Bit driver and method for its use

A bit driver for use in inserting a cutting bit into a receptacle bore of a tool holder or cutting equipment, the bit driver made of steel or other metal, consisting of:

• (A) an elongated body configured for being grasped by a user, the elongated body having an axis and including:
• (i) a lower end having a distal face, with a shaped cavity in the distal face extending into the elongated body, the shaped cavity having an axis and one or more sections of a tapered annular surface that is configured to conform to an outer surface of a bit end of a conventional cutting bit, to hold the cutting bit aligned along the axis of the elongated body and the axis of the shaped cavity, and (ii) a top end opposite the lower end, the top end including a shaped projection extending from the center of the top end of the elongated body, along the axis of the elongated body, with a peripheral portion of the top end of the elongated body defining a shoulder that surrounds the shaped projection, and
• (B) a disk secured permanently by welding to the top end of the elongated body, the disk extending radially outward from the top end of the elongated body, the disk having a flat upper surface having a diameter or area target surface larger than a diameter of the elongated body, the disk having an opening that receives the shaped projection of the elongated body, and an underside that surrounds the opening and resting on the shoulder of the elongated body,
• wherein the shaped cavity of the elongated body is configured to provide that no portion of the inside surface of the tapered annular surface of the bit driver contacts the cutting tip of the cutting bit, and wherein the bit driver is configured for receiving an impact delivered by a hammer applied along the axes of the elongated body and the shaped cavity.