My rainbow drills

[rslaback]

I recently purchased a Huot cabinet to store my fractional drills in. I hate having incomplete drill indexes and having a drawer full of extra bits of all sizes wasn't acceptable to my **** retentiveness.

I'm not the best at putting drills back right after I get done using them and like most of you I have drills that have had the engraving spun off the shank so a drill gauge is necessary to identify the correct size. Finally I have 3 boys and a wife who aren't necessarily as concerned as I am about getting the right drill back in the right compartment.

So today I stole an idea from the KISS drill bit system I found on fastcap.com.

I bought paint markers for $.89 each on eBay (shipped from China).

Then I color coded a label across the top of each drawer and painted the chuck end of the drill with the corresponding color. The colors repeat which makes it a bit easier to know certain sizes. With the paint on the end it should stay there without issue.

Granted it looks a little odd with the multi-color labels visible but it should get the job done and make my life a bit easier.



I wish I would've seen this back when I was teaching. My students had to do a drill gauge project and I always felt horrible when I had to tell a kid that they had drilled a hole too large because someone had put a drill in the wrong compartment and they hadn't checked before they used it.

 

[sqaurelizard]

very cool idea how well does the marker stay on

 

[McLean]

F'n SMART.

I want to steal this

 

[KamiCrit]

Pretty cool, I was hoping for an ordered rainbow.

 

[rlitman]

very cool idea how well does the marker stay on

I'd expect the paint (because those are paint pens, not markers) to stay pretty well. That end of the bit really shouldn't rub against anything.

 

[stikman56]

I like that idea, a lot. Good thinking there.

 

[woody 73]

Way cool idea I never stop learning...

 

[Ign]

One shop I worked in kept a cheap pair of dial calipers on top of the index. We were trained to check the diameter of every bit before using it. I still do it in my shop today -- I try to be careful about putting bits back in the right slot but mistakes happen.

You'd do students a favor to train them the same, they won't always work in a rainbow-bit-colored shop.

 

[rslaback]

One shop I worked in kept a cheap pair of dial calipers on top of the index. We were trained to check the diameter of every bit before using it. I still do it in my shop today -- I try to be careful about putting bits back in the right slot but mistakes happen.

You'd do students a favor to train them the same, they won't always work in a rainbow-bit-colored shop.

I can see your point. That said, industry is moving more and more in this direction as it saves time and reduces error. There is value in this experience as well. Imagine if instead of keeping a cheap set of calipers near the index, your company had color coded them like this. While it may only save seconds per bit change those seconds do add up.

 

[F124C]

Thanks for this great idea!

Al.

 

[ChevyEFI]

Nice execution.

 

[Jarhead0408]

Very cool!

 

[Kracin]

good idea for well used bits as well. after a few slips in a chuck, you might not be able to read what size a bit is anyway, and then you are spending time finding a caliper to size it.

 

[RPH]

Paint the drill bit end. No slip there.

 

[The Cobbler]

great idea !

 

[Kracin]

Paint the drill bit end. No slip there.

i was referring to reading the laser etched sizes on a bit. he already painted the ends of it which is what i was saying was a good idea because of the laser etching being worn off old bits.

 

[BFHtime]

F'n SMART.

I want to steal this

X2

I will do this

 

[ca90ss]

I do the same thing with my taps and the matching drill bits.

 

[PFSard]

rslaback >> That's a decent idea for reducing the probability of error and saving time. Do you happen to still have the link from your eBay purchase?

 

[rslaback]

rslaback >> That's a decent idea for reducing the probability of error and saving time. Do you happen to still have the link from your eBay purchase?

most of the colors

purple and orange

You could probably get all the colors from the second link (they did get here faster too). I am cheap so I got all that I could from the first link.

You also could obviously use whatever colors you wanted too. I wanted to use the same as the KISS system just in case I ever snagged an organizer from them to put in my tool trailer. One other though would be to use model paints or even cheap dollar store nail polish if you can find enough colors.

 

[Aquamoose]

I'm doing this. That's a great idea!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Gotcha640]

I've seen some shops that will also paint metric vs standard wrenches and sockets. This would also help for Allen/torx wrenches. I have the craftsman bag with .5-10mm and similar standards and it's basically a try-fit effort.

 

[bob15]

I can see your point. That said, industry is moving more and more in this direction as it saves time and reduces error. There is value in this experience as well. Imagine if instead of keeping a cheap set of calipers near the index, your company had color coded them like this. While it may only save seconds per bit change those seconds do add up.

What you did will work for larger fractions and even letter sizes......but not with the smaller number sizes and smaller fractions. Industry still requires you to check the size with a mic. One cannot trust to make sure that that is a # 53 drill bit by looking and a tiny drill bit end and trying to figure out if it is yellow or white.....especially when you are working on a multi-thousand dollar one-off prototype. A mic is cheap insurance to confirm you have the correct drill bit size. Even when drilling out the ends of a newly made diesel injection line, I need to be 100% sure it .0625" and not .0635" or .05950"......and colored ends won't cut it.

 

[mtnwalton]

What you did will work for larger fractions and even letter sizes......but not with the smaller number sizes and smaller fractions. Industry still requires you to check the size with a mic. One cannot trust to make sure that that is a # 53 drill bit by looking and a tiny drill bit end and trying to figure out if it is yellow or white.....especially when you are working on a multi-thousand dollar one-off prototype. A mic is cheap insurance to confirm you have the correct drill bit size. Even when drilling out the ends of a newly made diesel injection line, I need to be 100% sure it .0625" and not .0635" or .05950"......and colored ends won't cut it.

