Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a retailer?

mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place
to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about HSS
is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt
and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits
for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to
buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

Buy a good drill bit sharpener. I have the Drill Doctor 750, and love it.
Drill bits are from five cents to a dollar at yard sales. You already
probably have lots of bits where a thirty second tuning would make them like
new.

Steve

Steve B wrote:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt
and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits
for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to
buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

Buy a good drill bit sharpener. I have the Drill Doctor 750, and love it.
Drill bits are from five cents to a dollar at yard sales. You already
probably have lots of bits where a thirty second tuning would make them like
new.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll take a look at that sharpener. I tried using
one many years ago, and it did not go well. Is this one idiot proof?

Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about HSS
is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the problem of my
missing bits from my set!

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place
to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and haven't
had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about HSS is that
they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the problem
of my missing bits from my set!

eBay is your friend. Cheap drill bits are easy to find, but quality ones are
out there also. Or visit your local hardware store. Even HomeDepot carries
good drill bits. And definitely get a good drill bit sharpener. I have one
and I love it! Even cheap drill bits can be easily sharpened and given a new
lease on life.

mcp6453 wrote:
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where
do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is
"standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about
HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

If it's only a handful, order onesies-twosies next time you have to
order from McMaster-Carr, or if you have a GOOD hardware store (mine
closed, weep weep) they probably sell them in bins. You're going to
break the 3/64" one the second or third time you use it anyway, unless
you use them exclusively in a drill press.

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel

On Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:26:19 -0500, mcp6453 wrote:

Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a retailer?


My local CostCo has a set of 99 Toshiba (or Hitachi) branded drill
bits. Multiple copies of various and sundry sizes for $20. It's the
gold colored metal, whatever that is.

On 12/24/2009 1:56 PM, mcp6453 wrote:
Steve B wrote:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where
do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is
"standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

Buy a good drill bit sharpener. I have the Drill Doctor 750, and love
it. Drill bits are from five cents to a dollar at yard sales. You
already probably have lots of bits where a thirty second tuning would
make them like new.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll take a look at that sharpener. I
tried using one many years ago, and it did not go well. Is this one
idiot proof?

I don't think sharpening drill bits is rocket science or that you need
extra tools. Here's a first Google hit I got and I'm sure there are better:

http://www.essortment.com/home/drillbitsharpe_sbwh.htm

An occasional DYI'er like myself gets by resharpening with tools at hand.

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and
black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin
metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to
buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

No, high speed steel is just fine in appropriate materials like mild steel,
or softer materials.

Carbide is nice if you are working on hard material or if you are in a
production environment where you have a need for higher speed and longer
tool life.

Carbide tip drills are usually used for masonry or in some cases to drill
holes in hard materials.

Cobalt is used for steels that are a little bit harder than HSS can handle
(retainer pins) but not glass hard things like files.

Black oxide or the gold colored titanium nitride bits give you some
advantages in corrosion protection and help resist galling, bit in and of
itself means a whole lot less than the quality and the geometry of the steel
below.

Check out McMaster Carr or another machine shop supply for the better
quality drill bits, and you might want to order a few extra of the more
commonly used sizes.

--

Roger Shoaf

About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then
they come up with this striped stuff.

Roger Shoaf wrote:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and
black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin
metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to
buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

No, high speed steel is just fine in appropriate materials like mild steel,
or softer materials.

Carbide is nice if you are working on hard material or if you are in a
production environment where you have a need for higher speed and longer
tool life.

Carbide tip drills are usually used for masonry or in some cases to drill
holes in hard materials.

Cobalt is used for steels that are a little bit harder than HSS can handle
(retainer pins) but not glass hard things like files.

Black oxide or the gold colored titanium nitride bits give you some
advantages in corrosion protection and help resist galling, bit in and of
itself means a whole lot less than the quality and the geometry of the steel
below.

Check out McMaster Carr or another machine shop supply for the better
quality drill bits, and you might want to order a few extra of the more
commonly used sizes.


