Let me start by saying that I have very strong feelings about this issue, I had a 5 minute lesson from a former machinist on how to sharpen drill bits, and it is my strong opinion that if you have any skill at making knives you can certianly sharpen your own drill bits. I sharpen my own bits all the time, even broken ones, I have sharpened, by hand, on my belt sander drill bits from #50 to 1 1/4" most of these were cobalt bits, but I have sharpened carbide ones as well. Centering does take practice, but my sharpened bits still drill holes within .002" If I need a more precise hole I drill undersize and ream. Split points are still a challenge for me, but since I started centerpunching I really don't worry about that anymore.