CTC Tools

[Ryan]

I need to purchase some items from CTC tools.The place based in Hong Kong.

- Lathe tool holders and inserts
-drill chucks, Collet chucks
-solid carbide end mills, slot drills

I'm a bit weary of cheap measurement tools and perhaps the gauge blocks they sell. also their carbide cutting tools don't appear to be all that much cheaper than western brand-name stuff, I am not sure if the saving is worth it.

Has anyone purchased any of these items? What is the quality like? any in particular I should steer clear of from them?

 

[AussieJimG]

I have purchased a heap of stuff from CTC and been satisfied. Maybe I am not the most critical of users but I have got what I paid for every time.

Jim

 

[rodw]

I need to purchase some items from CTC tools.The place based in Hong Kong.

- Lathe tool holders and inserts
-drill chucks, Collet chucks
-solid carbide end mills, slot drills

I'm a bit weary of cheap measurement tools and perhaps the gauge blocks they sell. also their carbide cutting tools don't appear to be all that much cheaper than western brand-name stuff, I am not sure if the saving is worth it.

Has anyone purchased any of these items? What is the quality like? any in particular I should steer clear of from them?

I have bought quite a lot from CTC including everything you have listed. I think you can buy with confidence. I can't see you can say their inserts are similar in price. $38 a packet of 10 vs $110 for the same stuff from a local supplier.

An $800 order from CTC including $200 in freight ordered the same day as something I purchased ex Sydney both arrived the same day. I could not price everything I purchased locally but I lost count at about $2500 online from Hare and Forbes.

One thing I have on my list is some HSS spotting drills. A set of Suttons is $153 (4-5 drills). You price them at CTC as an exercise. I have bought the gauge blocks, they are nice even if I have not used them yet!

The lathe tool posts are very nice, you will not need to replace any set screws etc you hear of people doing with others.

 

[deverett]

The managing director of CTC is a Dane who keeps a close eye on the quality control. As others have said, you can buy with confidence.

One thing to watch out for is possible customs import duty when the gear arrives in your country. Small value orders quite often escape, but larger orders... You may well get stung and will said gear then be a bargain? So far I have been lucky!

Dave
The Emerald Isle

 

[rodw]

The managing director of CTC is a Dane who keeps a close eye on the quality control. As others have said, you can buy with confidence.

One thing to watch out for is possible customs import duty when the gear arrives in your country. Small value orders quite often escape, but larger orders... You may well get stung and will said gear then be a bargain? So far I have been lucky!

Dave
The Emerald Isle

For Aussies, just keep your order under AUD $1,000 and you are fine as no GST is assessed. This is based on an exchange rate that customs set weekly, not your invoice. The better couriers like DHL, UPS etc look after customs clearance for you and charge about $10 and customs charge $55 fee plus the GST on the goods and it is done as the shipment is in transit. In my expereince the CTC orders ship direct from the manufacturer and include a packing slip disclosing their value, not CTC's so I don't think this is an issue. Its not something you need to be frightened of.

 

[stevehuckss396]

I need to purchase some items from CTC tools.The place based in Hong Kong.

- Lathe tool holders and inserts
-drill chucks, Collet chucks
-solid carbide end mills, slot drills

I'm a bit weary of cheap measurement tools and perhaps the gauge blocks they sell. also their carbide cutting tools don't appear to be all that much cheaper than western brand-name stuff, I am not sure if the saving is worth it.

Has anyone purchased any of these items? What is the quality like? any in particular I should steer clear of from them?

This could be what your getting yourself into.

http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/showthread.php?t=23261

 

[rodw]

This could be what your getting yourself into.

http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/showthread.php?t=23261

That vice was definitely NOT purchased from CTC!

 

[stevehuckss396]

That vice was definitely NOT purchased from CTC!

No but it is more than likely of the same quality. I visit more than a few forums and hear about
a few of these a month. Vises, milling machines, grinders, collets, ect. It's not an isolated problem
to just a few suppliers. The fact is, you get what you pay for. I'm not saying not to buy from anybody.
I'm just saying if you buy that stuff from any of the suppliers you could end up with something like
that vise. I have purchased my fair share of import stuff and have had to fix or replace my fair share of it also.

Just saying it happens.

 

[rodw]

No but it is more than likely of the same quality. I visit more than a few forums and hear about
a few of these a month. Vises, milling machines, grinders, collets, ect. It's not an isolated problem
to just a few suppliers. The fact is, you get what you pay for. I'm not saying not to buy from anybody.
I'm just saying if you buy that stuff from any of the suppliers you could end up with something like
that vise. I have purchased my fair share of import stuff and have had to fix or replace my fair share of it also.

Just saying it happens.

Steve, with respect, your comments are not really helpful when the OP wanted to know about a specific supplier.

Unlike the US, where there are still some local manufacturing of this stuff, in our country and many others there isn't, so everything is an import.

We are a lot closer to Asia so our supply lines are generally from there. Our choices are to buy imported stuff locally and pay a premium for what is basically the same thing you can import yourself. In a lot of instances, you can't source things locally, so you do end up scouring the world. I have bought stuff from the US, UK, Hong Kong and China in addition to a fair bit of stuff sourced locally. There is only one US supplier I have found who wants to sell to us and that is Little Machine Shop. Fortunately, they stock some metric stuff.

Thats why many of us on this side of the globe choose to deal with CTC. We get reasonable quality at a price we can afford, basically the same item as we can buy locally but at a third of the price, and really prompt service. But they don't sell everything so we keep looking too!

 

[stevehuckss396]

Steve, with respect, your comments are not really helpful when the OP wanted to know about a specific supplier.

Sorry, Won't happen again!