Shars tap and drill set opinions

[ARC-170]

I need a metric tap and drill set. Saw one at Shars.com for about $40. I have a height gauge from them that is nice. I'm a hobbyist/DIY guy, so I don't need production quality, but the stuff available in the big box stores (Craftsman, Irwin, etc) is not good enough; I've broken too many bits and taps over the years and have started buying higher quality, which under the same conditions does not fail me.

I have a set of Cle-Line metric drill bits that are awesome. I thought I'd get a Cle-Line drill and tap set as well. It's about $100. I still might (cry once and all that...), but I saw the Shars and thought I'd see if anyone had any experience with it.

 

[pontiac428]

I have standard and metric tap/drill sets from Shars in the HSS flavor. It's good quality stuff for the price, the tools are sharp and appear well-made. They make holes and cut threads nicely. I'm happy with them for sure.

 

[pstemari]

Shars appears to be having trouble importing drills. I was looking for taper shank drills and noticed that pretty much only the US-made ones were in stock.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[mmcmdl]

There's a big difference between HSS and HC taps . HSS are better and cost more of course . Once you decide how you're planning on using them will tell you which to buy . Then , you only need to figure out if you want straight flute , spiral flute , spiral point etc etc etc.

I can't comment on Shars as I don't own them , but would figure that a decent HSS set would suffice .

 

[Richard King 2]

When I was an apprentice 50 years ago, a Journeyman Machinist gave me some advise that I have been doing for my whole career and have never had a failure. drill the hole one size bigger and the tap won't break. You get less percentage of threads, but not enough to worry about. He also told me to use bee's wax for tapping compound and if your drilling brass or sheet metal, break the leading edge of the drill so it mills more then drills. less likely to break drills......give it a try and I am sure you will be telling youngsters this secret in 50 years too.

https://www.gfii.com/images/Greenfield_Tap_Drill_Recommendations.pdf

I try to buy professional grade tools not the cheap imports. Who wants to try to remove a broken tap. You get what you pay for. Pay more and it will last a lifetime and not one time and a lifetime of headaches, I recommend this company. http://www.vikingdrill.com/