Drill Press Mortising

[Wheaties]

Never mortised anything before. Can any drill press be turned into a Mortising Machine or do only certain ones accept the mortising attachment?

I'm looking into getting the Grizzly's 5-Speed Baby Drill Press if that helps at all. From what I can tell, it won't do it.

Thanks

 

[alphageek]

I just looked into this. It depends on the mortising kit. I found one that adapters several size presses. However, 1/3 hp is pretty small. I ended up mortising by hand for my small project.

Here is the kit I found (at a couple different places)... But I really think a bigger press might be needed (mines a bit small which is why I chose to do it by hand.)
http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2001840/9600/Complete-Mortising-Attachment-Kit.aspx

 

[Wheaties]

Thanks alphageek

I think I may just drill out as much as possible and chisel out the rest for now. That's about just as easy. I just have one project coming up that it would be nice for.

 

[GaryMGg]

Hogging out material on the DP and finishing by hand is a good solution.

 

[alphageek]

I used a 1/4" forstner bit for doing mine. I have to say, it was much easier cleaning up the 1/4" by 3/4" ones than the 1/4" by 1/4" ones. I could see where the machine would have made that much easier, but I can't justify the cost of that (yet).

 

[KenV]

I have tried the drill press attachments -- and the experience was that they work for light duty and occasional use. Seems that drill presses are not designed for strong lateral support, and it shows up.

The idea I saw recently and will use to recover use of the chisels is to use them with a mallet to cut the ends of mortices after drilling them out.

For hidden mortices, I have come to like floating tenons cut with a router