Quality or not

[bally15]

Hello
just wondering what everyone is using. Do you use big box store drill bits or have you splashed out on some high end drill bits. Are the Norseman etc worth the extra $$?? Mine regular big box store bits are coming to the end of their life and am thinking about some that last. Ideas/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[JimB]

Not sure what you mean by your drill bits coming to the end of their life. If they are just getting dull get a drill doctor and they will be like new. Even the best bits will get dull and need either sharpening or replacement.

My bits are the 115 piece set from Harbor Freight. I use a drill doctor to sharpen them.

 

[Marcros]

it gets very expensive to get decent branded bits in every size that you may use.

I have a few colt pen drills in sizes that I use regularly, and a fairly cheap set from 6mm to 10mm in 0.1mm steps. The colts are nicer drills by far, but having endless size options in that set is invaluable.

If you routinely make 2 or 3 different kits, I would spend the money to get the colts. I would be very wary of ultra cheap sets, given the tolerances that we use in pen making. if you are drilling at 10.4mm, it is because 10.5mm is too big, so a bad quality controlled 10.4mm that is oversized is useless.

 

[gtriever]

If you're making a living with your tools, go for the best set you can afford. If not, the Harbor Freight 115 piece set, a Drill Doctor, and a set of digital calipers will give you lots of service and let you direct the savings into other areas.

 

[WriteON]

Hello
just wondering what everyone is using. Do you use big box store drill bits or have you splashed out on some high end drill bits.

Black and Decker. DeWalt, Brand X. I use what I have on hand. I like the suggestions having a Drill Doctor.

 

[frank123]

If you're making a living with your tools, go for the best set you can afford. If not, the Harbor Freight 115 piece set, a Drill Doctor, and a set of digital calipers will give you lots of service and let you direct the savings into other areas.

And you'll always have any non metric size drill you need available when you need it.

I bought one of those TIN coated sets years and years ago and have replaced the ones I've managed to break or lose with higher quality cobalt ones as needed.

They're a good buy when they go on sale. They don't always have the most perfect sharpening but I have a Drill Doctor that I always use to touch up my drills before using them so that doesn't matter to me.

 

[dogcatcher]

I like to play with ideas, so I need all sizes of drill bits, also a lot of tap and dies. With that said, my theory is buy a cheap set, and as you use them keep track of what sizes you use the most, and slowly replace the el cheapos with better quality.

I started with a 29 piece drill set, and over the decades of life have replaced my most used ones. That small box eventually exploded into a 115 piece set. The same with tap and die set. After my trip in to penmaking, I got metric sets and have done the same. I also have several duplicates of the most used bits.

Get the metal boxed set of 115 at Harbor Freight, it maybe weeks, months or decades before you ever use every bit in that box. But if you need one, you have it, on sale at $35 it is a bargain, their higher riced sets are not worth the extra. For penmaking the cheap set will do fine until you need to replace the individual bits you use.

 

[TonyL]

I prefer the Norseman over the Colt and Fisher (sp?) and they are less money. I find the Norseman stay sharp longer after using the DrillDr than the Big Box and black "kit" bits. But as long as they are sharp, I don't have a problem with any of them.

 

[campzeke]

I LOVE my Drill Doctor. I have the low end model and it does a very good job for me. No need to spend $100 or more on the higher priced models unless you need the additional features they offer. The low end $50 350X will do just fine. Just for comparison, I recently purchased a decent 3/8" drill bit at one of the big box stores for just under $10. Sharpen a dozen assorted bit instead of buying new ones and you have paid for the Dr.

 

[MTViper]

I decided years ago that I would invest in good quality tools and I've done that. I consider drill bits, saw blades, and such as "consumables" and I use them until they get dull and then sharpen (if possible) or replace them. If a drill bit is bent, it's gone. If not, I use the Drill Doctor until it's too short to sharpen. I sharpen my forstner bits by hand, too.

 

[Jsavage4]

If you're making a living with your tools, go for the best set you can afford. If not, the Harbor Freight 115 piece set, a Drill Doctor, and a set of digital calipers will give you lots of service and let you direct the savings into other areas.

I could not agree more!


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