Over at Amazon, a popular seasonal deal is back again. Today only, you can buy this Dremel 3000 rotary tool set for just $45.
I know what you might be thinking. “Uch, this is the cheap one, right?” Well, it might inexpensive, but it’s not cheap. And I actually really like the 3000 series Dremel tool, and think it has some appeal over the pricier and more powerful tools.
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For one, it’s small and compact, or at least smaller and more compact. That makes it more convenient when using certain accessories and attachments. For a lot of the types of tasks one might use a Dremel rotary tool for, this 3000 series tool might be all that you need.
It has a variable speed motor, EZ Twist nose cap, and comes with a 2 attachment and 28 piece accessory set.
This is a nice-sized kit for those who think they could use a Dremel rotary tool but aren’t quite sure what they might need from it down the road.
The kit lacks a flex-shaft tool, but it has a cutting guide and sanding/grinding guide. I’d never used my sanding guide, but the cutting guide comes in handy.
Sale Price: $45
Buy Now(via Amazon)
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Deal ends at 3am ET 5/24/2018, unless supplies sell out sooner.
If I could go back ~15 years to when I bought my first Dremel rotary tool, I wouldn’t buy this kit. Why? Because I knew what I wanted to use a rotary tool for, and this kit wouldn’t have been enough.
With Dremel rotary tool kits, the more you spend, the more attachments and accessories you get. You might not need some of those components initially, but you save a lot compared to buying a smaller kit and the accessories and attachments separately. So if you know you will want a flex-shaft down the road, it is usually much more economical to look at the Dremel kits that include it.
Surprisingly, these days a lot of Dremel kits no longer come with the flex-shaft tool, or rather there are many more kit options that don’t include it. I suppose this is a way to keep entry prices lower.
I guess “having it and not needing it” is more justified when talking about inexpensive accessories, rather than a specialized $25 attachment.
You know, I almost got my first Dremel rotary tool set for free. The cashier at Lowes had scanned the “don’t scan, not a barcode” barcode, and it made a *beep* but didn’t register in the computer. I had a few other things in my order, and the total was a lot lower than I had anticipated.
I paused for a short moment and then said “I don’t think the Dremel kit rang up.” Yes it did. “Are you sure?” She checked things over, and sure enough, it had not been properly scanned. She thanked me, I paid for everything, and went back to my apartment to start cutting and sanding things.
Craig
Same thing at Lowes for $49. I wonder if it will go any lower for Father’s Day.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dremel-3000-28-Piece-Variable-Speed-Multipurpose-Rotary-Tool-Kit/999977650
satch
Stuart, good points all round. We have this model at work and believe me, there are many times the more compact 3000 was a better choice than the larger 4000 models or a pneumatic die grinder.
The task I reference is the installation of electric door lock strikes. More precisely the surface mount strikes shaped like a 9-10 inch bullet level. These are installed on doors with a panic/crashbar type latch. For those of you who don’t that lingo you will recognise it as the long bar across a door you push to unlatch it and exit a corridor or building.
When the door closes it rests against a protrusion in the center of the frame. This ‘lip’ runs from top to bottom of the frame opening. The electric strike needs about three inches of open space in that lip to allow its catches to open when the strike is energised. You have to cut and grind away that gap in the frame lip and NOT leave it looking like a drunk hack came through with a sawzall and butchered it up.
This is where a smaller tool like the 3000 shines. It is not really delicate work but
it is neat work. A larger tool will not make the right angle cuts you need without lot of horseing and forcing of the tool and potential scarring of adjacent
framework. If I were to want the bigger tools I would look first at the Proxxon IB/T series. I wish Bosch would introduce something similar as their high end entrant for this market. Like all hobby tools you come to undefstand that a certain amount of attrition is going to happen.
pete
Thats a pretty good deal! I’d much rather have this than what i ended up with.
RC WARD
Nice job telling the checker at Lowe’s , that came back to help you in your life ten times over.
Stuart
I like to think so.
I do remember hesitating though – for a moment – about whether to tell the cashier or not, and feeling bad about the pause afterwards.
I’m not proud of every decision I’ve ever made, but I am of that one.
fred
There was an old Vaudeville routine about doing the right thing.
The 4 Players: Two business partners (call them Harry and Mike), Mike’s son vacation from school and a customer.
The Set: Inside the partner’s hardware store.
The Action:
Harry mentions that he needs to leave work early.
Mike says it’s no problem since he has his son with him to help out.
Harry leaves
A customer comes in to purchase a big order – and a $100 bill is tendered to pay and change is made.
After the customer leaves Mike notices that the $100 bill was stuck to another one so the customer has overpaid by $100.
Mike calls his son to come over to the cash register quick. He explains that there is a business ethics issue to discuss. He quickly explains what happened and asks his son: “should we tell Harry?
Unlike our fictional Mike, you did the right thing.
Jim Felt
As an aside I have the actual Bosch 12V Dremel-like tool and it works great. (Bosch owns Dremel).
A little heavier and harder to find (try AmazonUK) but worth the upgrade “bother”.
