buying end mills/dental burs online

[John Sonksen]

So today I managed my first ever real inlay. This was a practice run with a possible logo in a piece of scrap, and I used a 3/32" downcut spiral bit that I bought from Stewmac for like $20. First things first, this bit was obviously too big for me to get as close as I needed to the corners of my inlay socket, so I started doing some research as to alternative places to buy them online. I used the search function here and saw a thread where someone said that they are easy to get on ebay. It looks like most of what comes up for dental burs are not the same as the downcut spiral bit I used, which seems to be just a tiny end mill bit, and have some type of abrasive dust (tungsten I think?) on the outside for the cutting action. Next, there seems to be quite a variety as to shape of these bits and the majority of them don't seem suited for cutting a flat bottomed, vertical walled socket in which to put my pieces. So I'm wondering if anyone here could help me cut through the noise by sharing with me either a good place to buy appropriate bits or what kind of bits will work best for my needs, and if they have any special coding on them that may make sense to a dentist but means nothing to me. I'm guessing a bit or ten in the 1/32" range (don't know how long I can expect these things to last and since I'm new my technique might result in several casualties so I'm looking for a cheap alternative to $20 per), maybe some 1/16" and more 3/32"? Any tips are very appreciated! Oh, also wondering if people who do a lot of inlay use micro chisels or make their own maybe out of drill bit stock, for getting sharp corners?

Here's my inlay from today for kicks:


Should have paid attention to the flip/flop on the color reflection so that all the letters flash bright at the same time but I'll do that for my final one...

[Pete Brown]

http://www.american-carbide.com/EndMill ... oducts.php
http://drillcity.stores.yahoo.net/10pacnewdowc.html
http://www.precisebits.com/products/car ... 2flute.asp

I can't comment on the quality of these bits as I haven't ordered from these suppliers yet. I've only ever purchased from Stew-Mac but, as you've found, their prices are a little off-putting.

Cheers
Pete

[Adam Savage]

My experience is limited, to say the least, but of the inlays I have done I have just used a scalpel to deeply score the margin of the inlay. Once the dremel plus spiral bit gets close to this margin, the remaining fibres come away clean. The bits that are left over (mostly in corners, say a wingtip of a bird) are easily removed with either a scalpel or 1/8 - 1/4" chisel.
I can't offer any advice re:purchasing mills/burrs however.

Adam

[Mark Swanson]

Mahogany and woods of that color and lighter are hard to inlay into, because it is very difficult to get a matching fill. If you use ebony or rosewood you'll find that the look will be much better, even with a big bit. You should be using a 1/16" bit.

[Mario Proulx]

Years ago, I asked my dentist to save me some bits and burrs when they get too dull for his use. He called me 2 weeks later to say he had some for me to pick up and when I got to his office, he smiled and handed me a palm-sized bag of them(fresh from the autoclave). I thanked him and left with my bag of goodies. A couple weeks later, he calls again, and again, hands me another autoclaved bag of assorted bits and burrs. I thanked him again, chuckled and said I was probably set for life, and so far, looks like I was right! I still have most of them, having only worn or broken a few.

Ask your dentist. They just throw them away otherwise...

[Rodger Knox]

Years ago, I asked my dentist to save me some bits and burrs when they get too dull for his use. He called me 2 weeks later to say he had some for me to pick up and when I got to his office, he smiled and handed me a palm-sized bag of them(fresh from the autoclave). I thanked him and left with my bag of goodies. A couple weeks later, he calls again, and again, hands me another autoclaved bag of assorted bits and burrs. I thanked him again, chuckled and said I was probably set for life, and so far, looks like I was right! I still have most of them, having only worn or broken a few.

Ask your dentist. They just throw them away otherwise...

Same story here. My dentist still asks me if I need any burrs anytime I see him, and it's been over ten years!

[Mark Swanson]

I do that too and have been rewarded just like you guys. But, I asked mine about those dental picks, the things they clean and scrape your teeth with. I grind new points on them, and use them for all sorts of things. You can shape the ends into knife points, or just sharp points for scratching a line or who knows what. Very handy to me.

[David King]

I've heard many good things about Precisebits from other luthiers who use their fret-slotting cutters mostly.

I have a local place I've been using and they've been great. http://bitsbits.com

I have to admit to buying a lot of cheap carbide from China and HK off ebay. It's more brittle than the USA stuff but it's 5-10 times cheaper and comes in all possible sizes and much taller aspect ratios which explains why it breaks so easily.

I like high speed steel for that reason as it's almost impossible to chip or break and it's definitely sharper (at first) if you can find the high quality stuff.

[Clay Schaeffer]

I've bought some from ebay, although it was a couple of years ago. I also got a collet adapter from Stew Mac so I could use them in my trim router. My Dremel is on it's last legs.

[Andrew Mowry]

Before I switched to CNC I got high speed steel inlay cutters from Rescue Pearl. They were $2 each and lasted for several headstock overlays. They are less likely to break than carbide. Now I get carbide cutters from Precisebits. Their 3-flute Ultrabits are great for inlay in ebony (they're the same as the fret-slot cutters).

[John Sonksen]

Thanks for all the responses folks, I ended up finding some locally but haven't had a chance to use them yet. This thread has more than enough places to keep me busy if I don't like the few that I just got.

[Matthew Lau]

Haven't been on MIMF for a while.

Ditto on the comments regarding asking your dentist.
On crowns, I use a fresh bur on only one patient--only once (the sharpness majorly effects tooth health and quality of cut).
I mainly use diamonds...less chatter.

And yes...we throw those away.

-Matt

[Michael Lewis]

An inexpensive source of burrs of all sorts of shapes try Rio Grande Jewelry Supply in New Mexico.