Dont buy it until you have a job for it?

Batmanacw

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Don't buy it until you have a job for it seems to be the mantra of the modern machinist. In normal times that is the best way to avoid tying up money in tooling you might never use. This thought process presupposes that the things we might buy will be avaliable.

As one of those crazy prepper types I believe a time may come when we might not have near instant access to any tool we can imagine. That is why I am willing to tie up some money in cutters and tooling I might not have a job for right now. No need to talk me out of it. It's pretty much done anyway. Lol! Humor me!

I only stock up on things that I can either get insanely cheap for great quality or it's worth paying full price because it is absolutely necessary. Most of the tooling I bought is USA, European, or quality Asian.

I've stocked up on basic tooling like carbide lathe and mill inserts and endmills and enough hss lathe toolbits to last a lifetime.

I bought lots of reamers surplus for $5 lb. Lots of to size, under, over, and odd sizes that snuck in my stock. I have complete sets of metric from 3 to 13 and 1/8 to 1/2 and a sae over under set. I'm looking to grow my larger reamers above 1/2".

I bought SD drills from 33/64" to 1". Mostly USA made but NOS on Ebay.

I bought a complete set of Woodruff key seat cutters from 202 to 1200's. These do come in handy for all sorts of crazy projects.

I bought annular cutters from 3/4 to 2" in 32nds increments. Almost all Chinese but they cut beautifully.

I bought keyway broaches from 1/8 to 3/4" and 3mm to 18mm.

I bought corner rounding endmills in several standard sizes.

I bought 60° dovetail cutters

I bought a T-slot set.

I bought a taper reamer set along with single reamers so I have 7/0 to 10. I also bought taper pins to go with it.

I have both metric and standard capscrew counterbores up to 5/8 and 14mm.

I know there is some stuff I'm missing that I have on hand.

I have a nearly complete set of MT2 shank drill bits from 1/2 to 7/8.

I need a few Shell mills but I'm just looking for deals.

I have lots of solid carbide boring bars and quality insert holders for the lathe.

What type of cutting tools am I missing?
 
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I think it is a good idea.
Tools that can make weapons will be a target.
Quality of some of the new tooling doesn't compare to decades old stock.
Being able to sharpen what you do have is important as well.
Material is also becoming harder to get.
You should have some keystock
As well as some drops of various materials.
 
I think it is a good idea.
Tools that can make weapons will be a target.
Quality of some of the new tooling doesn't compare to decades old stock.
Being able to sharpen what you do have is important as well.
Material is also becoming harder to get.
You should have some keystock
As well as some drops of various materials.

I bought a set of metric and standard keys as well as standard key stock.

I bought woodruff keys in an assortment.

I'm looking at buying a drill sharpener to do the smaller drills I am not good at doing by hand.

I'm buying steel, aluminum, and brass as I find deals on it.
 
As one of those crazy prepper types I believe a time may come when we might not have near instant access to any tool we can imagine. That is why I am willing to tie up some money in cutters and tooling I might not have a job for right now. No need to talk me out of it. It's pretty much done anyway. Lol! Humor me!
I am not sure that may be so crazy after all. I was watching one of those crazy videos from a third world country, where they spend the time to rewire an alternator. Stuff like that may be a lost art, or close to it here. But the way parts are getting so hard to come by, it may not be far off until we see labor costs being back to a small part of the overall cost of a repair.
 
I was raised on a small farm and believe in the saying "You have to make hay when the sun shines". I'm constantly checking out eBay and FaceBook MarketPlace for deals. I buy new when a sales flyer has a good deal too. I don't care if I have an immediate need for a tool, if the right thing comes along for the right price and I feel it would be a good thing to have in the shop. I like having things on hand.... I hate to have to put a project on hold until an order comes in and then you're paying full price for things instead of getting them while they are on sale or up for a great deal used.

Most things I buy I feel I can turn around and sell for more than I buy them for. And, since I'm a tool-a-holic like most of us here, I enjoy the process!

Ted
 
Most things I buy I feel I can turn around and sell for more than I buy them for. And, since I'm a tool-a-holic like most of us here, I enjoy the process!

Ted
Yes, I hit yard sales a lot. If it is cheap, I will pick it up to have on hand. If it is something I could sue now, I may pay more. Old American made tools, for a buck or less, I will consider.
 
I am not sure that may be so crazy after all. I was watching one of those crazy videos from a third world country, where they spend the time to rewire an alternator. Stuff like that may be a lost art, or close to it here. But the way parts are getting so hard to come by, it may not be far off until we see labor costs being back to a small part of the overall cost of a repair.

Your post expresses exactly why I started putting emphasis on building my machine up as much as possible right now.

Those Pakistani truck videos are a glimpse into our future.
 
Yes, I hit yard sales a lot. If it is cheap, I will pick it up to have on hand. If it is something I could sue now, I may pay more. Old American made tools, for a buck or less, I will consider.

I go to weekend flea markets all summer long and get tons of crazy good deals. I enjoy the treasure hunt too.
 
I bought a 5" x 15" piece of what turned out to be O2 tool steel for $40 just because it was cheap.
 
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