Excellent information, Roger. Regarding masonry bits, some packages say they are
usable in hammer drills, some are not. Is there a way to look at a bit and tell
whether it is rated for use in a hammer drill? While cleaning up my shop
yesterday, I found a brand new, in-the-box, hammer drill that I received as a
Christmas present a few years ago. Go figure.

mcp6453 wrote:

All I think I know is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good.


From personal experience, I've found that Harbor Freight titanium coated bits
are worth about what you pay for them. Not sure why, but they do not cut well at
all.

mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst.

Wrong
__________

Carbide tips are good.

Yes if you are drilling masonry, glass, tile, etc.
___________

Where do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix?

Cobalt = hard = for steel especially thick steel. Ditto titanium but those
are coated, not solid. Black oxide is just a finish, helps prevent rust
(red oxide), nothing more.
______________

My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather
than masonry.

For wood, brad point bits are nice, no good for anything else except maybe
plastic. If you don't want brad points, just get HSS.
________________

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits?

Any place
____________

Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

Not much point in it unless you are buying a bunch and can get them cheaper
including shipping.

IMO, bits are disposable items...when they no longer cut well, toss and buy
another.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Steve B wrote:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place
to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

Buy a good drill bit sharpener. I have the Drill Doctor 750, and love
it. Drill bits are from five cents to a dollar at yard sales. You
already probably have lots of bits where a thirty second tuning would
make them like new.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll take a look at that sharpener. I tried
using one many years ago, and it did not go well. Is this one idiot proof?

Pretty close. I bought one about five years ago, and the new ones are more
idiot proof. It sat in a closet for a long long time. When I did use it,
there was a very short learning curve, and even the online directions went
to the new one, and I had to search a bit for the instructions of the old
one. It was so old, it had a VHS instruction tape.

They ain't rocket surgery, but there are a couple of little things you will
catch on to. It sure is nice if you're in the middle of a project and smoke
a bit to just go sharpen it, and not have to go buy one at a far away store
or use the wrong bit and then wallow the hole. Especially when a decent
sized quality bit is $10 now.

As I said, you can get lots and lots at yard sales for pennies, literally.
I have THREE full indexes now, and that's mostly from just sharpening dull
ones I had thrown into cigar boxes. I'd just buy more, but at garage sales.
Occasionally, if I needed a letter bit for drilling a hole to tap, I'd go
splurge on a new one.

From what I understand, the issues with the first ones were improved on the
later models, but with the old ones, it would take a real doofus not to be
able to work them. The biggest problem I have is sharpening small bits, but
I am discovering that it is all in the touch. And listening to it when it
cuts will tell you a lot, too.

Watch the video and keep the instructions. I understand there's a lot of
valuable information in there. ;-)

HTH

Steve

"Frank" wrote

I don't think sharpening drill bits is rocket science or that you need
extra tools. Here's a first Google hit I got and I'm sure there are
better:

http://www.essortment.com/home/drillbitsharpe_sbwh.htm

An occasional DYI'er like myself gets by resharpening with tools at hand.

My dad was a lifelong machinist. He was a flight engineer on bombers in
WWII in the South Pacific. He could take one of those little one by two
inch whetstones and sharpen a bit in a couple of minutes. He looked like a
surgeon looking at the angles, and holding his hands just so.

I never could get it. Even if I lived to be a hundred. Then with a badly
broken thumb, bad wrist, and years of use and injuries, my hands don't work
like intended.

For us, there are the cheating devices. I do good on knives, mower blades,
chisels, and other stuff.

Steve

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Roger Shoaf wrote:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt
and
black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin
metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place
to
buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

No, high speed steel is just fine in appropriate materials like mild
steel,
or softer materials.

Carbide is nice if you are working on hard material or if you are in a
production environment where you have a need for higher speed and longer
tool life.

Carbide tip drills are usually used for masonry or in some cases to drill
holes in hard materials.

Cobalt is used for steels that are a little bit harder than HSS can
handle
(retainer pins) but not glass hard things like files.

Black oxide or the gold colored titanium nitride bits give you some
advantages in corrosion protection and help resist galling, bit in and of
itself means a whole lot less than the quality and the geometry of the
steel
below.

