Serious drill bit purchase help!

[projectnut]

First question is what materials do you most commonly use. If aluminum is your primary material I would suggest parabolic drills, if steel is the most common I would use standard twist drills. As for brands I would add Precision, Viking, and YG to Mikey's list. YG is a fairly new player out of South Korea. They have plants in several countries. If considering this brand I would look for those made in the US of South Korea. Viking is the parent company that makes Triumph. I believe Norseman is their "economy" brand.

There are several more high end German and Austrian brands, but I'm not sure they would be worth the money outside a high production professional shop.

 

[ddickey]

Along with Norseman I have a lot of RedLine Tools drill bits (stub length). They're very good also. Pretty sure they're made in the US.

 

[GunsOfNavarone]

I think you're going to find that a 115 piece, 135 degree split point cobalt screw machine drill set is going to cost you a good bit more than $350.00. Sorry but you are looking at a premium set here. Prices get lower if you go with a 118 degree point in HSS, which is not a bad compromise that will get you within your target price range.

Good brands to consider: PTD, Triumph, Cleveland, Chicago-Latrobe. I own all of these and they are very good. My screw machine set is a 115 piece stub length 118 degree and it works fine for me.

Cobalt is fine for those drills you use most often in stainless steel but you don't need the entire set to be cobalt. Maybe get a decent set in HSS and buy cobalt drills in the sizes you need.

Weird...on Amazon, $186 for one set (I think letter) and $90 for the other (fractional)they are cobalt...don't know if they are "premium" but I'm not a premium kind of guy. I agree about the HSS, but I'd rather do this "once". The machining rabbit hole is VERY deep....isn't it fellas?

 

[projectnut]

The price for the letter drills seems a bit excessive. Last November I purchased a new set of Greenfield parabolic letter drills in a Huot index on eBay for $69.00. There are several eBay vendors with quality drills. Just be sure to check the prices against reputable industrial suppliers. I've seen prices range from nearly double the standard retail price to less than 25% of retail.

I often checkout businesses that buy out businesses, or surplus dealers. They generally have the best prices and often include "best offers". They rely on quick turn around and volume sales rather than holding out for top dollar.

 

[GunsOfNavarone]

Funny...one person says the $300-$350 for the set I'm looking at sounds way under priced, another says it sound excessive. There is a part of me that wants to Accusize (I have had great luck with their products) but I feel like got to get a large step up on drill bits.
There is a beginning step for me learning this ridiculously complicated world of making a hole in a piece of metal. At least I know I want/need certain things. I appreciate the brand names you guys are throwing my way...these are all foreign to me and would never know to look them up. I really need/want to have this done and ordered by end of weekend. I will expand to add reamers though I feel the need will be limited. I have a dozen or so straight reamers from a very successful machinist that retired here in Colorado....I've never needed to use them.

 

[projectnut]

Price point is a matter of perspective. Some people think a $100,000.00 car is excessive, and over the top. Others think it's the bottom line as to where mass production yields to quality.
I think you're going to find prices for the same product all over the map. I've found the more expensive retailers don't necessarily carry any higher quality tools. MSC for instance generally charges premium prices for the same brands you can purchase elsewhere 25% to50% cheaper.

I generally go with name brands I've used over the years that have proven to be high enough quality they don't have to be replaced on a regular basis. I shy away from HF for anything that I intend to use for more than a specific job. I've had some good quality tools from them, but far more often they aren't the quality that will last for years to come.

If money is a concern at this point I would buy a fractional or metric set of drills up to 1/2" (by 1/64") or 13mm. They are the ones you will use far and away more than any other sizes. I have drills up to 1" but find those over 1/2" get used less than 10% of the time. At this point if you need larger drills I would buy name brand ones specifically for the job at hand. As time and budget allows you can fill in the blanks.

Here's a complete set (fractional, wire, & number) that may be of interest

Cle-line is made by Cleveland Twist Drill

Cle-Line C21126, 1/16" to 1/2", 115 Pc, Fractional, Letter & Wire Drill Bit Set | eBay

P/N C21126. Fractional - 1/16" to 1/2". 115 Jobber Length Bits. Wire - #60 to #1. Letter - A to Z. Min Bit Size - 0.0400". Max Bit Size - 1/2". Point Angle - 118°.

www.ebay.com

Here's one with just fractional drills

Cle-Line Jobber Drill Set 21 PC HSS 118 Deg C21114 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Cle-Line Jobber Drill Set 21 PC HSS 118 Deg C21114 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Here are some fractional parabolics

Cle-Line Jobber Drill Set 21 PC HSS 118 Deg C21114 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Cle-Line Jobber Drill Set 21 PC HSS 118 Deg C21114 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Here are some 118* metrics

Cle-Line Jobber Dril Set 25 PC Metric HSS 118 Deg C21131 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Cle-Line Jobber Dril Set 25 PC Metric HSS 118 Deg C21131 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[Winegrower]

About a year ago I bought a full set of Drill Hog, numbers, letters, fractions and reduced shank up to 1”. I have not had a problem that I would blame on a drill, and the set is still intact, no replacements necessary to date. It ran about $300 from eBay as I recall. I’m satisfied, would do it again.

 

[7milesup]

Excellent thread.

GunsofNavoron... I am facing the same issue as you. I purchased a set of Drill Hogs (HSS) and quite frankly, they are borderline worthless in my opinion. They have this return policy that is a pain. You have to save up your broken bits and send them to the guy, and he will return them. I bought a set of cobalt drills from Menards that have been really good. Problem is that they limited to only cardinal sizes up to 3/8"

I will be checking out the ones that ProjectNut just posted.

LOL... Winegrower was typing while I was posting. Two different people with two different Drill Hog results.

 

[rwm]

My approach is a little different (and maybe incorrect so I will follow this thread.) I have never been happy with resharpened drills, either by hand or with Drill Doctor. I treat my drills as disposable. I have been buying Irwin brand cobalt drills in multi-packs and just replacing them when they get dull. For me, there are several sizes that I use a lot of and the other sizes last a long time due to limited use. I think cobalt is essential for long drill life and I do drill a lot of stainless. Appropriate use of lubricant or coolant will also help tremendously.
Robert

 

[projectnut]

About a year ago I bought a full set of Drill Hog, numbers, letters, fractions and reduced shank up to 1”. I have not had a problem that I would blame on a drill, and the set is still intact, no replacements necessary to date. It ran about $300 from eBay as I recall. I’m satisfied, would do it again.

Excellent thread.

GunsofNavoron... I am facing the same issue as you. I purchased a set of Drill Hogs (HSS) and quite frankly, they are borderline worthless in my opinion. They have this return policy that is a pain. You have to save up your broken bits and send them to the guy, and he will return them. I bought a set of cobalt drills from Menards that have been really good. Problem is that they limited to only cardinal sizes up to 3/8"

I will be checking out the ones that ProjectNut just posted.

LOL... Winegrower was typing while I was posting. Two different people with two different Drill Hog results.

There was a thread about Drill Hog a while ago. As it turns out it's a company registered in the Canary Islands doing business from California and Montana. They are essentially a broker buying drills from many manufacturers, both in this country and from abroad. I've seen just about a 50/50 spread of good and bad reviews. The point being you may get high quality drills, or you may not. It all depends on what they're buying at the time.

As for sharpening I had reasonable results from my Drill Doctor for several years. Eventually it wore beyond what I was willing to put up with. I happened across a Black Diamond drill grinder and it's done an excellent job. However in most cases a Black Diamond is beyond reach of most hobbyists. New they're in the $8,000.00 to $10,000.00 range. I happened across a like new one at a price not much more than a Drill Doctor.