Dentist milling bit--how can I use it?

[LittleWatchShop]

I was at the dentist this morning.  Looks like I need a crown.  Dentist makes the crowns in house using a milling machine, so I asked to see it.  Lying next to the machine were a bunch of these bits.  He said that they are one-time use and he was gonna throw them away.  Instead, he is happy to give them to me.

Hmmm...now wondering how I will use them.  They seem like great little routing bits. 

This dentist is new to the practice where I have been going for 30 years.  He is taking over for the old guy I have seen all these years.  He is young and we seemed to hit it off pretty well, so I will see what other tools they have to discard that I might use.  @HectorLooithoughts would but of interest here.

[HectorLooi]

These are all the new digital toys. The next generation of dentists will practise a totally different brand of dentistry.

Starting from the moment you approach the clinic, facial recognition software will alert the staff as to who is coming. You will be greeted by your name.

Before you even sit in the dental chair, a series of digital xray scans will be taken.

Next, an intra-oral scan of your mouth will be taken. Diagnostic software will merge the xrays and optical scans and do a full analysis of your dental condition, from gum disease, tooth decay, crooked teeth, buried wisdom teeth, etc.

If I were going to work another 10 years, I would consider going full digital. But as I'm planning on retiring soon, I can only dream on.

Imagine what can be done on a quite day with such toys... Scan a broken part and 3D print the part in metal! Mill your own watch case out of a block of zirconia and fire it in the furnace. 

[spectre6000]

I have a handful of these. I chuck them up in my Dremel and used them for inlay on guitar/bass fretboards. Works best in harder woods, and on the inlays themselves (metals and shell mostly, occasionally bone) and only for really fine detail/cleanup.

[LittleWatchShop]

1 hour ago, spectre6000 said:

I have a handful of these. I chuck them up in my Dremel and used them for inlay on guitar/bass fretboards. Works best in harder woods, and on the inlays themselves (metals and shell mostly, occasionally bone) and only for really fine detail/cleanup.

Yeah, I chucked one on to my dremel and etched some glass.  Your application is a good one.  I play my guitars...rarely have to mod or fix them, but these will be in my back pocket if I need to.

[nickelsilver]

We use similar bits quite often. Longer and more slender, but almost the same.  Very handy for touching up the sides of a set bridge after hardening and tempering,  removes the blue and machining marks. I could see a dental CNC machining molds or mold forms with them, maybe some ceramic?

[spectre6000]

22 hours ago, LittleWatchShop said:

Yeah, I chucked one on to my dremel and etched some glass.  Your application is a good one.  I play my guitars...rarely have to mod or fix them, but these will be in my back pocket if I need to.

I make them. Or used to at least... It's been a while for lack of usable shop space. I did repair in high school and college, but severe burn out put an end to that around graduation. Played quite a bit too. Got a sponsorship deal from a boutique amplifier manufacturer at one point, GC "artist" list (gear at cost discount), made a little beer money. These days, I keep a late-50s archtop strung and tuned for the occasional strum, but most instruments are slack in their cases.... Still have a couple "in progress" that may never be finished (seasonal movement popped the bindings off an archtop body, and I forget the status of the solid body electric), and a '67 Fender Deluxe Reverb I need to figure out the ailments of (picked it up for $25, and have another $50 or so in it at this point).