GMC 4pc Hobby Tool Kit: Discontinued — What to Buy Instead

GMC’s hobby tool kit bundled a small rotary tool with accessories. GMC Australia was placed in receivership in 2008 and the range went with it.

What matters in a rotary tool

Runout. A rotary tool spins to 30,000 rpm. If the collet and shaft are not true, the bit wobbles, the cut wanders and fine work is impossible. This is the difference between a cheap rotary tool and a good one, and it does not appear on any box.

Speed control that holds under load. Carving and cutting want different speeds, and a tool that sags to a crawl when the bit touches the work will burn rather than cut.

Collet sizes. Most useful accessories come on 1/8in (3.2mm) or 3/32in shanks, with 1/16in and 1/32in for fine burrs. A tool supplied with only one collet limits what you can fit; collet sets are sold separately and are worth having.

The accessory question

This is where kits mislead. A bundle of a hundred accessories is mostly cutting discs and sanding drums you will get through in an afternoon, plus grinding stones that suit metal you do not have. The accessories worth money are carbide burrs, diamond points and reinforced cut-off wheels — none of which usually come in a bundled kit.

Accessories are not brand-locked. Anything with a 3.2mm shank fits any rotary tool with a 3.2mm collet.

What to buy

The Dremel 4000, linked below, is the tool the category is named after. Its advantage over the cheap alternatives is electronic feedback speed control — the motor holds its set speed when the bit loads up, which is exactly when a cheap tool bogs and burns.

If you only need to cut the odd bolt or grind a weld, an angle grinder does it faster. A rotary tool earns its place on small, precise work where a grinder is far too much tool.