Widespread Panic - I need to buy a Dremel tool.

[gimmeatele]

I'm getting the impression a Dremel is one of things the Far East counterfeits.

The bits certainly are

 

[memorex]

I've owned a Dremel since the early 1980's. It's over 40 years old and it still works fine. Of course, I don't use it that much or punish it. I've bought both genuine Dremel replacement bits and cheap Amazon clone bits, and they all worked fine, too.

 

[Jakedog]

I have two. I have a standard Dremel. It’s great. I also have an older (probably had it for 20 years now) Black and Decker version. I like the black and decker better because of the speed adjustment. Where the Dremel is adjustable, it’s a click wheel. So you have a bunch of speeds but they’re all set. The speed adjustment wheel on the black and decker is infinitely adjustable. No click points. It’s like a light dimmer.

I mostly use mine for cutting and polishing, but I’ve also used it for everything from enlarging or deepening pickup routes, to sanding hard to get spots, to finessing end pin jack holes in acoustics. Very useful tool.

 

[CB_2005]

I have found that the flex shaft attachment is very useful.

 

[oldunc]

I seem to remember (I've been mostly out of the tool market for a while) that the Foredom (sp?) tools, a flex shaft tool with a stationary motor, were the pick of the pack for this type of work. They are (or were) kind of pricey, but users loved them and all sorts of attachments were available.

 

[Peegoo]

For me the carbide burrs and the thin abrasive disks are used the most. (BTW make sure you use safety glasses. The disks can shatter at high speed.)

I haven't used an abrasive cutoff disk in about 20 years.

The small 1" diamond wheels are king and will cut and grind any material you throw at them; they don't lose diameter in use and last for months of use without breaking. The really good news is they have become cheap as chips.

CLICK HERE for the ones I use. Throw away the crappy screwdriver that comes with the kit.

 

[Wildeman]

My Dremel is a Craftsman, I'm 99% sure it was made by Dremel, all attachments fit it. I've had it for 25 trouble free years. Once you get one you'll wonder how you lived without it.

 

[Freeman Keller]

@Freeman Keller, thanks for the great response. I only need to shave one wall, and may never need a router again. So I was thinking a Dremel might get more use polishing things.

But I hate the smell of hot motors.

Its hard (but possible) to free hand rout with a dremel or a laminate trimmer for that matter, but I greatly prefer routing against a template. The laminate trimmer is designed for exactly that application, with a follower bearing on either the top or bottom of the bit what you want to do is a snap.

A dremel on a router base can follow a template but the shaft of the bit is riding on the template and that is pretty sketchy, I've don it but I don't like it.



In addition, dremel bits are very short and it would be hard to do the depth needed for a pickup.

The laminate trimmer is just the right tool for all kinds of guitar building and should be one of the first power tools a starting builder buys, add a Dremel when you have need for the small delicate work it is designed to do.


I'll add that you can use a dremel to polish things, some folks use it on frets with a small buffing wheel and compound. It works but the fret can get very hot potentially damaging binding or releasing glue that might have been used on the frets. I've done it but with extreme care.

 

[Terrygh1949]

And, of course, I'm going to ask you guys what's best these days. Is there someone else I should consider?

Go with a Dremel it’s the best!

 

[bobalu]

From my own personal experience - buy Dremel for the accessories and quality. Also, buy a cordless one. The cord really drove me crazy as it always got in the way of the small finicky work that I use the Dremel on.

 

[zeke54]

I've used a Dremel for a number of small guitar projects , but I now have a pickguard I want to bevel , has anyone here done this , is there a stand that would make this easier than free handing it ?

 

[Archtops]

Dremel brand are excellent tools but I had to replace mine after 30 years of occasional use.
Same thing with my Foredom Flex Shaft also with only a few times using it.
So I went shopping online for a replacement Dremel and ended up buying a cheap knock off on Amazon.
It worked great and I’ve had zero issues with it. For occasional use save your money.

 

[robt57]

Panic and Dremel in same process and the context of hand DIY building is a worrisome thought frankly.

 

[Freeman Keller]

I've used a Dremel for a number of small guitar projects , but I now have a pickguard I want to bevel , has anyone here done this , is there a stand that would make this easier than free handing it ?

Router table, pickguard template, bevel bit.

 

[zeke54]

Router table, pickguard template, bevel bit.

Thanks anyway , but probably more expense than I want for one guard .

 

[chaosman12]

I bought a Milwaukee 12V because I already had a few Milwaukee 12v tools. It fantastic. Good power and very smooth. Much more solid feel than my previous cordless Dremel branded tool. Best part is the quick and easy tooless bit change.

I’ll second the cheap diamond cutoff wheels from Amazon. Cuts nearly everything. I’ve even used it for tile, and scoring Hardieboard.

I’ll add that the cheap carbide burrs sets are really useful for shaping small metal parts.

 

[jrblue]

I buy Dremels at yard sales, where it always seems like the surviving family are selling off everything from Pop's shop. Over the span of a long life, I've only had one Dremel wear out on me, and you would not believe the crap I subjected that one to before I had an actual collection of tools. I haven't had to buy one recently and so cannot speak to the quality in the present moment. I have not had good luck with the tools I have purchased at Harbor Freight, as they have not held up well to heavy use. But maybe I'm too rough on them. And it's not as though other manufacturers are producing great stuff, either. I do much better finding older tools at garage sales, definitely for hand tools but also for corded power tools for sure, and for many non-abused battery-powered tools.

 

[ChicknPickn]

I haven't used an abrasive cutoff disk in about 20 years.

The small 1" diamond wheels are king and will cut and grind any material you throw at them; they don't lose diameter in use and last for months of use without breaking. The really good news is they have become cheap as chips.

CLICK HERE for the ones I use. Throw away the crappy screwdriver that comes with the kit.

This might be a record. Under three seconds from "CLICK HERE" to "Buy Now."

 

[yjwednesday]

"Someone" as in "some other company". Like, now Hakko is an alternative to Weller.

And if you must know, I want to put a P-90 in a Melody Maker. (Just don't tell the guys on the LPF! There will be pitchforks.)

I bought this off ebay 7 or so yrs ago. The seller had already routed it for a P90, stripped the finish to bare mahogany, and then lost interest. It's a 2007 model. He listed it for $275 in pieces with all the original parts included and a Tone king (or something) P90. I figured 'what the heck' and made it a double cut, painted it TV yellow nitro from Stewmac, and its a fun guitar. I wouldn't do this normally, but someone else started it
(Leaning up against my Mission Amps 5E3 build).

 

[Swirling Snow]

I bought this off ebay 7 or so yrs ago. The seller had already routed it for a P90, stripped the finish to bare mahogany, and then lost interest. It's a 2007 model. He listed it for $275 in pieces with all the original parts included and a Tone king (or something) P90. I figured 'what the heck' and made it a double cut, painted it TV yellow nitro from Stewmac, and its a fun guitar. I wouldn't do this normally, but someone else started it.
(Leaning up against my Mission Amps 5E3 build).

I like it!