I don't get it why does he need the whole set, buy just one drill .. maybe 2 .. that's all
a good drill will cost almost as a chinese set anyway
It is probably faster to get the entire set than to order individual bits, he must not have a good bit set, and it is great to have all of the sizes.
I ordered individual sizes of the noresman at first, to fill in my old german made dewalt set. Small bits are only a few dollars each, but the larger sizes are 10 bucks each and it quickly made more sense to buy the entire set, once I was set on a brand and type of drill bit.
Mcmaster is fast, but originally I ordered from EMI Supply (they list the exact part numbers and manufacturer and have good prices) and it took a couple weeks to get the parts.
Here is the set I have, for $85 on Amazon prime:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001CZH2SK/?tag=atomicindus08-20
https://www.emisupply.com/catalog/n...rill-bits-fractional-p-7208.html#.V-mjvMm_pdg
The 3/16" drill bit is $1.75
https://www.emisupply.com/catalog/n...lls-fractional-sizes-p-9318.html#.V-mkDsm_pdg
They also have cobalt for $2.23 in the 3/16", but I have not tried the cobalt.
Noresman says the key to drilling stainless is to use a drill bit which digs below the surface of the material so that it always cuts new ss, instead of slowly eating away at the surface, causing heat, which will work harden the stainless. It makes sense, but I don't think I have drilled stainless with these, yet. A HSS drill with a less than perfect design, for stainless, may give poor results on stainless, where a HSS drill with a better design could cut just fine. If you are just buying a couple drill bits, go with the cobalt if you think they will be better.
Carbide is a no go for hand drilling. It is too brittle, and I have learned that the hard way. Another reason I was willing to try noresman HSS, is that they claim their bits are a bit, no pun intended, tougher than common HSS but also flexible enough to hold up to hand drilling under less than ideal conditions. I prefer to drill items on the mill/drill and use an air mister to keep the cutters cool, but there are plenty of times I have to drill by hand with my V28 cordless. On thin stainless, the right bit shouldn't heat up much. I thought about using some of the mist coolant in a spray bottle, since it is much cleaner than using oil, and it keeps the bit much cooler.
Welding those joints wouldn't be much fun, even if you did have the equipment and some experience. That is some thin tube and and even though I have tig and mig welded for years (very little stainless), I would expect to have a learning curve.
Good luck on the project.
