Jobber length bits?

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I am shopping for a bit to replace one I broke yesterday and I keep seeing bits advertised as "jobber length" bits. What is that?

Thanks!

[Ronald Blue]

Ken are you sure it's not "jobber" length you're seeing? There are jobber length and the general definition is the flute length is 10 times the diameter. So 1/8" (.125) has flutes 1-1/4" long. Check your other bits to see if that's the type you have. There are also mechanics drill bit's which are shorter and generally stronger. Hope this helps.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Ken are you sure it's not "jobber" length you're seeing? There are jobber length and the general definition is the flute length is 10 times the diameter. So 1/8" (.125) has flutes 1-1/4" long. Check your other bits to see if that's the type you have. There are also mechanics drill bit's which are shorter and generally stronger. Hope this helps.

That's was it. Thanks for correcting me Ron! I corrected my post.

[Jim Barkelew]

I recall that the term jobber refers to "job shop" or shops that take on any type work, by the job. Basically general purpose drills. I have a handful of "aircraft mechanic" type drills that are all 6 in long. I use them all the time for drilling in tight places. There is a lot to be said for drills that are all the same length. Very easy to change drills on the drill press since you don't have to change the table height.

Jim

[Greg R Bradley]

Jobber Length is probably what you think of as normal length. That is probably what you want for general use in wood. In steel, Jobber Length is what you would generally want when drilling with a drill press. BUT that is not what people buy because they think longer is better.
Mechanics Length is about 20% shorter and usually has 3 flats. This makes them better for hand held drilling as they hold better in the poorer quality chucks and the shorter length makes them less likely to break under the flexing that happens when you hold the drill in your hand.
If you are drilling steel hand held, buy Norseman Super Premium bits in Mechanics Length and you wont break any more bits. DON'T buy any Cobalt drills as they are brittle and DON'T buy any drills that have a replacement guarantee as they will either be stupidly expensive good drills or cheap junk at the same price as good bits.