We’re a “Bit” Disappointed Today

In case you didn’t catch our lame attempt at humor, a particular drill bit issue has created a bit of annoyance for us. It all started about one year ago when we purchased a “G” sized jobbers length twist drill bit for a small project. The project was delayed and put on the backburner, and so the bit remained in its protective packaging. As you will soon see, this was a huge mistake on our part.

After being delayed for a year, we were ready for the project for which we ordered a G sized bit. Last week, I retrieved the bit, intending to use it right then and there. To my disappointment, the “G” sized bit that I had ordered was actually marked as an “I” bit. In case you are not familiar with numbered and lettered drill bits, “G” refers to a decimal size of 0.261″, and “I” refers to 0.272″.

For what we need the drill bit for, a differences of 0.011″ (less than 1/64″) is simply not tolerable. If I had noticed the error when the bit was ordered and received a year ago, I would have exchanged it at that time.

Since one year has passed, instead of trying to exchange or return the mislabeled “I” bit, we decided to just reorder another “G” bit. While we could have ordered it from any number of our favorite industrial suppliers, we reordered the bit from Small Parts via Amazon.

We buy a lot of tools, bits, and other products from Amazon and Small Parts, and have encountered remarkably few errors, so we assumed that this was a one-time error of some kind. In addition, the drill bit was half the price of similar quality bits from other suppliers, and as Prime subscribers we enjoy free 2-day shipping, so you can see why we reordered it from Amazon.

The bit arrives today and… it’s an I. As you can see from the above images, the sticker says “G” but the engraving says “I”. A pair of calipers confirmed that the engraving was accurate and that the bits were indeed size I. How can the same packaging mistake be made a year apart? Either it’s a rare coincidence, or more reasonably the bits were erroneously packaged by Small Parts upon their arrival from the manufacturer.

To their credit, Amazon responded to my complaint very rapidly and will be issuing a refund. To my frustration, my request to have a replacement bit examined before being shipped out to me was responded generically, saying that  if I want the item replaced, I’ll have to place another order. I will be ordering a G bit again, but from MSC this time, not Small Parts or Amazon.

What did we learn from this?

• Even Small Parts, one of our favorite distributors, is not infallible
• Amazon’s customer service is still prompt, courteous, and awesome
• When ordering bits, especially for future use, examine them upon arrival, NOT one year later

Well, I’m now off to order the bit we need via MSC, another one of our favorite distributors.

While having a wire gauge or numbered and lettered bit set around would have probably prevented much of the frustration and delay of this experience, [quality] A to Z sets are darned expensive.

Precision Twist G Jobber Length Bit (Amazon)