Drill Press

[bca1313]

I thought that there was a thread recently on drill presses, but I searched and did not find it.

I recenly moved and in the process sold my floor standing drill press. I am going to get a new drill press soon and am trying to decide between getting another full size floor model or getting a smaller one that will go on top of the work bench.

My biggest concern is whether I can get the quill travel on the smaller one and if in the end I will wish I had gotten a larger one.

Seeing as most all of us use drill presses there are probably lots of opinions on the matter.

Any thoughts would be appreciated...

Thanks,

Ben

 

[alamocdc]

Ben, try here.

 

[Dario]

Billy,

You haven't lost your touch...still draw fast [].

BTW, Next time you visit, we won't be alone...Ben just moved to San Antonio! []

 

[GBusardo]

Whenever I can get a new press, (I use a benchtop) I am going to seriously consider a radial arm drill press. It may not come in handy for pens, but you can see the possibilities. Not sure if ever seen one Ben, but i think Sears and Grizzley has them pretty cheap.
Just a thought
Gary

 

[vbatwork]

I have a Delta radial drill press that I'm not happy with. I really like Delta, but the radial press lacks the crank to raise and lower the table which is a major pain. Instead it clamps to the support column. You loosen the clamp and wriggle the (tight) table up and down the column to change heights. Not fun! It also makes a lot of work checking that the left/right of the bit is 90deg to the table. In 13 years, I have never used the radial aspect as I thought I might. I've managed to crack my head on that motor which hangs way off the back of the unit too!!! Arrgghhh! I'd swap for a decent floor unit if I could.

 

[DocStram]

I bought a HF bench top drill press about two months ago. It was on sale plus I had a 20% off coupon. I ended up getting it dirt cheap. I've been real happy with it, the quill travel is good for pen blanks. Plus, with the money I saved .... more pen kits!

 

[redbulldog]

Good luck with the radial arm drill press. Before I moved from CA I gave away a Grizzly Radial arm drill press. Mine was impossible to keep in adjustment. Good for drilling a sheet of metal, no good for anything else if you wanted accuracy!

 

[jdmyers4]

Ben,

I have a Palmgren 15" bench-top model. It's heavy (about 200 pounds), so it's rock solid. One feature that I like about it is that it has a 5" quill travel. You do have to manually adjust the pulleys for speed adjustment. And it's a bit pricey for a bench model - about $400. But it drills holes like a charm, and accurately.

Good luck in your search for a new DP.

John

 

[GBusardo]

OK OK I got the message! I am glad I put that in there, now I know not to look at one. Thanks!
Gary