+1; this may be good for home hobbyists, but wouldn't fly in any shop I've worked in.

 

[rslaback]

What you did will work for larger fractions and even letter sizes......but not with the smaller number sizes and smaller fractions. Industry still requires you to check the size with a mic. One cannot trust to make sure that that is a # 53 drill bit by looking and a tiny drill bit end and trying to figure out if it is yellow or white.....especially when you are working on a multi-thousand dollar one-off prototype. A mic is cheap insurance to confirm you have the correct drill bit size. Even when drilling out the ends of a newly made diesel injection line, I need to be 100% sure it .0625" and not .0635" or .05950"......and colored ends won't cut it.

+1; this may be good for home hobbyists, but wouldn't fly in any shop I've worked in.

Wow guys. Just wow.

 

[bob15]

Wow guys. Just wow.

Did you or did you not say:

industry is moving more and more in this direction as it saves time and reduces error. There is value in this experience as well. Imagine if instead of keeping a cheap set of calipers near the index, your company had color coded them like this. While it may only save seconds per bit change those seconds do add up.

I'm trying to show where you are wrong (even gave examples). There are many, many places and jobs that cannot rely on color coding of a drill bit. Machine shops cannot afford a possible error reading a color. We do high precision work....into the millionths of an inch, we must take the time to be correct.

 

[A_Pmech]

That's an excellent idea, I like it!

While it's always a good idea to check size before using the tool, color coding.would sure take the drudgery out of putting them away and thus minimize the chance of using a wrongly cataloged drill.

 

[rslaback]

Did you or did you not say:

I'm trying to show where you are wrong (even gave examples). There are many, many places and jobs that cannot rely on color coding of a drill bit. Machine shops cannot afford a possible error reading a color. We do high precision work....into the millionths of an inch, we must take the time to be correct.

I said that industry (which includes way more than precision machine shops) is moving toward lean manufacturing to reduce time and errors. It is the reason that electrical plugs in cars are color coded, keyed and all different sizes. Poka-yoke speeds assembly and reduces errors. That positively effects the bottom line.

I have no doubt that in your shop, with number size drills color-coding them would not be practical (and no one ever said it would be). But, we weren't really talking about micro-drills were we? I had intended to show a solution for standard fractional drills. I thought the original post did that.

 

[A_Pmech]

Micro drills are color coded in many shops. Measuring one must be done optically which is time consuming. In addition, the size on the shank may no longer represent the true size after sharpening.

 

[bob15]

Not going to argue with you....but industry (not machine shops) that also go into tiny drill bits smaller than a 1/16 (not a micro bit) can include:

jet engine manufacturing
engine assembly plants
submarine building
firearms manufacturing
paper mills
helicopter manufacturing

All of the above will use number, letter and fraction bits at the same time.

None of them will allow color coding. The risk of error is too great when a crib might have 100 drill bits of the same size, it is best to either read and confirm the size or mic it.

Coloring with paint pens or even dykem for home use is fine, but leave at that. A couple seconds to confirm the size before the bit goes into a production line setting is time well spent.

Enjoy the weekend.......

 

[Thegratenate]

This is an absolutely brilliant idea. Thank you for sharing it. I like the idea of piggy backing on a color coding system that is already in place (why recreate the wheel?)
For the detractors, nobody is talking about taking your mics away and welding then to the table as hold downs. It's just a way to put drill bits away faster, and get one in your hand to check with a mic faster. I know that if size matters I'm going to confirm the size before I drill a hole.

 

[A_Pmech]

None of them will allow color coding. The risk of error is too great when a crib might have 100 drill bits of the same size, it is best to either read and confirm the size or mic it.

Coloring with paint pens or even dykem for home use is fine, but leave at that. A couple seconds to confirm the size before the bit goes into a production line setting is time well spent.

Color coding has been used for decades and decades to good effect in the electronics industry. I'm actually surprised it hasn't been used more in the machining trades. I'm further surprised I didn't think of the idea myself!

A typical cause of being supplied an incorrectly sized tool is a tool that was put away in the wrong location.

 

[csargents1546]

I think this is a great idea for the HOME shop. I feel you on the incomplete sets, drawer full of random bit. I have a bag That came in my tool box with just random bit. Good execution on the color coding.

 

[jeffmoss26]

Neat idea.

 

[PelicanPines]

Great idea but my OCD would require putting the teal and blue ... farther apart. Too close for my "before coffee" time.

That said... I'm sooo taking this idea.

 

[stewie97]

I did this in the packaging dept of the low tolerance manufacturing shop I manage.

I hadn't thought about using it in the actual manufacturing shop! I know what I am going to use for my Friday project this week.

 

[stewie97]

Not going to argue with you....but industry (not machine shops) that also go into tiny drill bits smaller than a 1/16 (not a micro bit) can include:

jet engine manufacturing
engine assembly plants
submarine building
firearms manufacturing
paper mills
helicopter manufacturing

All of the above will use number, letter and fraction bits at the same time.

None of them will allow color coding. The risk of error is too great when a crib might have 100 drill bits of the same size, it is best to either read and confirm the size or mic it.

Coloring with paint pens or even dykem for home use is fine, but leave at that. A couple seconds to confirm the size before the bit goes into a production line setting is time well spent.

Enjoy the weekend.......

Color coding works great in my Industry (low tolerance manufacturing)

 

[speed bump]

We use the heck out of color coding and other systems like this at work but I never thought about this for drill bits at home.

As far as the person who said that this is not used in high precision machining needs to visit more shops. Systems like this are actually something that our auditing group looks for when auditing vendors.