By amazing coincidence, I was looking at these last night. Try Amazon and search for

Proops Set x 4 Steel Twist Drill & Machine Tap Gauges, Fractional, Metric, Number, Letter. (M9123) Free UK Postage

Rob (didn't mean to shout, it's the cut and paste…)

Tapping and clearance sizes for the smaller UNC and UNF threads.

Andrew

Cromwell, Zozo, Kennedy, RS all have them.

Can't say I ever use number drills, metric in steps of 0.1mm do me

Proops offer a number drill gauge with thou equivalents on their own site or via Amazon for £2.40 delivered. The .001" conversions match those on my conversion table, so as long as you don't want to go smaller than #60 it should be fine.

Unfortunately it is however almost impossible to find in a search thanks to Amazon's bizarre search results.

Try either: –

1 Search "gauge" on Proops Brothers' website;

2 Go to page 2, it is the first item.

Or: –

1 Search Amazon UK for "drill gauge";

2 Click on a Proops one to open the product page;

3 Click on the sold by "proops brothers ltd" link at the right to get to the vendor page;

4 Click on the "Visit the proops brothers ltd storefront" link;

5 Go back to the search box at the top and search again for "drill gauge";

6 If you haven't given up by then, scroll down to "More Results" to find it.

The set of 4 that Rob suggested should be slightly further down the page on either website, but reading the description it is actually a set of 3 as there isn't a metric one!

I HATE trying to find anything on Amazon, but if I am having a bad day it is a great way to lose my temper and let it all out…

Brian G

Most of us have a rusty gauge still un-used on the shelf.

On the other hand, do a search for drill gauge on etsy and it will immediately take you close to the Proops shop on
there;
https://www.etsy.com/uk/search?q=drill+gauge

The Proops number gauge link is Here
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/248162832/proops-steel-twist-drill-and-machine-tap

Or you could have a set of three
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/398651749/proops-steel-twist-drill-machine-tap

Bill

Edited By peak4 on 05/10/2022 20:29:59

I think you would need to write a little more on this.

The largest number drill, number 1, is about 5.8mm dia. The smallest, number 80, is about 0.35mm.

There might be some overlap between knitting needle sizes at their small end and number drill sizes at their large end but simple logic tells you it cannot be the same standard as it has run out of options after number 1.

See: https://knittingknowledge.com/knitting-guides/knitting-needle-sizes/

Years ago, after I inherited my father's tools, I decided to try to sort out what was there.

I went into a tool shop in Croydon and asked for a drill gauge.

They must have seen me coming because when I arrived home, I looked at the gauge and discovered it was for number drills while the drills that I had (loose in tobacco tines) were all fractional sizes.

I wet back to the shop and bought a Drill index up to 1/2" and discovered that the holes in the index enabled me to put the drills in the right holes.

I have now been able to buy Drill Indices for Metric, fractional, Letter Sizes and Number sizes but irritatingly, nobody sells empty indices any more.

If Bosun cares to visit me (Herts), he can use my gauge to measure his drills

MC

Do you mean empty indexes per se or just indexes for number drills? The former seems hard to believe but I could believe the latter in Europe.

I have NOT been able to find empty drill indices at a sensible price for any type of drills, Metric, fractional, numbers, letters, etc.

I live in the United Kingdom – NOT in Europe

I managed to acquire Indices some time ago for all the series of drills that I own – but it would be good if they were still sold empty rather than full of drills.

MC

.

Just curious … What do you consider to be a sensible price ?

MichaelG.

I bought one of these from ebay **LINK**

to store my increasing collection of stub drills.

HTH,

(other) Rod