Cutters and other bits

[joelinkous]

Where do you guys buy your router bits? I have one or two shops within an hour's drive, but in the case that I need a specific bit that they don't have, are there any good online shops with a pretty wide variety of normal/carbide bits? I've been looking for very small cutting bits, such as 1/32" carbide end-mills for cutting small wooden gears and fretwork, and I'd like a backup plan in case the local shops don't have what I need.

[jseiler]

That depends on how long you've owned your bot.
. A lot of people here choose really expensive bits and run them forever, which is ok if you are good enough to keep a nice bit going a long time before breaking it. I'm just starting to get the point where I want expensive bits in my collection. For cheap bits, I use mlscwoodworking. Recently I bought some of their 1/2" shank, 1/4" cutting downshears and they work great!

[knight_toolworks]

those small one I get from msc www.mscdirect.com (http://www.mscdirect.com) about 15.00 each.

[joelinkous]

Awesome, John! I went to mscdirect.com, and it was a really confusing site. I couldn't find just what I wanted, and I was searching around for about 20 minutes. I hopped onto mlcswoodworking and found exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks for the tips, guys!

[knight_toolworks]

msc can get confusing if you don't know what you really want as there are so many choices. once you get to the drop down menus to choose each thing is is not so bad. but I have been using them for years.

[knight_toolworks]

you fond little bits there? I thought you wanted 1/32" here they are
http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACACHE=000000022970597

[mikek]

Joe, you might want to get several for backup. It is real easy to break the small ones, usually going too fast or too slow and generating too much heat. They can't cut very deep without relief and depending on the wood start getting real hot and break. Even doing a zzero makes me cringe with these.

[joelinkous]

Steve: That link doesn't work.

I wanted a tiny bit, but there were so many variations of a 1/32" bit that I couldn't figure out which type to use.

Really, the design of my current project has a 1/16" in mind since my machine can't cut with the .00001 precision that I would be paining over while using a 1/32". With a slightly bigger bit (meaning a slightly larger final product), I won't need to worry about such tight specifications.

[knight_toolworks]

oops your right I tried it in another tab but that is different.
on the small bits you want a 2 flue solid carbide (usually micrograin) cut length as long as you need. with the small bits keep it as short as you can. and the shaft can be any size you want though they usually only come in 1/8" 1/16" will be a stronger bit anyway. but you can cut fairly qickily with a little bit.