I really like my CMT saw blades so when I needed a new plug cutter this was an easy choice. Man was I wrong. This thing is quite possibly the worst tool I have used in a while. I’ve seriously had better results from HF bargain tools than this thing. Do yourself a favor and buy the $15 cutter. This thing is worse than the worst.

Used it with a drill press to make a number of cuts. Cuts clean plugs and dowels up to 3 inches long. Precision is good. The cut is aggressive and requires reasonable stability of both the material and the drill. I couldn't imagine using it with a hand drill.Some quick tips:1) Pick the flattest side of the material and use it as the bottom support. If the material wobbles during cut you can break the plug/tenon, or worse the bit can catch the entire material and force it into spinning.2) If you drill through your material, part of the material can break off if it's near the edge. No big deal but it might affect the efficient use of the material.3) If you need to make more than just one or two cuts, to prevent overheating It's best to cut near the edge with one side of the cutter exposed outside the material. This way it can eject the wood chips automatically. This helps making clean cuts and keeping cutter cool. Do not exposed the cutter at more than one side though. It can cause the surrounding material to break off unexpectedly during cuts.4) The final cut-off of the plugs/tenons is best done with a bandsaw. If you don't have a bandsaw, a jigsaw or handsaw will do too. Don't use table saw or circular saw. It will likely shred the plugs/tenons in the process.

Cuts very nice plugs and quickly.

Wowww. I am amazed at the quality of this bit, and at this price. It is extremely sharp. And mine came in the original cmt orange tool package. I was expecting some knockoff junk. But this bit will be around for a while if handled with care. I bought it to make some pocket hole plugs with the same wood i used for a project. I use the kreg k5 pocket hole master system. When i saw kreg sold a plug cutter for like 80$ i was thinking there has to be a way to do it without their little piece of plastic accessory. I literly tried everything. Although the dowel trick did work pretty well at keeping the costs down, it didnt match the wood good enough for me (nobody sells grade d select pine dowels). I was able to make perfect pocket hole plugs with this. And if i make one the whole length of this bit, once i cut it off the rest of it is long enough to plug a second hole! Perfect all the way around. Im going to buy a second just to keep in package and use in 5 years when i have this original one sharpened.

This doweling bit will cut 3-inch dowels for woodworking projects, but it has some trouble with cutting hardwood dowels. With fir and pine [which work with most projects], the bit cuts well. But with hardwoods, the bit can catch the dowel and you have to pry the dowel out. I stick with softwoods, usually scraps I otherwise would throw away, cutting two or three dowels off one end, cutting them free, and then cutting two or three more off the same original piece. Pricewise, this works. Softwood dowels are still strong enough for tables and other furniture, provided you use several at a joint. Dowels from this jig also work well as covers for pocket screws, such as the Kreg jig. Softwood dowels stain well and sand/plane to a nice surface in the pocket screw application.