What Every Dentist Should Know About Handpiece Care To Save Time, Money, And Patient Trust

The day your drill dies mid-prep is the day everything else falls apart—production, schedule, and patient trust. That’s why we sat down with Dickie Ball, founder of Summit Hand Piece Express, to unpack exactly how to keep high-speed and electric handpieces running longer with less drama. This isn’t sales fluff; it’s the hard-won, owner-level playbook from a family business that answers its own phones and stands behind every repair with pride.We explore the maintenance moves that matter most: lubricating after every patient and before sterilization, confirming your lubrication machine is actually filled, and setting unit pressure to the manufacturer’s specs rather than cranking PSI to mask dull burrs. Dickie explains how running too hot prematurely kills bearings, why a “marbles in a can” sound signals trouble under load, and how to perform quick chairside checks for spray, heat, and chuck retention. You’ll learn how a simple checklist and better burr management lower stress for the whole team and prevent the same failures from returning.What makes this conversation different is the commitment to education over repeat repairs. Dickie shares how Summit teaches teams at conferences and through upcoming online courses so assistants, temps, and office managers can follow the same reliable routine. We cover easy shipping and estimate workflows, warranty details, and how refurbished options can halve costs without sacrificing quality. The result is less downtime, stronger patient experience, and better EBITDA—all by dialing in the basics and partnering with people who pick up the phone.If reliable handpieces are mission-critical in your practice, this conversation gives you the tools to protect them. Subscribe for more practical, clinician-tested tips, share this with your team, and leave a review to tell us which maintenance change you’ll make first.