box, and the title, the specification table and the star rating are not describing the same cutter. A Forstner bit set is worth buying only after the diameter you need is in the list, the shank will grip in your chuck, and the material line you trust is the table rather than the marketing sentence. Prices and the twelve amazon.co.uk rows sit on the [Forstner bit comparison](/hub/drilling-and-accessories/forstner-bit). The Products Compared editorial team prepared this page on 20 October 2026 from those listings and public UK sources, not from a lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are looking at a sixteen-piece box, and the title, the specification table and the star rating are not describing the same cutter.

Our top picks

IRWIN IRWIN Marples 8-piece Forstner set

Best overall

IRWIN IRWIN Marples 8-piece Forstner set
7.8/10about £57.82
View offer
hsawbit hsawbit 30 mm Forstner bit

Best value

hsawbit hsawbit 30 mm Forstner bit
6.9/10about £9.99
View offer
Aohoo Aohoo 16-piece Forstner set

Rank 3

Aohoo Aohoo 16-piece Forstner set
8.3/10about £15.89
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Match the diameter to the fitting
  2. 2.Read the material line, not only the title
  3. 3.Check the shank and the chuck
  4. 4.Sets, cases, and star counts

Match the diameter to the fitting

Start with the hole, not the piece count. UK concealed-hinge notes usually mean a 35 mm cup, and the depth still comes from the sheet in the packet. That job has its own page on 35 mm Forstner bits. In this comparison, 35 mm is printed on the flintronic six-piece, the Aohoo sixteen-piece, the DTGN two-pack, the hsawbit seven-piece, Hinrichs, Yueqing Zhongji and Nisorpa. IRWIN's largest bit is stated as 1-3/8 in, converted on the listing as 34.9 mm. That is a near-miss on the label, not a second way of writing 35 mm.

Read the material line, not only the title

High-speed steel and alloy steel are the ordinary edges. Carbide counts only when the specification says it. Aohoo's title says tungsten steel, HSS and titanium coated, while the table says alloy steel. flintronic's table says carbide and the finish field says Hss. Yueqing Zhongji's table says high-speed steel and the bullets also say carbon steel. Hinrichs is alloy steel, with no carbide claim to reconcile. IRWIN's material line says Blend. Aohoo's cutting angle is scraped as 6E+1 degrees, a broken number rather than 60 degrees, and its minimum bore is printed as 3.81 mm while the size list starts at 15 mm. Faithfull's 35 mm tungsten-carbide hinge bit is £27.61 including VAT, and it is not an ASIN here.
IRWIN IRWIN Marples 8-piece Forstner set

Testsieger

IRWIN IRWIN Marples 8-piece Forstner set
7.8/10about £57.82
View offer

Check the shank and the chuck

The shank is the part the chuck has to hold. Round shanks appear on the hsawbit bits, flintronic, Hinrichs, Nisorpa and the YUEDAHOMEE 41 mm bit. Hex shanks appear on both DTGN bits. The Cjueiom 42 mm listing disagrees with itself: the table says hex and the bullets say a 9 mm triangular shank. IRWIN states a reduced shank for 3/8 in and larger chucks, and one reviewer said the set did not fit their drill. DTGN says to use a drill press over 35 mm. That choice is on the Forstner bit drill press page. hsawbit also allows a hand drill or a bench press, and it says not an impact driver.

Sets, cases, and star counts

Piece count comes last. Aohoo reviewers describe a separate plastic box for each bit, often unmarked. Hinrichs puts seventeen bits in a wooden case, and a repeated complaint is that the slots do not hold the cutters, sometimes with a duplicate size and a missing one. The hsawbit seven-piece bullets do not name a case, yet the saved reviews mention one. Stars are a weak sorter when the saved texts name another diameter. A surface field that says metal is not a licence to drill steel when the bullets describe wood. No listing here shows a BS-approved Forstner mark, and nothing was drilled in a lab.

Common questions

Do I need a set or one 35 mm bit?
Buy one stated 35 mm bit if that is the only hole, and a set if you will also want 15 mm or 25 mm pockets in the same week. The DTGN two-pack is two 35 mm bits at £17.89. flintronic's six-piece set is £12.39 and already includes 35 mm. A seventeen-piece box is not more accurate. It helps only when the diameters you will chuck are in the lid and present in the slots.
Is carbide the same as high-speed steel?
No. High-speed steel and alloy steel are the ordinary edges. Carbide or a named carbide tip is a different sentence on the listing. If the title says titanium or carbide and the specification says alloy steel or carbon steel, keep the table as the spec row. Do not average the two lines into one material.
What shank fits a cordless drill?
A round or hex shank that your chuck can close on. IRWIN states a 3/8 in or larger chuck. Cjueiom's table says hex and the bullets say a 9 mm triangular shank, so that bit needs a look in the hand. A hex shank does not, by itself, stop a wide cutter wandering.
Why do reviews mention a case when the bullets do not?
The included-components line and the parcel people received are not always the same text. The hsawbit seven-piece bullets omit a case while every saved review mentions one. Hinrichs and Nisorpa do state a wooden case, and reviewers then say the bits rattle. Trust the components line for what is promised, and the reviews for whether the box holds anything.
What should I ignore in the surface-recommendation field?
Ignore a lone metal line when the bullets describe solid wood, plywood, MDF or plastic. That conflict appears on Nisorpa and on the 30 mm hsawbit. DTGN, by contrast, states what not to cut: concrete, steel, ceramic and glass. Follow the explicit ban, and do not promote a dropdown into a steel-drilling claim.

Related pages

Best Forstner bit

Forstner bit

35mm Forstner bit for a concealed cabinet hinge cup

Forstner bit on a drill press or in the hand drill

How to use a Forstner bit without burning the wood

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, last checked on 20 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures on the listings.

  1. HSE: wood dust (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  2. PPE at Work Regulations 1992 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  3. HSE: PUWER overview (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  4. Bosch Professional GB: Forstner bits (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  5. Faithfull: TC 35 mm hinge boring bit (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  6. DIY Doctor: fit a concealed hinge (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  7. Axminster: 16-piece Forstner bit set (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  8. UK Workshop: Forstner bits in hand drills (retrieved 20 October 2026)