Where do you get your small carbide drill bits?

J

jball1125

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Aug 26, 2011
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Like the title says. Also, do you guys have dedicated carbide drill bits for counterboring in Ti?
 
If you go to the Drill Bit City website there is a link to Drill Bit City II which sells reground tungsten carbide drill bits in metric, fractional, and machinist numbered sizes. I buy mine in packs of 10 in the sizes I use most. They are fragile and brittle. Use a drill bit coolant oil and a high speed . Try drilling on top of a piece of soft steel scrap so you don't break a bit when you break through with your hole. There are other sources but this is what I use and the prices are good... at least to me. I hope this helps. Larry Lehman
 
Thanks for the heads up on drill bit city. I'm drilling holes in 154cm at 800rpm with cutting fluid and im still rounding off bits. I read yesterday that I might wann to drill through into some mild steel. I shattered my carbide bit yesterday that I waited 2 weeks to get delivered.
 
Waited 2 weeks for delivery! MSC delivers next day!

Are you drilling hardened or annealed 154cm? I only need carbide when I drill the detent hole in a hardened blade. Other than that everything including TI gets drilled with cobalt.
 
What about enco? When they have 20% off and free shipping the prices are pretty darn good.
 
jball1125 said:
Like the title says. Also, do you guys have dedicated carbide drill bits for counterboring in Ti?
Click to expand...

I don't find it necessary to use carbide tools for titanium, for the work I do HSS
high speed steel works just fine.


If I were to want to do a counterbore, I'd use a contergbore tool, not a drill
 
I appreciate the replies everyone. I am not drilling anything more than 1/4". I have been searching for some counterbore tools with carbide tips but they are pretty expensive. I'll be looking for some HSS, I would like to buy a set with a bunch of smaller sizes but really don't want to be spending $300.
 
Jball, If you are drilling 154 cm or any popular stainless like 440 c, ats-34, or cpm 154 then you might want to use cobalt drill bits. They are cheaper than tungsten carbide and will not break as easily. I buy mine from Grainger's but MSC is a great source also. I wonder why you want a carbide counterbore. I use counterbore drills from Jantz and Texas knife supply made especially for Loveless bolts and Corby bolts but they are for drilling wood or Micarta, etc. Shop your drill bits online and look for deals then buy a bunch at once to save shipping costs. I always buy at least 3 bits of one size even if I rarely use it because I hate stopping in the middle of a project with a broken or dull bit.
 
Chuck Gedraitis Knives said:
Waited 2 weeks for delivery! MSC delivers next day!
Click to expand...

PT Doc said:
What about enco? When they have 20% off and free shipping the prices are pretty darn good.
Click to expand...

What these gentlemen said :thumbup: I always check MSC first, and if I'm not in a hurry, I get the same thing from ENCO for a much cheaper price and wait a few days for it.

If you're paying catalog prices from MSC, McMaster-Carr, Grainger, Fastenal etc. and you're actually a full-time maker/licensed business, you're paying way too much. Contact a sales rep and ask them about setting up a business account. Don't be shy to tell 'em you're shopping around with the other firms; those companies all keep close tabs on each other's pricing and they want your support. If you buy $100 worth of tools per year, they're probably not going to be able to help you much... if you order $10K/year they will be extremely interested in you... most of us are somewhere in between...

FYI, MSC and ENCO are owned by the same corporation... MSC specializes in the high-end stuff and very fast handling; ENCO also has both domestic tools and import "equivalents" and lower prices, but slower service.

I only know all this because my wife happens to work for MSC. No, I don't get a discount on stuff for the shop since I'm a business, nor would I be allowed to pass any such discount along to my friends and colleagues. So don't ask :)

We do get killer discounts on stuff for personal/home/garden use though, so "nanner nanner boo boo!" :D
 
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