Check out McMaster Carr or another machine shop supply for the better
quality drill bits, and you might want to order a few extra of the more
commonly used sizes.


Excellent information, Roger. Regarding masonry bits, some packages say
they are usable in hammer drills, some are not. Is there a way to look at
a bit and tell whether it is rated for use in a hammer drill? While
cleaning up my shop yesterday, I found a brand new, in-the-box, hammer
drill that I received as a Christmas present a few years ago. Go figure.

I know you got a new drill, but in the future, if you need to do any serious
drilling (lots of holes, or holes larger than 3/8") consider a roto hammer
with SDS bits. They lock in, and a roto hammer compared to a hammer drill
is like comparing a hand drill to an electric drill. Lots of good used ones
available, too. I got a nice Makita at a yard sale for $20, and have used
it to drill holes up to 1". It also has a chisel setting, and I have bought
a set of points for breaking concrete and stones and such. Be sure to get
the SDS, as some brand names (Hilti comes to mind) have proprietary drill
bits that can run $100! SDS bits at the Borg are very reasonable, and if
you can find them at yard sales, DIRT CHEAP.

Just a FYI thing.

Steve

"Robert Neville" wrote in message
news
mcp6453 wrote:

All I think I know is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips
are good.


From personal experience, I've found that Harbor Freight titanium coated
bits
are worth about what you pay for them. Not sure why, but they do not cut
well at
all.

Harbor Freight bits are good for wood. Very soft wood. And use light
pressure.

Steve

On Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:26:19 -0500, mcp6453 wrote:

Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a retailer?


My local CostCo has a set of 99 Toshiba (or Hitachi) branded drill
bits. Multiple copies of various and sundry sizes for $20. It's the
gold colored metal, whatever that is.

On Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:26:19 -0500, mcp6453 wrote:

Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a retailer?

HS steel is my choice. If you can find them made in the US or Canada,
all the better. You can use HS steel bits for either wood or metal.
My masonary bits are carbide tipped, but hat is not what you want for
wood or metal. Not sure if Craftsman bits are China-made junk or not?
I prefer to replace the bits, but you can certainly sharpen your old
bits if you spend the time.

On 12/24/2009 12:51 PM Steve B spake thus:

"mcp6453" wrote in message

Excellent information, Roger. Regarding masonry bits, some packages say
they are usable in hammer drills, some are not. Is there a way to look at
a bit and tell whether it is rated for use in a hammer drill? While
cleaning up my shop yesterday, I found a brand new, in-the-box, hammer
drill that I received as a Christmas present a few years ago. Go figure.

I know you got a new drill, but in the future, if you need to do any serious
drilling (lots of holes, or holes larger than 3/8") consider a roto hammer
with SDS bits. They lock in, and a roto hammer compared to a hammer drill
is like comparing a hand drill to an electric drill. Lots of good used ones
available, too. I got a nice Makita at a yard sale for $20, and have used
it to drill holes up to 1". It also has a chisel setting, and I have bought
a set of points for breaking concrete and stones and such. Be sure to get
the SDS, as some brand names (Hilti comes to mind) have proprietary drill
bits that can run $100! SDS bits at the Borg are very reasonable, and if
you can find them at yard sales, DIRT CHEAP.

I was going to say before you replied that there are hammer drills and
there are rotary hammers, which aren't the same thing.

But what's the difference? I know I've used rotary hammers w/SDS bits,
and that they make short work of drilling holes in concrete. But I
really don't know the difference between the two types of tools.

One thing's for sure, for the OP: those carbide masonry bits you get at
the big orange store or equivalent are *not* made to be used in anything
but a regular old drill. That much I know.


--
I am a Canadian who was born and raised in The Netherlands. I live on
Planet Earth on a spot of land called Canada. We have noisy neighbours.

- harvested from Usenet

High speed are used for soft stuff like plastic. They last a
while on metal.

Colbalt and black oxide and titanium are supposed to last
longer than high speed.

Carbide are for masonry, ceramic, glass, etc.

