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Drill bit for kindling

Updated: 22 October 2026

You light a stove, and the job is a few dry sticks, not a round of oak. Listings still talk as if the cone will open hardwood. The reviews, where they support anything, support kindling-sized softwood. We used the amazon.co.uk listings in this set and public UK fuel guidance, and did not run a lab test. Updated 20 October 2026. A qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. The cones are on the [firewood drill comparison](/hub/fireplaces-and-stoves/firewood-drill). What to check before you buy is the [firewood drill bit buying guide](/hub/fireplaces-and-stoves/firewood-drill/sub/firewood-drill-buying-guide). A cone or a hatchet is [firewood drill vs axe](/hub/fireplaces-and-stoves/firewood-drill/sub/firewood-drill-vs-axe).

You light a stove, and the job is a few dry sticks, not a round of oak. Listings still talk as if the cone will open hardwood. The reviews, where they support anything, support kindling-sized softwood.

Our top picks

Holy Feather Holy Feather 32 mm and 42 mm set

Best overall

Holy Feather Holy Feather 32 mm and 42 mm set
5.2/10about £9.97
View offer
KATUR KATUR 32 mm firewood drill bit

Rank 2

KATUR KATUR 32 mm firewood drill bit
6.0/10about £16.99
View offer
QWORK QWORK 45 mm and 32 mm drill set

Rank 3

QWORK QWORK 45 mm and 32 mm drill set
3.6/10about £21.80
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Kindling is the small, dry job
  2. 2.32 mm in this set, and the listings that say softwood
  3. 3.Dry enough to burn is a separate question
  4. 4.When a hatchet or a ring is the kinder tool

Kindling is the small, dry job

Kindling here means small, dry sticks that catch before the logs do. This set gives no length in millimetres, so small stays the piece you can brace. An Outdoor Power Equipment Forum thread, not a UK test of these listings, limits cone augers to pieces around 2 inches of softer wood. Treat that as their limit, not a British standard. The Wood Burner starts with a hatchet or a ring splitter. A screw bit is an extra when you already own a drill.

32 mm in this set, and the listings that say softwood

32 mm is the small cone, on Ejoyous and KATUR, and the smaller cone on Saipor, Spetsbst, Holy Feather and QWORK. 50 mm, on Wxeadu and METERXITY, is the large end. QWORK at £21.80, with no reviews on this capture, names dry soft wood such as pine and a drill above 750 W. That watt line is QWORK's, not a rule for every 32 mm row. COMFOLIVING says not to use the cone on large-diameter hardwood. The sequence, once the bit matches, is how to use a firewood drill bit.
Holy Feather Holy Feather 32 mm and 42 mm set

Testsieger

Holy Feather Holy Feather 32 mm and 42 mm set
5.2/10about £9.97
View offer

Dry enough to burn is a separate question

Splitting a stick does not make it legal fuel, and it does not make it dry. In England, GOV.UK says volumes under 2 cubic metres sold for domestic burning must be Ready to Burn, at 20% moisture or less. The mark belongs to wood that is sold. Splitting a damp log does not create it, and the rule is not a ban on burning wood you already own. A cone cannot pull water out of a wet stick. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are not folded into that England sales rule by this sentence.

When a hatchet or a ring is the kinder tool

A hatchet or a ring splitter is the kinder tool when you make kindling often, or when the wood is hardwood. A ring keeps hands off the edge if the piece fits. A cone is safer for a missed swing and worse for a twisting drill. For a few straight, dry softwood offcuts, a 32 mm cone can be the shorter path. For a daily basket, the hatchet or the ring matches the work.

Common questions

Can a firewood drill bit make kindling?
It can, from small, dry, straight softwood, if you brace the piece and the drill does not stall. QWORK names dry soft wood such as pine. A second UK review on Holy Feather limits the bit to softwood. It will not break hardwood rounds into lighting wood. Outdoor comments, not a UK test, keep the same boundary, including a cordless drill struggling on seasoned ash. A short billet can still spin.
Is 32 mm the right cone for sticks?
32 mm is the small cone here, on Ejoyous and KATUR, and as the smaller option on Saipor, Spetsbst, Holy Feather, and QWORK. 50 mm, on Wxeadu and METERXITY, is the large end. For lighting sticks, the small end matches the reviews. QWORK at £21.80 has no reviews in this capture and asks for a drill above 750 W, which is that seller's line. Holy Feather's softwood-only review and WEDAMOO's small logs only note, beside a 2.4 score, matter more than the diameter alone.
Will it turn a large round into kindling in one pass?
No. COMFOLIVING says not to use the cone on large-diameter hardwood, and PATIKIL's method is an edge start rather than one deep drive. A WEDAMOO UK review allows small logs only. One pass that turns an oak round into a basket of sticks is the title claim the reviews do not back. Several bites on a small softwood piece are a slower job, and they stop when the bit binds.
Pine or oak?
Pine, or another dry softwood, is what the sellers and the reviews name. QWORK says dry soft wood such as pine. Holy Feather's second UK review says softwood only. Treat oak in a title as advertising unless the piece is small, dry, and straight, and even then hardwood is a weak reason to start. Seasoned ash already troubled a cordless drill in a non-UK thread. If you have oak rounds, use a hatchet or a ring splitter.
Does split kindling count as Ready to Burn?
Not because you split it. In England, wood sold for domestic burning in volumes under 2 cubic metres must be Ready to Burn, at 20% moisture or less, under GOV.UK guidance. The mark applies to wood that is sold. Cutting a stick in your shed does not print it on. The guidance is not a ban on burning wood you already own. Wet wood you have split is still wet.
Is a ring splitter a better kindling tool?
It often is, when you make sticks often or the wood is awkward. The Wood Burner starts with a hatchet or a ring splitter, gloves, eye protection, and a block, and does not mention a drill cone. A ring keeps hands off the edge. Knotty rounds can still need a maul. A cone avoids the swing and adds a spinning piece. For a few straight, dry softwood offcuts, a 32 mm bit can be enough.
Which listing in this set already admits the small-wood job?
QWORK names dry soft wood such as pine, at £21.80, with no reviews and a seller line above 750 W. Holy Feather's second UK review says softwood only. WEDAMOO is described as all right for small logs only, beside a 2.4 score. COMFOLIVING says not large-diameter hardwood. Those are the admissions. A title that leads with oak is the sentence to read second.

Related pages

Best firewood drill bit

Firewood drill

Firewood drill bit buying guide: shank, cone, wood

How to use a firewood drill bit: edge, then reverse

Firewood drill vs axe: when the cone is the wrong tool

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts were taken from the listings on 19 October 2026.

  1. GOV.UK, selling wood in England (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Woodsure, Ready to Burn (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Air Quality (Domestic Solid Fuels Standards) (England) Regulations 2020 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 22 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. HSE, firewood-processor bulletin (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. HSE, PUWER overview (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Electrical Safety First, drills (retrieved 19 October 2026)