None, of course, are Foredom level but hey Foredom is line voltage only.
fred
Foredom does have a walkabout tool aimed at the Jeweler market that does free you from the wall outlet:
http://www.ottofrei.com/Foredom-K-1030-Portable-Rotary-Micromotor-Kit
I have quite a bit of Foredom stuff on one bench with 2 SR motors hanging – but might be tempted to try this to sit on the beach and work on a project.
Satch
Hey Jim. Glad to see you mention the Bosch rotary. I note they keep it out of the U. S. market. Likely to keep from competing too much with Dremel. And saying that, is the Bosch cordless tool just a blue variant of the Dremel 8XXX series or is it it’s own thing?
Peter
Satch, I have the 12v Bosch rotary as well. It is it’s own thing. And not a blue variant of the Dremel. It has the heft and precision of solid tool. IMHO, the Dremel seems more of a delicate hobby tool. If I was doing fine jewelry, i’d pick the Dremel. Today, I had to crawl into the engine compartment of my 96 Burb to cut off a small rusted bolt – and grind the bracket smooth – the Bosch GRO12v-li was brilliant.
satch
Peter, thank you. That was exactly what I was looking for.
I know Bosch wants to keep Dremel at the forefront of rotary tools in the U.S. but I do wish they would take a close look at what Proxxon does and give us an upgraded model under the Bosch marquee. Those little Proxxon models have a solid metal gearbox section and if you look at YouTube videos doing a sound comparison between them and a Dremel tool, the Proxxon is NOTICEABLY quiter. Important for guys lime me with tinnitus. Thanks again.
JoeM
Wait… satch, which models of Dremel do you find too loud for your Tinnitus? I have a family history of hearing issues, so I’m not there yet, but you’ve got me curious how sensitive it can get. I have a 4000 and an 8200, plus I still borrow my Mother’s 40 year old 395 from time to time.
I’m 36 right now, and I can talk over the sound of all these models with barely a whisper. They make a very high pitched sound, but they’re really quiet, in my experience.
How bad does it get for you, and what triggers it, if you don’t mind my asking?
JoeM
Yeah, I’d say this kit is actually WORTH $45 ish. I’ve been using Dremel Rotary tools since I was 9. I used my Mother’s Model 395, from before I was born, until I turned 30 and was given a generous amount of Birthday Money to buy my own. I’m a LIFETIME Dremel user, and I see this kit as “The Gateway In Kit”, and it genuinely is worth $45-$60. I mean that in all the best ways.
Why? Because this is the kit smack dab in the middle of all the model types in the family. This is the one you could buy 10 of, and give them as gifts to 10 different people, even kids, and it’s genuinely useful. If someone already has a Dremel at home, GREAT! Backup tool! Kid just graduating somewhere, GREAT! Hobby Tool! First time Dremel User, GREAT! Learn to use one on this, and what they do with it will dictate if they need a bigger, or smaller model.
It’s beefier than the current 300 series, but smaller than the 4000 and 8220. Smack dab in the middle. It’s a great little machine for teaching and having as a backup.
satch
JoeM, I was goi g to respond to your post directly but there was no ‘reply’ button.
Anyroad, any of the Dremel models make, as you say, a high pitched noise that sets me right off. Tinnitus is weird. Some have the cicada(locust sounds) and some of us have the elelctronic hum type. I have the latter so anything high pitched is a tough go. In any case good hearing protection is a must. I have a Black & Decker RTX and a Sears branded Dremel 2 speed model which is nearly identical to the 395 though not variable speed. The Proxxons have ball bearings and slightly different motor design.
JoeM
Yeah, sorry about that Satch. The post reply limit on the site prevented the reply. I didn’t consider it at the time.
So, you’re saying it’s not so much the volume, so much as the tone? Interesting. As I said, you had me curious. You happened to comment in a place that overlaps two personal concerns of mine, my family’s hereditary hearing problems, and the volume of my tools in use.
My tools are so quiet, to my ear, that I never considered what the pitch might be doing to me. Or, possibly, if I had bought a Dremel for one of my cousins! Thank You, Satch. I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable or anything with the question. I know a couple of my Cousins, and even my Mother, are very tight-lipped and embarrassed to speak about our family’s hearing issues, so I know it can be invasive or rude to ask about it.
I appreciate the input, and I’ll see about Proxxons tools. We’re definitely a Dremel family, but if the time comes that none of us can pick one up, we won’t have a choice but to switch. So, Thank You!
satch
JoeM, sorry for the late response. Yeah, I would say pitch/frequency is a big player. Probably not as big a culprit as out and out high volume but it is an aggravating factor once the tinnutis has set in.
I too have hereditary hearing loss in my family. One uncle has the coclear implant thing. Unfortunately I cannot afford the hearing aid I need. Mine is still somewhat fixable since my loss is mild. The hearing doc says the tinnitus is your brain trying to replace your missing hearing spectrum with…something. After awhile it will simply stop trying and you cannot really do much to alleviate it. I hope I can do something with it.
As to motor design, look up a video on YouTube about Dremel vs Proxxon. The sound difference is huge. Both in volume and particularly pitch.
Seriously guys, WEAR HEARING PROTECTION. Particularly when young. Your ears never get better with age.