Deals & Steals

Howdy folks. The idea behind this post is to have a place where people post about items they've just purchased that they think are good deals. This way other readers can get a shot before the deal goes away if they're interested. Accordingly, one should post items that you can buy more of, rather than for example a one of a kind eBay bargain. I'm also envisioning people would post only what they personally choose to buy and not just "it's available", but that's up to the group to decide.

I'll start things off with an SPI Gage Block set I just ordered from Enco. It's an 81 piece Grade 3 set on sale for $169. Regular price is $484.95, so it's a pretty good discount. I've had good luck with SPI, though I realize they're just a distributor of a lot of other company's tools, so when I heard about these over on HSM, I decided I'd bite. That's pretty cheap for a nice set of gage blocks. Here is a link to these blocks:

http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PMAKA=319-3801&PMPXNO=19507166&PARTPG=INLMK32

When I get the latest Enco free shipping code, I'll put it out here too. If you all like this idea, what have you ordered lately?

Cheers,

BW

I'm thinking about getting one of those inside mics that was mentioned here. For $23 I'd say that's a bargin.

Bernd

I have been wanting a set of 3-C hex collets for a couple of years. They seem like proverbial hens teeth . About a year ago I saw some on e-bay for $150 for a set of 10 a bit pricey and I had to change jobs at the time so had to wait. A couple months ago I found another E-Bay Seller that had them for $50 so picked up a set they seem nice I have not used them yet but Am happy with the looks.
It appears he only has individual hex collets and square and round sets listed right now but an email to him would likely get some listed.
Tin

You probably heard about this from the HSM board, but CDCO has their AXA (and some larger) QCTP holders on sale. I snagged 5 of the boring, turning, and facing holders for $10.00 apiece:

http://www.cdcotools.com/index.php

Seems like I never have enough of these little devils!

Another recent purchase (actually was a gift to me) was this Lathemaster scissors-style knurler:

http://www.lathemaster.com/DUALHEADKNURLINGTOOL.htm

For $23.95, I decided to take that project off my "todo" list and forgo building one. I haven't tried it yet, but I know knurling with the more typical style wasn't as nice as I'd like so I hope this works better.

Cheers,

BW

Thanks Bob, for the link on the toolholders. I'll get me a few more. I have two lathes with the same toolpost. This way i can interchange them. I want to get one of these that has drill chuck mounted on it. I have one at work, and use it alot.

Wes

Wes, you should write up in a thread how to use those chucks in tool holders. I've got a note near the top of one of my CNCCookbook pages on it:

http://www.cnccookbook.com/CCBlogMar2007.htm

but you may have some more tricks to share.

Meanwhile, I just got in a 6" 4-jaw chuck from Shars today. I order a lot of things from Shars and CDCO. They're my favorite for the Asian import outfits. This chuck was very nicely made and I got it for $58.90, which seemed a good deal for what it was:



Sorry the jaws are out of it in that photo, but you can see the intended use: it's going to go with my 8" Phase II Rotab. A 4-jaw is ideal for a rotab because you typically want to dial the part into the axis of rotation. I'd say this chuck is a little nicer than the one that came with my Lathemaster 9x30 too.

Best,

BW

Got in my 5 QCTP toolholders from CDCO and did a brief write up on my lathe QCTP tooling on my blog:

http://www.cnccookbook.com/index.htm

Here is the tooling:



I conclude I need to order even more CDCO holders!

I also got my SPI gage block set from Enco. Regular $484 on sale for $169. This was a nice set. Here are some piccies of it alongside my $50 eBay gage blocks:





Big news is the certificate of traceability from NIST:

Dang Bob. I wish I was set up like that on your QC tool post.I need to get off my behind at get one of those.nice set.

I just heard over at CNCZone that the DD750 Drill Doctor, the "best" one, is on sale for half price: $99.99. Free shipping too if you're willing to wait 5 days.

There's 20 left!

Best,

BW

I got my CDCO AXA-style holders as well. At $10 for the grooved (boring) variety, and $9 for the regular, it's a smoking deal. And they are better than your average holders as far as finish. Stock up now while you can!

Got a couple 800Watt (eBay seller) items in today, both were very nice.

Bought 2 mic stands for $5 apiece:



Also got a universal vise for tool grinding for $55:



The vise looks real nice.

Now here is the kicker. A lot of folks complain about 800Watt. I've never had a problem, but there was an extra bonus when I opened the universal vise. He'd thrown in two free butane "instant on" torches because their boxes were the right size to keep the vise from sliding around.

