This bit solved my problem and was carefully chosen for the job, it performed nicely but it did not make a very hard job into an easy job.This thing bored into maple ends and through fir timbers around 24 times and somehow made it through the job alive.

I used the 1-1/16" Forstner bit to sink 1" dowl pins into wood; I am joining a cut wood round from a redwood tree to 18" legs for a side table. If I had used a 1" bit, as two hardware stores suggested, the dowl would have to be forced into the hole, and it would be a dry joint as the glue would be squeezed out.

A basic bit, but larger than the regular ones from the big box store. I had a DIY project, and this cut some nice clean holes. I have to admit that you might want to start with a smaller bit and bore out the first half if possible. It may very well be able to chuck through all 2 inches of a material, however you might need to either be drilling through a fairly thin piece of stock, or have a powerful drill press. I was drilling through 3 kinds of laminated hardwoods, so chose to be careful, and go slowly, not to chance messing up the project. The end result was flawless, clean drilled circles. Please note that it does leave the little conical point/spike from the bit in the bottom, this isn't a surfacing bit..

I liked the product because the price was reasonable and 1-1/16 bit was difficult to find and Lowe’s and Home Depot wanted nearly $50.00 which is ridiculous. The cut quality was perfect for the pepper grinder I made.

I needed to countersink a lag bolt but didn't have a set of Forstner bits. This was the size I needed, and did the job great.

Cuts like a scalpel

I had to cut clean holes into 4 x 6 treated timber for landscaping. I experimented with a continuous edge Forstner bit and it didn’t make it through one cut before dulling. I did a little research on Forstner bits and found that the sawtooth would be better to use for this purpose. I purchased this bit based on the reviews and it worked superbly. It cut all eight holes as I needed and will still cut more. I made a special effort to come back and do this review. I am very pleased with this item.

It works as required.

It came quickly and worked awesome.

Works great

I purchased this bit to countersink the underside of an American black cherry butcher block countertop (janka hardness rating 950) at the faucet holes. I made three cuts 3/4" deep, and the bit performed extremely well. I started cutting counterclockwise to score the face and then proceeded to make the clockwise cut. The bit cut smoothly with no tear-out, burning, wobbling, or other issues I expected since the bit is cheaper in price. The cutting action wasn't too aggressive, which was nice since I was doing more precision work than boring through framing lumber. The bottom of the bores finished nicely. After making the three cuts, I find no visual sign that the bit has dulled, overheated, etc.Cons: The only issue I had was the wood slats inside the storage box that the bit rests on were broken, but a little wood glue fixed that. I was surprised it came in a wooden storage box to begin with.Conclusion: If this bit can cut that smoothly and cleanly through American black cherry, I think it should do well and last long in softwoods--especially if you're using it to bore through Doug fir or larch.

Well even though this is far from being a 4 star forstner bit. I gave it 4 stars and I will explain whyI purchased this bit to install my lee valley front vise. The vise installation called for 2 5/16 diameter hole at 9/16 deep. It is a really odd size hole and the fact that it is just a recessed hole and not a through hole makes it even more of a challenge. The reason being is because Steelex is the only company that makes a forstner bit this size. The only other option is using a 2 5/16 hole saw but those are for through cuts. So with the hole saw you would have to drill a hole in a piece of wood with the hole saw and use that cut as a template for a top bearing flush trim router bit and plunge cut a 9/16 deep hole into the wood that you need. This is time consuming and just ends up costing to much money for drilling to recessed holes. Which was the way I was going to go at first until I came across this steelex bit.Now the reason I gave this bit 4 stars is because this is the only forstner bit of this size on the market. So when I found the bit it was like looking at a premium steak dinner after I had been stuck on a deserted island for a month, which to me deserves 4 stars right off the bat. Now the bit quality wise is not worth 4 stars. Its a 3 star bit at best, because it gets the job done. Nothing like the many Freud forstner bits I already own. The bit is not very sharp and requires a significant amount of pressure to cut and when it does cut it leave a fairly rough hole with tear out on the top. Even though it take a fair amount of pressure to cut you have to be careful not to use to much pressure because then it will cause even more tear out. The biggest upside is that even with the saw teeth on the bit it cuts a flat bottom. With that being said. This is not a bit that you are going to buy and use on a regular basis. It's like an item you purchase at harbor frieght. You buy it to use one time and you toss it or you stick it in some dark dusty corner of your shop in the misc box.I am sure I am not the only one that has run into this problem with the lee valley vise. I know lots of people buy it because its a great vise at a fair price. This a great one time bit to use for installing a front vice on a bench that serves purely to be function and not pretty. Now if you are one of those people that are spending 2500 bucks to build a solid maple bench that is more pretty than it is functional then you don't want to use this bit. Then again out of all the work benches I have built and used I have never understood why people spend so much money on building a workbench.First of all in a year it is going be all dented and chewed up like any other work bench unless you are just one of those people that built it because you could and never use it. Second a torsion style work bench is just as stable as a solid top work bench without the price and precision that has to go into laminating it, milling it, and flattening it. There is a common misconception about torsion box style benches which makes people think they need a solid top bench. Woodcrafting, like chiseling and planing require a perfectly flat service. A very heavy surface so that it does not move and a robust surface so that the vibrations are minimized. You get all of that and more with a torsion style bench. Torsion box benches are extremely heavy. I usually frame my benches with 2x4 then make the grid with with plywood or MDF. Trust me a 2x4 framed bench with plywood grid and a sheet of plywood or mdf on the bottom and on the top is no lightweight and if you want to make it more robust you can simply make less the amount of spacing in the grid or add another sheet of plywood to the top. MDF for the most part always even and flat. So as long as you built your frame and grid evenly flat then the MDF top is going to be even and flat. Plywood can sometimes have bow or twist but that usually works itself out when you glue and nail down the plywood top to the frame and grid. Its much cheaper. You are talking about a torsion box top costing maybe 200 bucks versus a solid maple top costing you 1200 bucks. Another big plus to torsion box style bench is that you can put a sacrificial piece of hardboard on top of it which costs like 10 bucks for a 4'x8' sheet and simply change it out when ever it gets beat up.