Who makes really tough HSS drill bits?

[penfold]

I would say buy a pillar drill now rather than later. Second hand is fine they don't deteriorate very much. I reckon my old pillar drill is my most loved tool of all. It enables you to get that pressure very easily.
As for poster who complained about cheap drills breaking. I suspect that is his handling method. Generally more brittle drills means hearder means better. Again use a pillar drill.
olewill

Cheapnese rolled flute drills splinter like matchwood in the smaller sizes even without abusing them; I suspect it is a combination of unrelieved internal stresses from the hardening process, poor alloy choice/control, excessive relief angles on the cutting edges and inadequate thickness in the web between the flutes. I'd second that about used pedestal drills; bide your time on ebay and british-made drills can be bought for less than a new one from China, one of the few obvious benefits of industrial decline in the UK.

 

[DownWest]

Re buying a pillar drill. Even the basic chinese ones are a lot better than hand drilling, as low speed and pressure are good, plus a stable table/chuck set up. You will be surprised how useful you find it. I have been given the odd one and passed them on to less well equipped friends, who have found them very handy.

 

[Greenheart]

I know, all that you gentlemen say is wise and good sense. Trouble is, I don't even have a bench on which to place a pillar drill.

Surprisingly, I've made good use of the spirit level on the back of the cordless drill, to maintain a pretty vertical pressure on the stainless I'm drilling, and the pricey French-made bit has finally cut the holes I needed. I won't say it wasn't a long job because it was, and it has cost about six bits.

I was fortunate in finding a neighbour with a vice & bench in his garage. With this, I managed to grind the necessary slots. It wasn't hard to grind a slot wider than the disc itself. I don't want to think about how I'd hoped to keep the bolt still while grinding...my plan had been to hold the bolt in vice-grip pliers, which I'd stand on to keep them steady...

The photo (not a very good one) shows the bolt I started with, the thing I've created in the middle, and the thing I was trying to replace at the bottom...

View attachment 43782

...I realise the one I've made will want some rounding off to cover sharp edges. It looks horrifically crude, but it fits in the spreader-end extremely neatly, and the hole I drilled in the square section (originally meant to be wider than the slot) takes the shroud perfectly; and the hole through the side allows the securing pin to fit in the hole on the spreaders...

...so, all quite satisfactory. I was surprised and initially frustrated to find that I couldn't just BUY a new spreader end-cap that would have fitted my rig, but I really doubt anything available commercially could have done a better job than the ones I've made myself.

 

[William_H]

Congratulations ona na excellent job under very difficult circumstances. Just make sure you put lots of duralac or similar between the SS and the ali spreader. good luck olewill

 

[Greenheart]

Good point, thanks Mr H...although the spreader-bar feels so heavy, I reckon it's stainless too, rather than aluminium. I've got Duralac anyway, though.