Burning through drill bits

[Nancy S.]

Hi all. Looking for answers as to why I'm going through drill bits like crazy. I have a lesser expensive Pearl hole driller but I purchased the more expensive bits from Rio Grande. They're titanium at about $6 each. I have the burr-life wax to extend the drill bit life. I can drill maybe two or three pearls before the tip basically melts. I have a variable speed foot pedal. Could I be going too slow? Too fast? I back the drill bit out and go back in, no steady pressure the entire time... I also have the standard drill bits, the kind that corkscrew. They just don't grab at the beginning like the true Pearl bits do. Any thoughts are appreciated

 

[pearlescence]

Whatever you are doing it sounds like the tip is over-heating and failing. So you are in the drill hole too long. Some pearls (or nuclei) are tough and all you can do is bib-bib-bib go away and come back when everything has cooled and bib-bib again. (If you remove the bit from the pearl and it is glowing..there's your overheating clue).
Unless the bit just slides through at the outset you will need to do in stages
Even so the bits last only a few pearls.
Sometimes pearls are so smooth and shiny that the bit skids a fraction. If you think that might happen it may be possible to gently file a rough spot and 'break' the surface (like drilling ceramic tiles) so the bit grips immediately.