Product Description
The CMT 308.100.12 Dowel Drill - 10 x 30 x 57.5mm Left-Hand is a precision-engineered carbide-tipped boring tool built for dowel hole drilling in furniture manufacturing, cabinet making, and panel processing applications. Designed for left-hand rotation, this short-series dowel drill delivers clean, flat-bottomed blind holes in solid wood, chipboard, MDF, HDF, laminates, and coated panels. With a hardened tungsten carbide (HW) cutting head, PTFE-coated spiral flutes, and negatively ground spurs, it is purpose-built for use in multi-spindle CNC boring machines, CNC boring centers, and panel processing equipment where accuracy and bore quality are critical.
Key Features
- Super-strength steel body with HW (tungsten carbide) cutting head - the carbide tip maintains a sharp cutting edge longer than standard steel, reducing downtime for tool changes in high-volume production environments.
- PTFE coating on the cutter portion (black or orange) - this non-stick surface prevents pitch and glue buildup on the spiral, extending tool service life and keeping cuts cleaner across repetitive boring cycles.
- Precision balanced centre point - centers the drill accurately on entry, preventing walking or misalignment so every hole is positioned exactly where required on the workpiece.
- 2 precision-ground HW cutting edges (Z2) - dual carbide cutting edges distribute cutting load evenly, producing smooth bore walls and consistent hole geometry in chipboard, MDF, hardwood, softwood, and laminated panels.
- 2 negatively ground spurs (V2) - score the material perimeter ahead of the cutting edges, eliminating tearout on the surface face and delivering a clean, sharp hole edge in coated and laminated panels.
- 4 spiral flutes - efficiently evacuate chips and sawdust from the bore, reducing heat buildup and keeping the cutting zone clear for accurate, consistent drilling depth.
- Parallel shank with driving flat and length adjusting screw (10 x 20mm) - provides a secure, repeatable seat in CNC boring spindles and adapters, with the adjusting screw allowing precise projection setting to match machine requirements.
- Left-hand (LH) rotation - matches the spindle direction of left-hand boring positions on multi-spindle machines, ensuring correct chip ejection direction and proper cutting geometry for the assigned spindle station.
- Short series total length of 57.5mm with 30mm cutting height - the compact overall length suits standard spindle-to-spindle pitch configurations on multi-row boring machines without clearance conflicts.
Why This Product
- The negatively ground spurs combined with HW precision-ground cutting edges make this drill a reliable choice for laminated and coated panel work where surface tearout is not acceptable - clean entry and exit are built into the tool geometry.
- Left-hand rotation is a specific machine requirement, not a preference - this drill is built to the correct rotational specification for LH spindle positions, ensuring proper engagement, chip flow, and bore quality on multi-spindle boring equipment.
- The PTFE-coated flutes address a common production problem - resin and adhesive buildup on drill spirals that slows cutting speed and degrades hole quality - keeping the tool performing consistently across long production runs in furniture and cabinet manufacturing.
- The parallel shank with a driving flat and length adjusting screw provides the positive drive and repeatable depth setting that CNC boring centers and multi-spindle machines require for reliable, unattended production drilling.
Specifications
- Manufacturer Part Number: 308.100.12
- Brand: CMT Orange Tools
- Product Type: Dowel Drill
- Diameter: 10mm
- Cutting Height: 30mm
- Total Length: 57.5mm
- Shank: 10 x 20mm parallel shank with driving flat and length adjusting screw
- Number of Flutes: 4
- Number of Cutting Edges: 2 (Z2)
- Number of Spurs: 2 (V2)
- Spur Sharpening: Negatively ground spurs
- Blade Material: HW (tungsten carbide)
- Rotation: Left-hand (LH)
- Cutter Coating: Black or orange PTFE
Approved Applications
- Drilling blind holes for dowel connections
- Panel drilling in furniture manufacturing
- Cabinet making and case construction
- Multi-spindle CNC boring machine operations
- CNC boring center and panel processing center applications
- Boring with adapter or chuck on compatible machines
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does this dowel drill use left-hand (LH) rotation instead of right-hand?
Multi-spindle boring machines and CNC boring centers assign specific spindle positions to left-hand rotation and right-hand rotation tools depending on the machine layout. This drill is designed for left-hand rotating spindles. Using a left-hand drill in a left-hand spindle ensures the cutting edges engage the material correctly, chip flow moves in the intended direction, and bore quality - including the negatively ground spur scoring - performs as designed. Installing the wrong rotation tool in a spindle damages the workpiece and the tool.
What does "negatively ground spurs" mean and why does it matter?
Negatively ground spurs are the outer scoring points of the drill that are sharpened at a specific negative angle. This geometry scores the material circumference before the main cutting edges remove the core material, producing a clean, sharp-edged hole perimeter with no surface tearout or fiber lifting. This is especially important when drilling chipboard, MDF, laminates, and coated panels where the surface finish around the bore opening must remain intact.
What is the purpose of the PTFE coating on the cutter portion?
The PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) coating applied to the cutter portion of this dowel drill acts as a non-stick surface on the spiral flutes. During drilling in materials that contain adhesives, resins, or binders - such as chipboard, MDF, and laminated panels - pitch and glue residue can accumulate on uncoated drill spirals, reducing chip evacuation efficiency and increasing friction. The PTFE coating minimizes this buildup, helping the tool maintain consistent cutting performance and extending service life in production drilling environments.
Is the 10 x 20mm parallel shank compatible with standard CNC boring machine spindles?
The parallel shank with driving flat is a standard interface used on multi-spindle CNC boring machines, CNC boring centers, and panel processing centers. The driving flat provides positive torque transfer from the spindle to the tool, and the length adjusting screw allows the tool projection to be set precisely to match the spindle configuration of the specific machine. This is the same shank format used across the CMT 308 series of dowel drills for compatibility with a wide range of boring equipment.
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