Drill Bits

[dighsx]

I've got a few of those 200+ drill bit sets that come from China, and they're fine (sort of) for wood and other simi-soft things (after you sharpen them). But I'd like to get a good set of bits for drilling metal. And by good I mean bits that will actually drill the metal and not just smoke and bend.

I've got a small set of the 1/16th thru 3/8ths but I'd like to get a big set that had everything all the fraction bits, all the letter ones and all the number ones. I'm sure this wouldn't be cheap but I'd rather pony up some money and have a set that would do the job and last then to keep buying this knock off crap.

Anyone got any suggestions on where and what I should buy? Someone has got to make real bits still right?

[Mcgyver]

where have you looked? most any industrial supplier will have a range of quality & prices etc, try mcmaster carr, kbc, msc etc. I agree with you, using cheap crappy tools is a false economy - as its a hobby for many, myself included, you're only hurting yourself with the frustration they provide .

here for example.
http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNPDFF...0&PMT4TP=*LTIP

if you are just cutting through the odd piece of angle iron with a hand drill , just get fraction sizes. if you are more serious about machining a great start is 1-60, A-Z and 1/16 - 1/2. you can add specialty stuff as you need it. Personal preference is three separate index cases rather than the combo.

[dighsx]

I looked at places like that and assumed those bits would be good seeing as they cost an arm and a leg. But are they really that good? Are there some brands I should look for or avoid? Or is it once you get into the 3-4 hundred dollar range you're looking at good bits?

[Alan Wright]

I've bought several sets of drill bits in the last couple of years and have found that Tiumph Twist Drill makes good drills that are by no means top of the line but are priced fairly reasonably compared to most. Anything cheaper has had various problems. The complete sets are on sale at ENCO right now.

Alan

[CountZero]

A budget version could be to single out the most used sizes and just buy real good drills for these and stick with the cheap stuff for occasional rare sizes.

[widgitmaster]

Back in the early 70's when I started in this trade, my high school metal shop teacher told me to buy an empty case! Then fill it as you need them, many shops will not mind if you tell your boss what you need, but simply sneaking a drill here and there can get you the boot!

Cleveland Twist Drill is one of the top brands, but it's not so much the brand as the grade of steel! A standard HSS (High Speed Steel) drill bit is good for basc shop work, but cobolt split point drills are a professional choice!

If they are advertised as High Carbon or Carbon Steel, they atr usually cheezy! If they are advertised as "Titanium" drills, is a gold coating on cheap steel, they look like a mill dollars but underneath the glitter is cheap steel!

I would get one of the Tri-Index cases, they come it two styles: Jobbers Length & Stubby (screw machine). I prefer the stub drills for most everything I do, as long drills flex too much, and require a starter hole.

The Tri-Index holds all three american standard drill sets 1-60, A-Z, and 1/6-1/2



Hope this helps!
WidgitMaster

[dighsx]

I don't mind spending the money. If I had to drop 400 bucks to get bits that are going to hold up and do the job I'll gladly pay. The problem I have is you go and look on the web and they all come in the same gray case and they all look pretty much the same and you start to wonder if they're different or not.

[dighsx]

So should I buy the HHS set for 288 (http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNSRIT...83114&PMT4NO=0) or the Cobalt set for 574 (http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNSRIT...753&PMT4NO=0)?

[widgitmaster]

I would not buy from the web unless I knew all the fine details! That set from MSC is good quality set of stub drills! But I am stunned at the current prices! The last set I bought was $75! (many eons ago!)
WidgitMaster

[Mcgyver]

I second the triumph brand, good quality but not best - good value. cobalt is not worth it imo for home shop use. nothing to do with quality, just that with our home shop tooling and its sub 1% duty cycles, we needn't be as concerned with tool wear and times between resharpening, at least not for double the price. I've probably only had to sharpen 1/4 of the hss set i bought 10 years ago and i'm in the shop a lot.

[dighsx]

Here's a good example of what I'm talking about 288 at MSC same set at enco 144 (http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PMAKA=NN890-9338) So are they crap or is MSC just ripping you off? But how can one place have them for half the price?

[HuFlungDung]

Its been many years since I saw a set of carbon steel drills, and indeed, those are very touchy to work with, as it was easy to spoil the temper by drilling too fast or by grinding with too much heat buildup

A word of caution: drilling steel requires one to be familiar with the proper range of cutting speed suitable for a given diameter drill. That is to say, I've observed many mechanics who have one setting for their drill spindle, whether hand held or drill press: high speed. And the amount of pressure they applied is always to the max as well, especially when the drill is starting to emerge

There is no such thing as a set of drills that will stand up to that sort of abuse. Drills are all flexible and will bend if subjected to off center application of thrust force, as when drilling with a hand held unit.

Personally, I have used drills from standard fractional sets, with TIN coating and only costing $35.00 per set and had no real issues with them, other than maybe resharpening them correctly. It would help the average user to spend a bit of time learning to resharpen a set of cheap drills, as the same skill is required to keep an expensive set of drills in good working order.