Sick of Dremels. Time for an upgrade.....

synthesist

synthesist

So many knives so little time
Joined
Sep 14, 2004
Messages
933
to a Foredom I believe. Which one shall I get? 1/6 hp? 1/3 hp? More specifically which handpiece(s). $$$ is pretty much irrelevant I can afford what I need these days. I could have paid for one of these with the money spent on Dremels I've cooked over the years.

As they say, (I should have listened on this tool like many others) Pay once. Cry once.

Thanks for sharing your communal wisdom with me.

Corey "synthesist" Gimbel
 
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Hey Corey don't know what you have for shop air but far and away [I'd] go with die grinders. Still have the first
2, I ever got. Have jigged an awful lot of micarta, wood and plastics thru the years. Any kind of zipp strip or Makita
adapters and you should be in bidnness
Ken.
 
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Yah . . . I'm kind of hot and cold on the Fordom / flex shaft. I have it all, air tools, flex shaft and several Dremels.

One thing to be aware of is the cut off disc mandrels need to have backward threads for the flex shaft. I forget occasionally and try to run a Dremel cut off disc in the flex shaft and all I achieve is cutting the screw in the mandrel in two.

Does any one have a source for Dremel size cut off disc mandrels with reverse threads ?

One advantage of the flex shaft over the air tools is it is SOOOO much quieter so if you work at night while the significant other sleeps etc you won't have the air tool scream AND the compressor(s) running. I gang two smaller portable compressors on a manifold to a big tank. Advantage is two fold. If one compressor needs work at least I have half my air AND I have the portability of the small compressor to haul to job sites or just out side.

I still find plenty of applications for the very maneuverable and light weight of the Dremels. The thing I hate is the spray of metal off the cut off disc etc comes up at my face shield rather than down (used right handed). The flex shaft turing the other way allows the spray to fly away from my face.

I bought my flex shaft on a visit to Santa Fe many years ago. They have some great jewelry tool supplies there as you can imagine.
 
You guys would have loved the set up we had at the fine art bronze foundry I worked at. I searched and searched the internet but found no photo of the kind if thing we had. Surely other's made one. It was an in shop made rack. Picture a carrousel tool rack. You can spin it and grab the tool you want from like ten or twelve tools. Each tool is an air grinder with a different tool bit or polishing wheel on it. One air hose comes into the center of the carrousel. Each grinder has a length of hose already on it so you can just go tool, to tool, to tool with no interruption.

Sweet !

By the way the owner said he used to buy expensive grinders but found they didn't last any better than the cheap ones.

They looked like this

The end result looked like this.

That was a very early one before my time.

We didn't do this one but similar work. Heck I didn't even own a camera way back then.
 
Get the Foredom you want. The #30 handpiece is the most versatile.
The flexible shafts turn the same direction as a Dremel, unless they have a reverse switch.
 
I've used up a Dremel, gotten a Foredom and never looked back.
Less RPM, but you don't need them.
Mine can be set in forewards and reverse. I'd reccomend that option
 
Get a reversible Foredom TX or LX 1/3HP flexshaft with the heavy duty square drive shaft. If you need more than one rotary tool, the 1/2HP Mastercarver flex shaft is reversible and really powerful second unit. Both come in hanging or bench mount. Speed control can be foot pedal, bench dial ... or both.

I use a 1/3HP TX unit with the heavy duty shaft all day long every day. I replace the brushes yearly, and lube the shaft every six months or so. That will keep it running at top efficiency for decades. I use the Mastercarver for larger carbide burrs on wood and metal carving. When I really need to hog stuff hard in places where a flexshaft isn't going to work, I grab a handheld 1/4HP electric Woodhog grinder with a 1/4" chuck.
 
synthesist said:
to a Foredom I believe.
Click to expand...

Why not Dumore? They are around $1k new, but can be found used. In some ways, they are a nicer more professional grade machine than Foredom. Both are still USA-made.

I have used everything (Dremel, tons of Foredom, many Dumore) and taken several apart.
I currently have a Dumore Series 6 Low Speed (14,000RPM -- still very high!) 1/4hp model with the Dumore Variable Speed accessory. It's fantastic. Pretty much zero vibration compared to the numerous Foredoms I have used.

Nothing against Foredom -- they are quality USA machines, but not quite on the same level (search practicalmachinist.com and other places if you want to verify).

The one thing I would prefer a Foredom for is <1 second handpiece switching if you have/use multiple handpieces, such as their engraving handpiece.

Whichever one you go for, I personally would get the larger 1/4hp models (or Foredom's 1/3hp). The weaker 1/20-1/8hp ones tend to bog down. Variable speed is great. I personally don't like the variable speed foot pedals... Much prefer to set the correct speed on a dial and use that, the same way I would on a Bridgeport or any other machine (not sure why jeweler's like to guess with their toes each time?). I have a foot pedal that just does ON/OFF.

One other thing to look at (if you want to get really fancy) is high speed brushless rotary tools, like the kind that dentists use.
 
The flexible shafts turn the same direction as a Dremel, unless they have a reverse switch.
Click to expand...

Mr. DeShivs,

You are correct sir. Of course.
I wound up having to prove it to myself.
Doh . . . Ha, ha, ha





I wonder why it eats abrasive wheel mandrels ? More power and lower speed I guess. As I said I run hot and cold on the flex shaft because of this “problem”. I NEVER harm the same mandrels on the Dremels. I probably have a few more of these mandrels sans screw around . I tell myself that I will measure the thread and buy some screws to fix the mandrels but have not done it yet.

I wonder why I got the perception the swarf coming off the bit is going down rather than up into my face. I must hold it different and not even realize.




Speaking of air tools; here’s one for you all . . . a mini belt sander.



 
thank you all for sharing your wisdom. At first blush I like the Bench Motor with Dial Control, M.LXB-EMX. 1/3 hp high torque lower speed seems right for me. But I am going to check out the Dumore (that Catalytic suggested) which got a RAVE review from a modelmaker friend here who has one.

C
 
Well you did say cost is no object. How about a 300,000 rpm hand piece, the NSK Presto, about $750 and uses dental drill bits. Youtube here explains why you want it.

"This video gives you the basics of the NSK Presto II high speed handpiece. It spins at approx. 320,000 rpm. and is used in dental labs throughout the world. Engravers and Carvers that are used to using electric tools to add detail feel like they've died and gone to heaven after "
 
I have a dremel and air tools at home and used a foredom at school. There is no comparison, the foredom wins hands down IMO.
 
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