Industrial Revol
Plastic
- Joined
- Nov 18, 2018
- Location
- Canada, Alberta, Lethbridge
I'm looking to buy a few different tools to use on a manual lathe, what brands do you find to be the best quality for the dollar? Thanks
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Indexable turning tools. best bang for the buck.
- Thread starter Industrial Revol
- Start date
- Replies 21
- Views 11,058
DouglasJRizzo
Titanium
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2011
- Location
- Ramsey, NJ.
Everyone has their preference. I'm partial to Kennametal. For engine lathe, you could probably scout some great finds from MSC.
Pete Deal
Titanium
- Joined
- Apr 10, 2007
- Location
- Morgantown, WV
Try Curtis at Lathe inserts .com I have found his stuff to be very good. I have some 1/2" tooling from him (maybe 5/8?) for my clausing lathe and have bought several 1" tool holders and inserts for my mazak cnc lathe. All works good. Also he is a poster here.
plastikdreams
Diamond
- Joined
- May 31, 2011
- Location
- upstate nj
I've used carbide boring bars from hertel from msc. Surprisingly they were inexpensive (for what they are) and performed quite well. I used them in 17-4 and got consistent great finish. I have also used some of their endmills and was happy with them. I wouldn't hesitate to buy other stuff by them.
I'm an iscar fanboy but I've used seco, kennametal, Mitsubishi, and others with no issues. Basically choose a decent one and go with it.
I'm an iscar fanboy but I've used seco, kennametal, Mitsubishi, and others with no issues. Basically choose a decent one and go with it.
Bill D
Diamond
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2004
- Location
- Modesto, CA USA
I have heard the generic china made ones on ebay are actually a good value for the money and they will make a big bang when they shatter. You did say best bang for the buck.
If you are willing accept one dud out of 20, do your own quality control and spend extra 1½ minutes per tool deburring some edges the generic china ones can be a good value for the money. Just checked the mentioned Dorian list pricing from grainger, 3/4" SCLCR boring bar 151 usd vs. ebay china "crap" 6 usd + 6 usd postage.
MilGunsmith
Stainless
- Joined
- Mar 6, 2006
- Location
- Sandyston, NJ
You can also get some good name brand quality inserts to fit the cheap China tooling.
That's right. Think of it as "Professional" versus "Hobby"...
Or, in terms chosen by the OP, "Quality".
FWIW, MMC ships Dorian for many of it's 'unspecified brand' tooling items. Which is how I ended up trying and subsequently buying bunch more by name.
That's right. Think of it as "Professional" versus "Hobby"...
Or, in terms chosen by the OP, "Quality".
I'm 99% hobby guy but I can also imagine some one-man-band job shop type willing to trade 2 minutes of extra time for deburring&inspection for the saved 138 usd.
"Best quality per dollar" is hard to measure and individual preferences vary. 10 times more expensive but is it 10 times "better"?
Get a solid carbide/heavy metal alloy shank boring bar for the same price as brand name product and the whole comparison is moot. Hard to argue with physics.
AARONT
Stainless
- Joined
- Feb 19, 2013
- Location
- Madison, WI
ZCC-CT is a decent bang for your buck. It's a chinese brand but you can get yourself a 1" WNMG holder for $30 and inserts are pretty cheap as well. Hertel isn't bad either, but the price is a little bit higher. If money isn't an option I prefer Iscar.
Bill D
Diamond
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2004
- Location
- Modesto, CA USA
Depends how much time you have.
(in case it was really unclear to someone I was talking about insert holders)
I mostly use Sandvik since they have good support in my area. I also have a few Pramet, Iscar, Dorian(Dorians came with the QCTP set, I wouldn't go out of my way to buy them otherwise)
Good brand name tool holders are usually only $20-50 than the chinese or off brand crap ones and worth it in how much better they can hold an insert, better quality screws/body material.
Good brand name tool holders are usually only $20-50 than the chinese or off brand crap ones and worth it in how much better they can hold an insert, better quality screws/body material.
You get what you pay for.
If you buy cheap china shit, you'll get cheap china shit. Sure there is the diamond in the rough where you might get lucky and get something decent. But why waste your time?
Buy once.
I have mostly Iscar, as they had good local support when I had a business. I also like Sandvik, but they can be harder to find. I've found great deals on inserts on ebay. I bought 50 inserts for a Sandvik face mill for $2 each. The main thing is to seek out holders that take widely used inserts. Some manufacturers have oddball proprietary inserts that only work in their holders.
Cole2534
Diamond
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2010
- Location
- Oklahoma City, OK
I use his inserts and tools almost exclusively. They're a good value with quick shipping.
G
Guest
Guest
I pretty much use Kennametal or Iscar and buy from Carbide Depot.
Danny VanVoorn
Titanium
- Joined
- Nov 3, 2002
- Location
- St.Louis, Missouri, USA
I have a preference to Kennametal mainly due to the wide usage where I worked. I bought several different styles and brands of holders for my own use, some new and some used. The only one I hated was a Chinese positive triangle tool set (right, neutral and left hand) that had one side only plus the screw locating the insert?
I noticed the new 1/2" lathe tools I bought for my 11" lathe all Kennametal said Swiss made on them. I really like the machine work on the insert seat area on those and was happy to pay list price in the end.
Dan
I noticed the new 1/2" lathe tools I bought for my 11" lathe all Kennametal said Swiss made on them. I really like the machine work on the insert seat area on those and was happy to pay list price in the end.
Dan
You must be talking about these:
31070 - 5 Piece Lathe Tool Set, 3/8" Square Shank
Seem like everyone in US has started with this style.
About as desirable as testicle cancer. Inherent design of the turd won't get any better even if you spend 10 times more money and buy US made set wrapped in star spangled flag.
