Ebay Router Bits - any good?

[AwDeOh]

Hey all,

Wondering if anyone has had any experience with the router bit sets off eBay. Most of them are pretty cheap, would any of this stuff be worthwhile? Example (http://cgi.ebay.com/ROUTER-BIT-SET-50-PIECE-1-2-inch-SHANK_W0QQitemZ190115810903QQihZ009QQcategoryZ50386QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

Really just looking for a good kit that covers most of the main bits, atleast until I know which bits I'll use more often. I'm guessing there's router bits, and then there's router bits - thoughts?

Cheers,

Mitch

[routermaniac]

I made that mistake before, thiking that if I buy a set of squillion bits, I will have one for each job... :( Not a good move my friend, take it from someone who has been there :U . Cheap bits can break , usually give a crappy finish and more to the point, you really dont need a squillion different bits. You will likely find that you can get most jobs done with less than 10 bits and you can add to the collection as you go.

My advise to you, stay away :oo: . A good alternative is to buy quality bits as you need them, ie CMT, Triton, etc. Occasionally you can get the 6 piece Triton set on ebay for $99 (that is less than 1/2 price offered at Bunninngs), if that is within your budget it is a great buy. Some forum members have had good experiences with the Timbecon or Carbatec relatively cheap bits, these are a step ahead compared to the stuff you usually see on ebay.

regards

Marios

[Glenn_M]

Gotta agree with Marios. These bits are generally low quality at the best and downright hazardous to your health at the worst.

I'll admit to buying a cheap set many moons ago when first bought a router. After a few of the bearings seized I had a straight bit break (on the shaft) and hit me in the back as I turned away from the router after passing a peice over the table.

Took the broken shaft out of the router, picked up the bit, put in the box and placed the whole set in the bin.

Once was enough. Routers are potentially dangerous tools. Respect them coz they will not respect you. For me, cheap bits are no longer worth the risk.

Cheers,

[AwDeOh]

Awesome, thanks for the opinion guys. That sorta drives home just how fast that thing spins, and could potentially throw a bit when it breaks :o

So going one further, you've mentioned CMT, Triton, and some of the Carbatec and Timbecon bits, which other brands are of better quality?

[munruben]

I get my bits from Carba-Tec and find them to be okay, I live near Brisbane so this is convenient for me to buy from them. I guess the others you mention will have equal quality bits. Its better to have 1 quality bit that will do the job over and over rather than a dozen bits that are just crap and can only be used a few times.

[Greg Q]

Has anyone had really good results with Triton? I purchased one bit few years ago which failed in the first 10 seconds, I wonder if that was typical or a fluke?

I like CMT, but find that Infinity and Whiteside are at least as good if not better.

The best value in bits is not buying the ones that you'll never use.

[Bodgia]

Yeah, I've got a set of the Triton 1/2" bits and they are really good - at least for what I want to do. I have had them about four years, use them often and never had a problem. As Marios said, get them off Ebay and you'll save heaps.

[Glenn_M]

Has anyone had really good results with Triton? I purchased one bit few years ago which failed in the first 10 seconds, I wonder if that was typical or a fluke?

I like CMT, but find that Infinity and Whiteside are at least as good if not better.

The best value in bits is not buying the ones that you'll never use.

I've got a few now and have found them good. Haven't pushed too much hardwood passed them yet but so far quite happy.

Cheers,

[John Saxton]

AhDeOh No offense mean't but I'd be circumspect on buying a high speed cutting tool unless it was a recognised brand and proven in operation.

Some of the cheap sets available are OK for small jobs but put them to the task of profiling hardwoods and they may not go the distance.hence my added referral to a previous post.

Quote:Thread: Router bit quality testing View Single Post
3rd Oct 2006, 06:18 PM

As far as I know there has'nt been a difinitive test on the Oz hardwoods with the variety of router bits we have available here,however (I may be corrected)it would be interesting given that one was done and the results made known.

There are countless "name" brand bits but without a decided test here on a decent hardwood here in Oz that could provide some semblance of an idea of performance then it's always going to be down to an individual personal selection on the criteria available.


I have mainly Carbi-tool bits along with Dimar,Jesada,T-Cut,CMT as well as a smattering of Taiwanese bits for jobs that don't require a great finish.
The cost of router bits dos'nt faze me as long as they do the job on the timber I employ them on namely Jarrah/Sheoak and occasionally some desert timbers but I will only stay with that brand if I feel they perform reasonably well.
END QUOTE


I posted this thread some time back and may be deviating from your post and question but I wanted to point out that caution needs to be foremost in
any selection of router bits no matter the spiel given.

Cheers :)

[Jasey]

Brands that I personally have found to leave a nice finish and appear well made are Carbi-tool and Triton.

Cheers:)

[Wild Dingo]

As I recall there was a thread some years back that addressed the issue of cheep router bit sets from Bunnings... oh right I think I posted that one :doh: :;

Anyways... One of my daughters wanting to give her dad a pressy one time while she worked at Bunnings decided I needed some router bits so seeing a set in an aluminium case that covered anything she thought I would like (as I recall there were some 12 or 18 bits in the set) she bought the set and gave them too me

Now at that time Id had my then first router all of a couple of weeks so was a total novice with the thing... but I had made myself a rather quick and dirty router table for it so I thought "great plenty of router bits yeeeess!!" and set to on some pine to get the feel... a bit of working and the table was a lot more stable and I thought things should be safer

So wanting to rout some bead and coves into some 14ft x 1in x 1/4in strips of Tuart (very misguided timber for a canoe by the way :roll: ) I began... I routed some 4 as I recall... when of a sudden there was an almighty CLANG CLANG CLANG ZZZZZIP CLANG... and the top of the router bit was history only the base of the shaft remained in the collet!! while looking at the remainders I noticed some red stuff on the benchtop... so I checked myself out and there along the forearm was a long thin slice of flesh hanging down and bright red stuff flowing gently and dripping steadily onto the bench!... on going inside the missus noticed another line of red stuff along my forehead...

So where was the head of the bit? after zinging around the inside of the 6mx6m shed a couple of times slashing me on its way around it landed in the far corner behind the bench totalled.

Needless to say in preference to my own safety I did the same as Glen did and just tossed the lot in the damned bin!

Nowadays I only buy CMT bits from Carbetec... and since then Ive had no problems whatever.

Maniacally whirring bits of sharp metal are rather hazardous to ones health life and limbs dont take chances pay the price and get good ones!! this includes blades for table saws thicknessers jointers and bandsaws... drill bits Im not discussing evil mongrel things :~

[Big Shed]

There is an interesting comparison of router bit quality of 18 different bits in FWW #191.

Makes for interesting reading.

I must say that I have had very good results with Torquata bits from Timbecon, not the cheapest and not the dearest. Have also got good results with CMT.

[AwDeOh]

Great replies guys, thanks for the input. I'm looking at the Torquata bits right now, and considering the price of the eBay bits, plus exchange rate and postage, there's really not much of a price difference in buying quality. Specially when you take into account Wild Dingo's account.. :o Aside from that, I realised last night after looking at the really nice (and very expensive) wood I got to build my guitar, the last thing I want is a router bit leaving a less than perfect finish.

[woodisgood]

It's nice to have an inexpensive (not cheap) set of bits with a bunch of different profiles. I'd take a look at the mlcs sets (get 1/2" shanks, NOT 1/4"). You end up with a bit that will give acceptable results for small jobs and then buy higher qualify bits for the profiles you plan to use a lot.

The article I wrote on Toolcritic has more information about buying bits, includes which are most commonly used. Take a look at http://www.toolcritic.com/routers.html and see if it helps.