SpeedStar Cable Tool drilling rig, Ballston Spa, New York. Cable tool drilling is still used by a few companies and is sometimes preferred over rotary. Cable Tool, also known as ballistic well drilling, raises and drops a heavy carbide tipped drilling bit that chisels through the rock. The impact of the drill bit fractures the rock and in many shale rock situations increases the water flow into a well over rotary. The grey run-off is formed by water mixing with the drill chips from the bottom of the well and being brought to the surface with a tool called a bailer.