I was in the local Lowes today looking for some drill bits and a fellow customer asked me an odd question: Where do you find metric drill bits.
I've never thought about the need for metric bits (my apologies to our European friends - and the rest of the world!). I suggested using a regular bit closest in size to the metric equivalent. However, he needed an exact size hole.
Anyway, I've never seen metric bits but knew they must be available somewhere. I suggested he Google metric bits and when home, I did the same. Sure enough there are a number of suppliers for metric drill bits - including on Amazon.
And now I know.
I have a friend that goes tto Germany every summer to teach and I have her pick up bits for me. My favorite brad point bits are a small set I bought at at a flea market in Detroit. They are in a small blue case with the cccp cast into the back. They are the best bbrad points I have ever had and they were only $2 for for the set. I thought they were junk when I bought them so I only got one which was a big mistake.
Here in the us I get them from amazon or cheapie from banggood.
We pen turners use them as well. If you need singles that's a good bet, otherwise check out online sources such as Lee Valley or other google results.
(03-29-2017, 08:06 AM)fredhargis Wrote: [ -> ]Lee Valley has them, good ones; too.
I had a few hundred left on my "gift card" I bought myself when they were on sale last, and I bought some of them. I still like my Fisch the best, but I gave HH restore all my old B&D, Skill, DeWalley, and the like and use the LV's for my beaters, and the Fisch for just good wood, on finish holes. I never knew drilling could be so enjoyable
A really good hardware store will carry them. By "really good" I don't mean Ace, True Value and the like (not that there's anything wrong with them) but a good, locally owned hardware that serves the trades, as well as the weekend warrior. My go to place is Nicholson Hardware in Rockford, IL. Maybe I am naive, but I assume other cities have similar.
There used to be a couple of businesses local to me which supplied the local shops. Most of the manufacturing left, so I expect if I take a trip to China I will find them.
One of the 4 P's of marketing is "Placement," AKA distribution. In the good old days the distribution was a local warehouse, i.e. the local businesses who used to supply the local manufacturing. Now, with FedEx, UPS and USPS being what they are in the package delivery business, the low volume stuff is warehoused centrally. Like others said, Amazon or an industrial supply via the inter-web.