drill bit recommendation,please

[dersbum]

hi
can someone please recommend a good quality drill bit set.
just for use on steel never more than 5mm thickness, usually just 1-2mm.
i have lots of odd ones floating about the workshop but it would be handy to have a full set maybe up to 13mm in 0.5 increments

i seem to have gained some chinese rubbish in there somewhere along the line because it really frustrates me when i reach for one and it is not up to the job. honestly some of them may as well be made of chocolate.
i do have the odd cobalt one and i have found them to be very good but they came from work and i have no idea what make they are.
any opinions or advice welcomed.
i am trying to avoid shelling out dosh for rubbish quality i dont mind paying if they can bore more than one hole without deciding to try and burn their way through.
regards
Bill

 

[rtbcomp]

Dormer are a good make.

 

[Shox Dr]

Machine mart sell a Cobalt set 1.0-10 in .5mm steps. I have a set and they are very good, £19.95

That or TRACY tOOLS DO LOT OF DIFFERENT (ARRRRRR CAPS) sizes. I have a load of theirs as well

 

[Metalkoi]

I like the Dewalt set that is sold by BOC,the larger drills have a sall pilot on them,i work on Landrovers and give them plenty of abuse and have yet to break one.
Andy

 

[outofthefire]

Dormer for me aswell, plus cutting paste. Some of the cheaper drills only seem to be tempered at the tip, once they've been sharpened a few times they wont hold an edge anymore.

 

[Dune]

I don't want to teach people to suck eggs here but you are using them right? Correct speeds and going up in stages rather that big jumps? Cause really if they are marked HSS they should do the job.

 

[brightspark]

I don't want to teach people to suck eggs here but you are using them right? Correct speeds and going up in stages rather that big jumps? Cause really if they are marked HSS they should do the job.

theres drills and drills just because its marked hss doesnt mean its any good
ive had a few cheap sh ../te sets saying hss and either binned them or given them to a joiner for use on wood .as thats all they are good for. presto dormer sherwood ect are quality .u get what u pay for

 

[busastars]

I got a set of cheep Clark HSS and they are rubbish. I bought a few years back a load of singles in various sizes of Colbalt drills and they have been great. They did cost me a fair old bit mind.

I'm not the best mind at taking care of Drills and do abuse them using wrong speeds and jumping up to big, I am learning my lessons as I get older.

 

[Fazed]

I like Irwin Turbomax drill bits. I keep a set for 'best' and no one, ever, EVER, borrows them... or this happens-
The135 degree split point tip cuts on contact so you don't really need to centre-punch.
I have some cobalts for stainless but the Irwins work well with Kutamatic fluid.
For general use and abuse you can't go far wrong with Dormer or Presto. Stay away from the cheap Chinese sets, they're crap.

 

[langy]

CT90 is your friend when drilling along with the correct speed.

I have 2 sets of Dormers i bought when i was an apprentice and i still have them all but the small ones. I noticed a couple of years ago they are not as good as they once were I have a friend who works for them and he told me that Dormer moved the drill making to China a while ago, That explained a lot

There are nowadays 2 types of Dormer drills, 1 for steel & 1 for stainless, As most of my work is stainless i use the stainless type for everything but they aern't as good as the used to be, sigh !!!

 

[dersbum]

Thank you for the recommendations fellas.
its pay day tomorrow so i will be having a look around to see what is on offer.
dune, i do step up in sizes and use lubricant/coolant they must just be crap quality.
To be honest i have no idea where some of them came from, i am definately not a tidy freak and just have a box with them all thrown in.
maybe when i invest and spend a bit more cash on them i will look after them better.

 

[Endacy]

I like my Dormer A002 drills (titanium coated). Available on ebay often cheaply, Cromwell tools sell them too.

 

[Welderpaul]

Dormer A002 bits are about the best of the bunch. Use a decent cutting paste/fluid, the right cutting speed and pressure and they will last a good while.

 

[Dune]

I bought a box full of JCB HSS drills. And when I say a box full everything from 1mm up to 10mm and theres between 15 and 5 of each size (dependant on size). Now I paid a princely sum of £7 plus vat for them over 100 drills in total as there are masonary drills as well. Ive used the for a couple of years now without problem on everything from SS, mild and theyve taken out numerous bolts from EXUP systems. Now these must be cheap drills to be that price and I expected to go through them like others. So if you see them about they are worth buying even just for the metal box they come in.

 

[NTwoO]

FEW and Dormer.

I have a Cobalt set of Phantom drills for home use. They are slightly less expensive, but also work beautifully.