I'm not sure an indsutrial is any better. My problem is that
most drill assortments take up a couple dozen cubic inches
of air space around a dozen or so drill bits. They used to
sell drill bits in a flat case that I really liked.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I
think I know is that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where
do cobalt and black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill
bits for thin metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a
good place to buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather
than a retailer?

On Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:26:19 -0500, mcp6453 wrote:

Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is that
high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do cobalt and black
oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard" drill bits for thin metals
and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place to buy
drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a retailer?


HSS are good enough for most home uses.

A Black Oxide drill is just a coating that makes the original drill
lasts a little longer than HSS, but the drill loses its benefit once
the coating is gone.

Cobalt last much longer

Titanium coated drills are for very hard steels but once the coating
wears you lose the benefits.

Carbide drills made for metal are for extremely hard materials but
chip with interrupted cuts. Hard to sharpen. Must use a diamond
wheel for sharpening.

****************
HSS and Cobalt can be sharpened easily without losing any quality.
This can be done by hand with a little practice. You can buy a drill
gauge to lay the drill against and check your work.

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place
to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than a
retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and haven't
had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about HSS is that
they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the problem
of my missing bits from my set!

Don't worry.
They'll turn up.
Or they won't.

Steve

In ,
Zootal typed:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I
know is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good.
Where do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in
is "standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than
masonry. My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a
good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing
about HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try
sharpening them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

eBay is your friend. Cheap drill bits are easy to find, but quality
ones are out there also. Or visit your local hardware store. Even
HomeDepot carries good drill bits. And definitely get a good drill
bit sharpener. I have one and I love it! Even cheap drill bits can be
easily sharpened and given a new lease on life.

Ebay is simply a tool which gives results dependent on the expertise of the
user and how well they read the manual. It's not a "friend". In fact,
without excercising care and RTFM it's one of the easiest places there is to
get screwed.

Twayne


--
--
We've already reached
tomorrow's yesterday
but we're still far away from
yesterday's tomorrow.

"Twayne" wrote in message
...
In ,
Zootal typed:
"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I
know is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good.
Where do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in
is "standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than
masonry. My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a
good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing
about HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try
sharpening them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

eBay is your friend. Cheap drill bits are easy to find, but quality
ones are out there also. Or visit your local hardware store. Even
HomeDepot carries good drill bits. And definitely get a good drill
bit sharpener. I have one and I love it! Even cheap drill bits can be
easily sharpened and given a new lease on life.

Ebay is simply a tool which gives results dependent on the expertise of
the user and how well they read the manual. It's not a "friend". In fact,
without excercising care and RTFM it's one of the easiest places there is
to get screwed.

Twayne


Life is like that in general, is it not? No matter where you go and what you
do, your results depend on your expertise, and if you are not cautious you
can easily end up screwed.

Speak for yourself if you wish, but eBay is my friend, and with a little
care and experience, it can be the friend of the OP. It it is a good place
to find drill bits.

"Steve B" wrote in message
news

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know is
that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good place
to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier rather than
a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about HSS
is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

Don't worry.
They'll turn up.
Or they won't.

Steve


I usually lose or break them before they wear out except for paddle bits...I
have worn them out...Never thought about sharpening them though I just
replace them.....How do you do those ???

"benick" wrote in message
...

"Steve B" wrote in message
news

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about
HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

Don't worry.
They'll turn up.
Or they won't.

Steve


I usually lose or break them before they wear out except for paddle
bits...I have worn them out...Never thought about sharpening them though I
just replace them.....How do you do those ???

I just use paddle bits to drill a raggedy hole. That's about all I can get
from them. I have never tried to sharpen one, but I guess it could be done
with a small wheel on a Foredom, Dremel, or even a Makita die grinder. If I
need a decent hole, I use a Forstner, and I have gotten a lot of those at
garage sales. If I had to buy them new, I wouldn't. Some of these are so
old, I have to cut off the faceted end to get them to chuck up.

Steve

"Steve B" wrote in message
...

"benick" wrote in message
...

"Steve B" wrote in message
news

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where
do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is
"standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about
HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

Don't worry.
They'll turn up.
Or they won't.

Steve


I usually lose or break them before they wear out except for paddle
bits...I have worn them out...Never thought about sharpening them though
I just replace them.....How do you do those ???

