February 12th, 2026
Picture this: You’re halfway through drilling holes in 10mm stainless steel plate. Your drill bit’s smoking, the motor’s struggling and you’re leaning on it with everything you’ve got. Then it happens – the bit either snaps off or goes so dull it’s practically polishing the metal instead of cutting it. Sound familiar?
The cost of inadequate lubrication (or none at all) goes far beyond just replacing drill bits. It’s about wasted time, compromised quality, physical exhaustion and mounting frustration. The good news? It’s one of the easiest problems to fix in any workshop.
Cutting Dry: The Most Expensive ‘Saving’ You Can Make
Tool replacement adds up fast. A quality High-Speed Steel (HSS) drill bit is often expensive – and cobalt bits for tougher materials cost even more. When you’re cutting without proper lubrication, you can destroy a bit in minutes that should have lasted months. Multiply that across all the drill bits, taps, saw blades and reamers in your workshop, and you’re looking at hundreds in unnecessary tool replacement every year.
Time is money. Fighting through tough cuts without proper lubrication takes two to three times longer than it should. Your drill bit keeps grabbing and binding, overheating and losing its edge. A straightforward 5-minute drilling job becomes 15 minutes of struggling. Whether you’re billing by the hour or completing multiple jobs in a day, that lost time directly impacts your bottom line.
Ruined work means rework or scrap. Overheating doesn’t just damage your tools – it damages the material. When stainless steel overheats during cutting, it work-hardens, making it even more difficult to cut. You end up with rough finishes, torn threads and oversized holes.
Why Foam Technology Is The Answer
Traditional liquid cutting oils have one fundamental problem – they don’t stay where you spray them. They run off, drip away and leave your cutting edge high and dry, especially on vertical or overhead work.
INOX MX10 Foaming Cutting Oil solves this with advanced foam technology. The foam clings to any surface – vertical, overhead, horizontal – and stays there throughout your operation. Whether you’re drilling upwards into a steel beam or cutting overhead pipe, the foam doesn’t run off. It provides continuous lubrication exactly where you need it, for as long as you need it.
The specialised extreme pressure additives handle even the toughest cutting conditions, keeping tools cool and cutting edges sharp. It works on all metals – steel, stainless, aluminium, brass, copper, titanium – so you don’t need multiple products for different materials. Drilling, tapping, sawing, threading, reaming – one product covers every application.
And because it’s Australian made, you’re getting quality you can trust from a brand that’s been supporting Australian workshops for over 35 years.
Why General-Purpose Lubricants Aren’t Cutting Fluids
Many people reach for whatever spray lubricant is handy when they need to drill or tap metal. General-purpose penetrants, light lubricating oils – even cooking oil in a pinch.
The problem? These products aren’t designed for the extreme pressures and temperatures generated during metal cutting. They evaporate quickly under heat and provide minimal extreme pressure protection.
The biggest issue with most liquid lubricants is they run off immediately, especially on vertical or overhead work. You spray, you start cutting and within seconds the lubricant has dripped away. So you stop, spray again, cut a bit more, stop, spray again. It’s inefficient, expensive and ultimately ineffective.
INOX MX10 Foaming Cutting Oil is engineered specifically for metalworking, and the foam actually stays where you spray it, even on vertical or overhead surfaces, providing continuous lubrication throughout the entire operation.
It’s Not Just About Cost – It’s About Quality
Inadequate cutting lubrication doesn’t just cost you money – it compromises the quality and accuracy of your work.
Precision matters. Heat from friction causes metal to expand during cutting. Without proper cooling, holes end up oversized or out of tolerance. Tapped threads can be torn or rough when the tap overheats. For precision work – engine components, mounting brackets, structural connections – parts that should fit perfectly don’t. Threads that should be smooth and strong are compromised.
This is where specialised cutting fluids with extreme pressure (EP) additives make a real difference. INOX MX10 Foaming Cutting Oil is formulated to handle the intense heat and pressure at the cutting edge, keeping tools cool and maintaining dimensional accuracy.
Surface finish separates professionals from amateurs. Inadequate lubrication causes chatter and vibration during cutting, resulting in rough, torn edges instead of clean cuts. The difference between a part cut with proper lubrication and one cut dry is immediately visible.
Your reputation rides on the quality of your work. Clients notice the difference between clean, professional metalwork and rough cutting.
Make Hard Jobs Easy
Beyond cost and quality, proper cutting fluid simply makes the work easier.
Less physical effort means safer work. With proper lubrication, your drill glides through steel instead of you fighting it every millimetre. Hand tapping becomes manageable instead of a wrestling match where you’re terrified the tap will snap off.
The difference is dramatic – INOX MX10 Foaming Cutting Oil penetrates deep into threads and cuts, staying in place throughout the operation rather than running off like traditional liquids. This continuous lubrication means less resistance, less effort and far less fatigue.
Speed and efficiency improve dramatically. Jobs that used to take 30 minutes are done in way less time. You can safely use higher cutting speeds. Less time per job means more jobs per day.
Confidence changes everything. When you know your cutting fluid is doing its job, you can tackle tougher materials without stress. Working with properly lubricated tools is simply more enjoyable. Less frustration, less physical strain, better results.
The Bottom Line
Let’s add it up:
- Tool replacement: Hundreds of dollars per year in unnecessary bit, tap and blade replacement
- Time wasted: Hours per week fighting through cuts that should be straightforward
- Quality issues: Rework, scrap and reputation damage from poor-quality work
- Physical strain: Fatigue, discomfort and safety risks from excessive force
The solution is simple: use the right cutting fluid for the job.
Learn more about INOX MX10 Foaming Cutting Oil and how it keeps your tools sharp, your cuts clean and your work effortless.
Find your nearest INOX stockist: Where to Buy
The question isn’t whether you can afford to use quality cutting fluid – it’s whether you can afford not to.