Who knew, learning about reamers can cause head aches.

[Aukai]

Thought I would look at reamers today, nothing fancy just a basic fractional size reamer set to have on hand. Jeez, not a simple subject at all. I guess I want a simple basic size tight fit reamer set, but you can have a 20.00 dollar set vs 50-100 dollar per bit individual piece.

 

[Bill Gruby]

You're just starting on them, Wait till you need an under or over size. Cheaper sets are just that, cheaper. Lower grade steel etc. Let the buyer beware here.

"Billy G"

 

[Ken from ontario]

I'm planning on getting a " cheaper" set (~ $200! and that's cheap) from Amazon then replace the most useful sizes with the better quality ones later on,the dilemma most hobby machinist and wannabes face is we can never justify buying the best quality tools b/c we don't make money using them,and since most of us have bigger shopping lists and smaller budget , often the best we could do is to try to buy average or just below average quality tools.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00HQMXL38...=UTF8&colid=U1FASJ1VAXTT&coliid=I9K313VJEND99

 

[coffmajt]

I'm planning on getting a " cheaper" set (~ $200! and that's cheap) from Amazon then replace the most useful sizes with the better quality ones later on,the dilemma most hobby machinist and wannabes face is we can never justify buying the best quality tools b/c we don't make money using them,and since most of us have bigger shopping lists and smaller budget , often the best we could do is to try to buy average or just below average quality tools.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00HQMXL38...=UTF8&colid=U1FASJ1VAXTT&coliid=I9K313VJEND99

I have had pretty good results getting reamer lots off of e bay. Sometimes $1 to $2 each Good hunting. Jack

 

[ddickey]

Try an NOS search on eBay. I bought a never used Lavallee and Ide over/under set for $30. Then a couple months later I picked up a new old stock 14 piece LaSalle And Ide Reamer set for $55. Pretty good prices considering the quality of the reamer.

 

[Technical Ted]

IMO, it comes down to how much money you are willing to pay for a tool, what your usage is going to be, type of material being cut, how accurate the holes need to be, etc. etc.. For my hobby use, I have been just drilling holes to size and fitting the mating part, but wanted the next step improvement. So, this weekend I just ordered a set of these:

http://www.shars.com/1-8-1-2-hss-chucking-reamer-set

Not the best set for sure, but they will be better than just drilling and I will ream first then size the mating part after. For my limited hobby use this was as much cash as I was willing to part with for a reamer set.

YMMV,
Ted

 

[Aukai]

Thank you for the responses, the helpful hints, and links.

 

[Aukai]

Thank you for the responses, the helpful hints, and links.

 

[Doubleeboy]

The reamers I use the most often is the over/under set I bought from Enco years ago. They are Czechoslovakian, probably about same quality as Shars China. The undersized ones are great for press fits the over work well for sliding fits or a missed dimension on the mating part. I probably use the over unders several times more often than the straight sized set.

 

[Bob Korves]

If the price and/or availability of a reamer slows you down, you can always bore the hole, and done correctly that will be a more accurate and better located hole. The downside is hitting the diameter you want exactly on size, which is not necessarily an easy task at first try. Still, practicing boring holes on scrap stock to a close tolerance size is a great way to learn machining skills at little cost, and you can then make your own holes of any size you desire and without anything but multipurpose tools and tooling to bore holes.