Menards has a set of Vermont LH drill bits as seen here Vermont LH bits. There is a Lowe's in town as well but I couldn't find anything on their website that looked worth a damn. There are these on Ebay Northern Cobalt LH bits or is there something else you know of? I am afraid to use anything Harbor Freight as I am drilling out the crankshaft pulley bolt and don't want to end up breaking something off in there.

I prefer carbide bits if you can find them although I'm not sure if they would be good for your needs. I'm sure someone else who's done that can chime in. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

I'd say any quality bit would be fine. Just use a good drill that goes at a slower speed...and have a buddy spraying oil frequently...

The Vermont American's are what I have and have used with success.

Home Depot has some bits from Ridgid called Cryo Cobalt bits. They are silver in color. After losing an edge quickly drilling out a couple of the 50+ spot welds on my T&C's strut tower fix with the regular cobalt bits - this bit buzzed through them incredibly. The only catch is they are a lot more brittle - so keep your drill line straight.

No LH as far as I know - never extracted that way.

I think I am going to go with the set of Vermonts. For the price ($32) they gotta be pretty good. Right <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />?

Should work fine - if they don't, use a magic square <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

My experience with cobalt bits is they are better for drilling very hard substances (stainless, hardened steel, etc.). For mild steel, use lots of coolant and a high RPM - probably about double what one would normally use with high-speed steel bits.

That said, I would think that bolt would be hardened steel but perhaps someone can shed more light here?

Ok, I just got done doin the same thing on my 95SR. I bought the set of crio bits from home depot, these might be good for other softer metals but for some reason are JUNK for the type of metal in that crank bolt. From there i went through two more bits of simular quality with minimal success. I finaly broke down and called my local specialty tool suply store McFadden dale's. They sold me an excelent quality S&D HD Black and Gold bit that went through it like a hot knife through butter. I was amazed to find that this bit was Just a high speed steel bit, however it was a very well manufacturered tool. The bit did cost me $35 but I would have saved the $100 i spent on all those other bits had i started with this one in the first place. Yet another leson learned, sometimes the manufacturer is more important than the materials used. And when it comes to tools ALWAYS buy American made! Try to find a specialty tool store in your area like Ace, Fasteners, Fastenal, Mcfadden Dales, ect. And make sure you get the right tap, I went through the same mess with that issue as well. The tap i used was about 50 bucks, but was well worth it and once again a nothing special U.S. made tool did the job with ease when all the overseas "special" tools made from the "best" materials just broke or striped. Good luck bro, and dont hesitate to pm me if things get bad.