Ball Nose Bits & Collet Insert Sleeves

[tuck]

Guys, I'm looking to dive into the wonderful world of 3D cutting. Ive looked at several sites that sell ball nose bits and have noticed that in every case the shank diameter is the same as the CED. This means that if I want to purchase bits of 3/16", 5/16", 7/16", 3/8, etc., I would need inserts (sleeves) to hold them in the collet nut. Currently I am set for 1/8", 1/4" & 1/2" shanks only.

How can I solve this problem and where are some of you 3D cutters getting your bits and sleeves? I use the Milwaukee 5625 router and still have my old PC. Thanks.

[randy]

I bought a set of 1/4-inch shank ball-nosed bits from Gary Beckwith at the Austin Camp ShopBot. Gary's profile is at

http://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/board-profile.cgi?action=view_profile&profile=garyb-users

And his web site is at

www.beckwithdecor.com (http://www.beckwithdecor.com)

Drop him a line. Bet he can help you out.

Randy

[garyb]

Thanks Randy, let us know what you think of them after you have ran them.

Mark you can few the cutters here on this link http://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/messages/15719/18200.html?1171754788

thanks gary.

[tuck]

Thanks, guys! ;-)

[trakwebster]

I'm not 100% sure, but it seems to me that whenever you see the word 'bits' that it means the bit will be chucked into something like a drill. And when you see something called an 'endmill', it means it will be held in a collet in a router or spindle.

I've noticed that most 'bits' have a shank the same as the cut diameter, because the assumption is that it will be chucked into a drill-like chuck, which doesn't care what the size is.

And I've noticed that most 'mills' and 'cutters' have 1/4", 3/8", or 1/2" shanks, because it's assumed that it will be held by a constant-diameter collet.

Since my router only offers 1/4" and 1/2" collets, I've had to find adaptors for 3/8" mills and for some smaller bits and end mills that I use. Here's what I found most useful --

MLCS has a selection of adaptor sleeves, only $4 each, to handle many of these bit sizes and adapt them to 1/4" or 1/2" collets. For example, I use several 3/8" ballend mills and 3/8" endmills, so I have sleeves to allow these to fit into my 1/2" collet.

For tiny cutter sizes, ENCO has a small adaptor which chucks into a 1/2" collet, and provides various replaceable smaller collets to hold tiny cutters or drill bits. I believe the ENCO adaptor has been discussed elsewhere on this forum.