Author Topic: Rotary Dremel or similar suggestions? (Read 3653 times)

LittleWheelsandBig · « **on:** 05 February, 2018, 10:00:14 am »

The two decade old battery Dremel tool here is basically dead. I need to lengthen the SPD slots in a (new to me) pair of shoes (I don't like pedaling on tiptoes) and a Dremel rotary grindstone seems the best answer. Which make/ model do folk recommend I get as a replacement?

Brucey · « **Reply #1 on:** 05 February, 2018, 10:29:05 am »

cheap mains powered versions are, well, cheap, but they will do a few jobs before they clap out. The motors are often badly balanced and vibrate like fury at certain speeds. The accessories you get with them are often very badly made. They have one feature which is unexpected but annoying; many have a collet chuck that is 3mm instead of 1/8". Gah...

Proper Dremel tools are usually better made but still don't inspire one with confidence.

BTW if it is just the batteries that are knackered in the present tool, you could solder in wires to a suitable DC supply and run it that way.

cheers

Ham · « **Reply #2 on:** 05 February, 2018, 10:31:14 am »

Dremel every time, I would say a vari-speed one is worth having, too. After that, just fit your budget and inclination.

Jurek · « **Reply #3 on:** 05 February, 2018, 10:37:23 am »

Unless you are doing industrial quantities of grinding, then I'd second what Ham says about Dremel.
If you are doing industrial quantities, then a pendant drill is the way to go.

T42 · « **Reply #4 on:** 05 February, 2018, 10:55:05 am »

I have heard good things of Proxxon; in fact, I was planning to buy one when the missus gave me a Dremel. I still might, but if I do I'll call it a Dremel. A lot of the kit is compatible, apparently.

jsabine · « **Reply #5 on:** 05 February, 2018, 11:13:50 am »

I've been far more satisfied with the cheap Aldidl mains dremel-alike I currently have than with the not-so-cheap battery Dremel I took back to B&Q for stopping working and generally being crap.

LEE · « **Reply #6 on:** 05 February, 2018, 11:17:22 am »

My MAPLINS 240v one was cheap and well balanced at top speed.

Just remember to ALWAYS wear goggles, when those sanding discs shatter they sting your face like crazy!!!

andytheflyer · « **Reply #7 on:** 05 February, 2018, 01:44:27 pm »

Quote from: Ham on 05 February, 2018, 10:31:14 am

Dremel every time, I would say a vari-speed one is worth having, too. After that, just fit your budget and inclination.

+1, what he said.

I build radio control model aeroplanes, and each one can take me a year or so. So I use a battery Dremel a lot. I'm on my second after maybe 15 years, and the speed control is getting a bit iffy on this one (has been for a couple of years but keeps going!), so maybe soon I'll be onto my third.

I won't use any other make. You get what you pay for.

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #8 on:** 05 February, 2018, 01:52:18 pm »

Sounds like I'll be getting a Dremel, due to lack of knowledge of alternatives and their qualities.

Now, I just need to decide which variable speed cordless Dremel I get.
https://shop.dremeleurope.com/gb/en/products/tools?SYSTEM=multi-tool-system&price=19,1499&CORDED_CORDLESS=cordless leads me to four options for 56-120 GBP and frankly I don't know which one I should get. Do I just get the most expensive or is some option below that 'good enough' for most folk?

T42 · « **Reply #9 on:** 05 February, 2018, 01:56:06 pm »

I have the 8200. I've noticed that a lot of the accessories fit it but not other cordless models. I haven't got round to using mine yet, though, it's too cold in the workshop, so I can't comment on performance.

Another thing I've noticed is that their "100 accessories" kit contains mostly air, and they count every tiny part in it as an accessory.

Aunt Maud · « **Reply #10 on:** 05 February, 2018, 01:59:44 pm »

I'd just get the one in the middle of the range if I wasn't going to use it daily.

But I'd get one with a lead, because my battery screwdriver is always out of charge when I need to use it

Ham · « **Reply #11 on:** 05 February, 2018, 02:21:56 pm »

As Aunt Maud says, the accessory count is irrelevant, but the bundles are still good value. I'd also have a personal preference for corded; it's at its most valuable when you grabit to do a job that can't be done with anything else. I never find the corded bit is at all restriction.

I do actually have two. The first is a basic single speed jobbie, had for years. I convinced myself to buy a new one when it stopped working and then fixed the old one for £5

I still use it from time to time, simply because it is smaller and more flexible as a result.

Accessories that I use:

1 - Grinding stones. all different
2 - Sanding drums
3 - Cut off discs and the latest version which is a mini grinding disc (more robust than the flimsy cut offs)
4 - Engraving discs
5 - Flexible shaft - this I'd put down as a "nice to have", especially with the larger body of the drill

Ripio · « **Reply #12 on:** 05 February, 2018, 03:29:29 pm »

My local Lidl had their Parkside branded cordless Dremel copies in last week.
Only £18 if I remember rightly.
I bought one but haven't really used it yet so can't comment on whether it's a good buy.
They also had kits with a full range of all the accessories for it, although the tool itself came with a good basic range of accessories.

