Some types of drill bits used in mining include:
- Tricone Bits
Tricone drill bits are commonly used in oil and geological drilling operations. They consist of several key components, including the drill bit body, cones, bearing system, and water holes. The most crucial part is the three rotating cones which give the bit its name mounted on the body. Each cone is equipped with carbide buttons on its outer surface. The shape, size, and arrangement of these buttons are specifically designed based on the formation type and drilling requirements.
- Thread Button Bits (Tungsten Carbide Bits)
Thread button bits are drilling tools featuring tungsten carbide inserts on the cutting surface and a threaded connection for attaching to drill rods. Common thread types include R25, R32, T38, T45, T51, ST58, and others. These bits are known for their high durability, long service life, and reliable performance in challenging conditions. They are widely used in applications such as top hammer drilling, blast hole drilling, and tunneling. Various face designs are available to suit different rock types for example, flat faces for hard and abrasive rock, drop center faces for improved hole alignment and cuttings removal, and convex faces for faster drilling in fractured or softer formations(Alicia, 2024).
- Button Drill Bit
Button drill bit is suitable for dry and wet drilling of medium hard and hard rocks. It is mainly used in all kinds of mining, transportation, water conservancy, roadway, tunnel excavation, quarrying and rock breaking engineering of municipal construction.
- Chisel Drill Bit
Chisel rock drill bit is suitable for light rock drills, drilling rock holes with a diameter of less than 50mm, and is suitable for rocks with low hardness. This bit is widely used in various mines such as coal mine, iron ore, gold mine, copper mine and lead-zinc mine, as well as tunnel excavation in railway, highway and water conservancy construction. Chisel Bit has mature technology, adopts high-quality steel and alloy, has high toughness and high wear resistance, high production efficiency and low cost.
- Horseshoe Drill Bit
Horseshoe rock drill bit is suitable for all kinds of steel plants, blast furnace and ladle. Its main characteristics are fast opening speed and easy to control the depth and angle of channel and iron hole. The maintenance of iron hole mud bag is simple and saves manpower(Rock Drill Bit Types：The Right Types Of Drill Bits Used In Mining, n.d.).
Reference:
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Alicia. (2024, December 11). Common Types Of Drilling Bits Used In Mining Industry—Bestonedrill—10+ Years Chinese Rock Drilling Golden Supplier. https://www.bestonedrill.com/types-of-drilling-bits-used-in-mining-industry/
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Rock Drill Bit Types：The Right Types Of Drill Bits Used In Mining. (n.d.). Litian Heavy Industry Machinery Co., Ltd. Retrieved September 24, 2025, from https://www.litechtools.com/types-of-rock-drill-bit.html
