Product Description
CMT 310.130.12 Dowel Drill - 13 x 27 x 57.5mm Left-Hand Rotation is a precision-engineered, 2-flute boring tool from CMT designed for high-throughput blind hole drilling in panel processing, furniture manufacturing, and cabinet assembly. Built on a super-strength steel body with a tungsten carbide (HW) cutting head, this short-series dowel drill delivers consistently flat-bottomed, clean-walled holes sized for dowel joinery in solid wood, chipboard, MDF, plywood, laminates, and coated panels. Its left-hand rotation makes it the correct choice for left-hand spindle positions on multi-spindle boring machines and CNC boring centers.
Key Features
- 2 HW Precision Ground Cutting Edges (Z2) - tungsten carbide cutting faces stay sharp longer than standard steel, reducing re-sharpening frequency and maintaining consistent hole diameter across high-volume production runs.
- 2 Negatively Ground Spurs (V2) - shear the panel surface fibers cleanly before the main cutting edges engage, eliminating tearout and delivering smooth bore walls with no rough edges on both veneered and laminated surfaces.
- PTFE-Coated Spiral Flutes - the orange or black P.T.F.E. coating on the spiral portion prevents pitch, resin, and adhesive buildup, keeping chips evacuating freely and extending the service life of the tool in production environments.
- Precision Balanced Centre Point - locates the drill accurately on a pre-marked or machine-controlled bore position, reducing wander and ensuring hole placement stays within tolerance for tight dowel-fit furniture assembly.
- Parallel Shank with Driving Flat and Length Adjusting Screw - the 10 x 27mm shank seats securely in standard boring machine chucks and multi-spindle heads, while the length adjusting screw allows fine-tuning of cutting depth without removing the tool.
- Left-Hand (LH) Rotation - purpose-built for left-hand spindle positions, ensuring the cutting edges engage correctly and deliver optimal chip clearance when paired with LH-configured boring heads and CNC spindles.
- Super-Strength Steel Body - the robust steel core absorbs the shock loads of repetitive blind-hole boring cycles without deflection, maintaining concentricity across long production shifts.
Why This Product
- The combination of negatively ground spurs and HW precision cutting edges makes this dowel drill well suited for laminated panels and coated boards where surface finish quality at the bore entry is critical to the final appearance of assembled furniture.
- At 57.5mm total length with a 27mm cutting height, this short-series profile fits the tight spindle spacing of multi-spindle CNC boring machines and panel processing centers without clearance issues between adjacent heads.
- The PTFE-coated spiral addresses one of the most common production slowdowns - resin and adhesive fouling - by shedding buildup before it can impair chip evacuation or bind the drill in the workpiece.
- Left-hand rotation is a specific machine-side requirement that cannot be substituted with a right-hand tool; having the correct LH version prevents incorrect chip direction, poor surface finish, and potential spindle damage in LH-configured boring equipment.
Specifications
- Manufacturer Part Number: 310.130.12
- Brand: CMT Orange Tools
- Diameter: 13mm
- Cutting Height: 27mm
- Total Length: 57.5mm
- Shank: 10 x 27mm (parallel shank with driving flat and length adjusting screw)
- Rotation: Left-Hand (LH)
- Number of Cutting Edges: 2 (Z2)
- Number of Spurs: 2 (V2)
- Spur Sharpening: Negatively ground spurs
- Number of Spiral Flutes: 2
- Blade Material: HW (Tungsten Carbide)
- Body Material: Super-strength steel
- Coating: P.T.F.E. on spiral portion
Approved Applications
- Blind hole drilling for dowel joinery and dowel connections
- Panel drilling in furniture manufacturing
- Cabinet making and case construction
- Boring in solid hardwood and softwood
- Boring in chipboard and particle board
- Boring in MDF and HDF
- Boring in plywood
- Boring in laminates and coated panels
- Boring in plastics
- Use on multi-spindle CNC boring machines
- Use on CNC boring centers and panel processing centers
- Use on boring machines with adapter or chuck
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the left-hand rotation important - can I use this drill in a right-hand spindle?
No. This drill is specifically designed for left-hand (LH) rotation spindles. Using an LH drill in a right-hand spindle would cause the cutting edges and negatively ground spurs to engage the material in reverse, producing poor surface quality, excessive heat, and potential damage to the spindle or workpiece. Always match the drill rotation to the spindle rotation of your boring machine.
What does "negatively ground spurs" mean and how does it affect the hole quality?
Negatively ground spurs are sharpened with a geometry that shears the surface fibers of the panel inward and ahead of the main cutting edges. This pre-scores the bore perimeter cleanly before material is removed, which prevents tearout and splintering at the hole entry - a critical quality factor when drilling veneered boards, laminates, and coated panels for visible furniture components.
What is the purpose of the P.T.F.E. coating on the spiral flutes?
The P.T.F.E. (polytetrafluoroethylene) coating applied to the spiral portion of the drill acts as a non-stick surface that prevents pitch, resin, glue, and adhesive residue from bonding to the flutes. This keeps the chip evacuation channels clear during continuous production drilling, reduces the frequency of cleaning stops, and helps maintain consistent drilling performance across long production runs.
What shank size and style does this dowel drill use, and how is cutting depth set?
This drill uses a 10 x 27mm parallel shank with a driving flat. The driving flat engages the chuck or boring head to prevent rotation slippage under load. A length adjusting screw is included on the shank, allowing the operator to fine-tune the depth projection of the tool within the spindle without fully removing the drill - a practical advantage when setting consistent blind-hole depths across a multi-spindle head.
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