I thought that was pretty nice!

Best,

BW

I've had nothing but good luck from the 800Watt guy. His shipping is steep; keep that in mind. But the products 9and prices) are great. As i mentioned in the other thread, I LOVE those all-stainless calipers! ;D

Kind of jumping on th band wagon late here. I just got in my order of AXA tool holders from CDCO . IIRC a year ago I got one from them at Cabin fever and had to adjust it in the belt sander. A pain but not a big deal .
This time I ordered one with the BB groove and four w/o . These all popped on the genuine Aloris tool post just fine the fit and finish is great.
IIRC the last Aloris one I got on the used market was $20 and worn on the edges.
I also ordered one of the " center finders" the gadget for drilling round stock. That looked like someone ran it over with a truck the v part was bent and made of very soft metal the rivet job is poor. But for $4 I can tweak it.
Tin

Good deal Tin!

I think I got satiated on the holders. I ordered a total of 12 and have 3 sitting unused at present. I know I'll fill 'em up, but for the time being I can quit worrying about it. I've been going back and as time and interest permit, I'm doing some custom HSS tooling to hone my skills there. So far made a nice round nose finishing bit, and a form tool for a pulley project I undertook to fix my brother's car window regulator assembly.

My lastest "steal deal" is a Bijur cooling mister:



These are being sold by eBay seller govnuk. See for example eBay item 360028986404 or just search for "Bijur". They're new old stock, apparently, and not clear how many he has. Bijur quit making them, but they are really nicely made. Note that they are not a complete mist system: just the tank. Also, these tanks have a 110V solenoid valve. Apply AC, and the valve opens and you get coolant. This is ideal to control via a relay for CNC, or if you want to put a remote switch up by the spindle controls on your mill.

You will need to buy or make a nozzle, and provide misc. plumbing to connect air and connect the tank to the nozzle. I plan to make my own nozzle, they're very easy. I have details up on my project wish list page:

http://www.cnccookbook.com/CCWishListFutures.htm

Anyway, this thing was a deal for $80. You can see badly used ones on eBay selling for over $100. If you've been wanting something like this, it might be a deal for you too.

Best,

BW

Latest acquisition: Bison collet chucks. I got two from a seller called "Nodicor" for $70 apiece, which is a good discount. Bison makes good stuff. OTOH, Maritool has them for $50. DOH! I hate finding a better price later!

Meanwhile, I bought the new chucks because I thought my last ER32 had too much runout, and that this was why I was breaking 1/8" end mills on my oil grooving project. When the Bisons arrived, I got busy measuring runouts. It turns out that while they are slightly better than the cheap Er32 chuck I had bought from 800watt, this was not my problem. It seems the 1/8" Er32 collet was the source of the trouble. I also measured the runouts of my R8 taper. I'll write all that runout stuff in another thread, because this one is about getting good deals on stuff.

So, making this painful and long story shorter, I went looking for "good" ER32 collets. Bisons were expensive so far as I can see. Back to Maritool. They had a set for $149. Done!

FWIW, Martitool keeps getting rave reviews over on the PM boards, so I trust them. Frank Mari posts there a lot. It's time I checked them out. They have tool holders for mills, supposed to have great boring bars, and other stuff. Most of it is US made on their own CNC machines. Nice to see some of that getting done on our shores!

Cheers,

BW

Haven't been here in a while, but came across a new Deals & Steals item I wanted to note.

I always take note when someone starts a "best tool X" thread on one of the boards. This time around it was about snap ring pliers on Practical Machinist:

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/showthread.php?t=166053

I have the usual type that has a single multi-purpose handle with interchangeable tips. I hadn't ever really thought much about them, they work pretty good, but they flex, and sometimes that ring goes clear across the shop if it slips off the points. Lately I have been installing some pretty large snap rings (over 1", which is large for me) on my CNC conversion for the mill. That flex is a lot worse with all the tension and so the article caught my eye. I really liked the Northern Tool set that had individual snap ring pliers in each configuration, and no interchangeable points. I'm thinking a lot less flex!

I took a look on the day I read about them, but didn't pull the trigger. This morning I got a notice they're having a small sale so I went back over and sure enough, the pliers were marked down a bit. The set is $49. It's not a screaming bargain, and it is a bit of an odd tool, but, I ordered a set because I've never regretted a nice tool, even if I use it rarely. I see more snap rings in my future making up my own items anyway, so I also ordered some assortments of snap rings, hair pins, o-rings, and roll pins.

Here's the set right here: http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200245974_200245974

Cheers,

BW