I just use paddle bits to drill a raggedy hole. That's about all I can
get from them. I have never tried to sharpen one, but I guess it could be
done with a small wheel on a Foredom, Dremel, or even a Makita die
grinder. If I need a decent hole, I use a Forstner, and I have gotten a
lot of those at garage sales. If I had to buy them new, I wouldn't. Some
of these are so old, I have to cut off the faceted end to get them to
chuck up.

Steve


I was drilling 3/4 and 1 inch holes through 150 year old petrified 4X4's in
my dads house for plumbing and heat(copper pipe)....After a while they just
start burning their way through...Boy did that old wood stink when they
started smoking...Went through a few...LOL...

benick wrote:

"Steve B" wrote in message
news

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I
know is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good.
Where do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is
"standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about
HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try
sharpening them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

Don't worry.
They'll turn up.
Or they won't.

Steve


I usually lose or break them before they wear out except for paddle
bits...I have worn them out...Never thought about sharpening them though
I just replace them.....How do you do those ???

I use a mill ******* "flat file" to sharpen paddle bits or any other
bit I'm using out on a job. Of course a drill sharpener or bench grinder
used with appropriate skill is much better for sharpening twist drills.

TDD

Zootal wrote:
wrote in message
...
In ,
typed:
wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I
know is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good.
Where do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in
is "standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than
masonry. My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a
good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing
about HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try
sharpening them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

eBay is your friend. Cheap drill bits are easy to find, but quality
ones are out there also. Or visit your local hardware store. Even
HomeDepot carries good drill bits. And definitely get a good drill
bit sharpener. I have one and I love it! Even cheap drill bits can be
easily sharpened and given a new lease on life.

Ebay is simply a tool which gives results dependent on the expertise of
the user and how well they read the manual. It's not a "friend". In fact,
without excercising care and RTFM it's one of the easiest places there is
to get screwed.

Twayne


Life is like that in general, is it not? No matter where you go and what you
do, your results depend on your expertise, and if you are not cautious you
can easily end up screwed.

Speak for yourself if you wish, but eBay is my friend, and with a little
care and experience, it can be the friend of the OP. It it is a good place
to find drill bits.


Hmm,
Define friend. I use eBay a lot but it is not a friend.

"The Daring Dufas" wrote in message
...
benick wrote:

"Steve B" wrote in message
news

"mcp6453" wrote in message
...
Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where
do cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is
"standard" drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about
HSS is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the
problem of my missing bits from my set!

Don't worry.
They'll turn up.
Or they won't.

Steve


I usually lose or break them before they wear out except for paddle
bits...I have worn them out...Never thought about sharpening them though
I just replace them.....How do you do those ???

I use a mill ******* "flat file" to sharpen paddle bits or any other
bit I'm using out on a job. Of course a drill sharpener or bench grinder
used with appropriate skill is much better for sharpening twist drills.

TDD

Thanks...I'll try experimenting with some old paddle bits I have kicking
around...

In article ,
"dadiOH" wrote:

Carbide tips are good.

Yes if you are drilling masonry, glass, tile, etc.

Carbide is great for stainless, but it's better suited for a mill or
drill press than it is for a hand-held drill.

In article ,
mcp6453 wrote:

Nate Nagel wrote:
mcp6453 wrote:
Can someone give me a quick primer on drill bits? All I think I know
is that high speed steel is the worst. Carbide tips are good. Where do
cobalt and black oxide fit into the mix? My interest in is "standard"
drill bits for thin metals and wood rather than masonry.

My Craftsmen sets are showing their age and wear. Where is a good
place to buy drill bits? Should I look at an industrial supplier
rather than a retailer?

IME yes. I have some regular old HSS bits from McMaster-Carr and
haven't had any issues with them in light use. The nice thing about HSS
is that they can be resharpened.

If your Craftsman bits are just old and dull, you might try sharpening
them rather than buying new ones.

nate


You and Steve made the same suggestion, but that doesn't solve the problem of
my
missing bits from my set!

Go to a genuine industrial supply house. Borg bits are junk.