John Martin wrote:

On Jun 20, 6:21*pm, Richard Evans wrote:
I wanted to counterbore several 3/4" holes about an eighth of an inch
deep in 3/4" plywood. I bought a set of Forstner bits at Lowe's,
chucked the 3/4" one in a corded 1/2" drill, and made a practice swipe
at a piece of pine. It was incredibly hard going. I really had to lean
on it. I did manage to get down to about an eighth of an inch, both in
the pine and eventually in the plywood, but I don't know what it would
have taken to drill all the way through. I tried several diameters and
they were all the same.

Did I get a crappy set of bits, or are they not meant to be used in a
hand drill? I don't have a drill press to make a comparison.

Was it turning in the right direction? Are you sure?

Yes, and yes.