Kim · « **Reply #13 on:** 05 February, 2018, 03:31:30 pm »

Quote from: Brucey on 05 February, 2018, 10:29:05 am

cheap mains powered versions are, well, cheap, but they will do a few jobs before they clap out. The motors are often badly balanced and vibrate like fury at certain speeds. The accessories you get with them are often very badly made. They have one feature which is unexpected but annoying; many have a collet chuck that is 3mm instead of 1/8". Gah...

This describes my cheap mains one perfectly. It's done a few jobs, and is now in the process of clapping out.

robgul · « **Reply #14 on:** 05 February, 2018, 04:23:04 pm »

The Silverline mains dremel-type machine has lasted quite well (mainly used for trimming mudguard stays to length) and at about £20 reasonable value.

Why do you need battery - I've found that unless battery tools are charged and used frequently the power packs die very quickly. [Exception of course if you're not in range of a power socket]

Rob

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #15 on:** 05 February, 2018, 04:51:33 pm »

I don't have power readily available in the back garden when I have the bike on a workstand in the sun. There isn't a lot of room in the house to do bike work.

Kim · « **Reply #16 on:** 05 February, 2018, 05:00:59 pm »

IME the current generation of battery tools are fine, as long as you avoid the cheap nasty ones (Li-ion or don't bother), and make a bit of effort to look after the batteries (charge them every couple of months if you haven't used them). Critically, the more tools you have that use the same battery, the less time the battery spends lying around self-discharging.

The convenience is obvious if you're using them outside, and there's a lot to be said to not have to worry about cables when operating scary cutty things.

I'm not entirely sure about a dremel-like device, though. The extra weight and bulk of the battery would seem to be a significant disadvantage at least some of the time.

loadsabikes · « **Reply #17 on:** 06 February, 2018, 07:21:07 am »

I run a Dremel battery powered for my model boat building. It is very good and well balanced.

andytheflyer · « **Reply #18 on:** 06 February, 2018, 10:36:55 am »

Both of my Dremels have been battery powered. The first was NiCd, the second and current one is Li-ion. Neither failed through battery life issues.

I tend to use them until the battery is flat, then charge. The Dremel charger does its stuff in about 45 minutes. Both seemed to run for several hours of intermittent use, which was fine for the way I build model aeroplanes.

I'd not use a mains one because I don't want a cable dragging across my bench and potentially over a large number of fairly fragile components (at least until the aircraft is nearly finished). Plus, the battery model means I can orientate the tool as I want it, rather than having to accomodate the cable alignment too.

And don't bother with the Dremel accessroy packs - you can buy whatever tools you want individually, or in bulk packs (like the cutting discs.

Brucey · « **Reply #19 on:** 06 February, 2018, 10:57:04 am »

I can see the attraction of cordless tools for modelling work etc but I would still choose a mains powered tool, possibly with a recoil lead running from above the workbench. Working outdoors I'd run an extension lead of course. The battery powered versions of these tools are generally considerably less powerful than the mains versions; this may be an advantage for some delicate jobs but for others it just makes everything worse.

One comment I would make is that there are other tools which are a size up from a Dremel/dremelalike tool; if you plan to do bigger jobs this kind of tool would be worth considering. For example a 'rotozip' tool comes with 1/4" and 3/16" collets, a ~400W motor etc and this allows you to do some properly man-size jobs; I use one with carbide burr grinding tools and it would take just a few seconds to modify a pair of shoes using one.

cheers

T42 · « **Reply #20 on:** 06 February, 2018, 03:14:18 pm »

Something else re the Dremel: the 8200 at least comes with a collet rather than a chuck. The chuck comes extra. I have bought two so far and they're both rubbish, being very stiff. The Dremel video shows one being opened & closed with a single finger, and is a perfidious lie. I've soaked them in penetrating oil, to no avail. At 7€ they're dirt cheap, but that's because they're dirt. I'm going to try Eastern knock-offs and maybe see if Proxxon's equivalent is compatible.

I wish the missus had asked before buying me the thing.

T42 · « **Reply #21 on:** 07 February, 2018, 02:05:53 pm »

Further to the above: a little bit of Googling shows that jammed chucks are common.

I wish the missus had got me a Proxxon.

T42 · « **Reply #22 on:** 08 February, 2018, 04:25:15 pm »

Final update on chucks: got fed up, started one on the Dremel spindle then locked a grip wrench onto it and kept turning until it closed. Ran it back & forth a couple of times until it freed up a bit. It's usable by hand now, but it's still stiffish. I should think an hour or two of changing bits would raise blisters.

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #23 on:** 08 February, 2018, 05:02:40 pm »

Thanks but I will be in Ecuador tomorrow and it'll be at least a couple of weeks before I need to resolve this problem.

pcolbeck · « **Reply #24 on:** 26 June, 2018, 11:47:14 am »

I looked at the Proxxons. Hmm lovely but couldn't justify the cost right now. I only need one to drive small wire wheels for cleaning rust out of small spaces not exactly precise work.
So I have ordered a cheap Apollo rotary tool from Amazon. Lets see ho wit goes and if I end up finding loads of uses I might get a better one later.