would this be a good buy

[old folks]

HD has a 12 inch benchtop drill press that has a 3 1/4 inch quill travel for $150.00 plus tax. It would allow a person to drill pen blanks in one pass. Anyone know if they are good quality ? It is a Ryobi... Thanks

 

[Old Griz]

Some of the new Ryobi stuff is really good.. in the last year or so they have significantly upgraded their quality... If HD will allow you to return it no questions asked if it does not perform, I would say go for it...
I got lucky and got a Delta VS350 with the same quill travel for $125 at Lowes when they decided not to carry the brand anymore... the only thing I regret was not buying the Delta Midi they had on sale for 1/2 price at the same time... LIKE I NEEDED ANOTHER LATHE.. LOL

 

[Ken Massingale]

As Tom said, Ryobi's stuff these days is very good. That DP depends on your space, you can get a nice floor DP from HF for that price range, even a radial for about 20 bucks more, on sale. But, you nay not have the space, or you may not like HF stuff.
I have several Ryobi and Craftsman branded Ryobi tools. When I have needed support, Ryobi didn't disappoint me.
ken

 

[ravo]

I too, was planning on getting the 12" Ryobi. Then I read a review of it and several others. It came in last. I ended up with the Delta DP350 for few dollars more.

 

[woodscavenger]

I have had good success with HF tools. Either way, the longer travel is sweet.

 

[Daniel]

A floor standing Drill press gets you more bang for your buck and has one of the smallest foot prints of all the shop tools.
I've always thought if you hae space on a bench. why not build the drill press up through the bench? that way if you ever end up with enough space you have the bigger press. if mobility is part of your needs then the bench top is about the only answer.
as for me on a used bench top press I would be holding pretty firm for around $100 price tag. and that is if it has the 3" of travel. for new this is a fairly good price.

 

[vick]

I have a 12 inch Delta, but if I had to do in again I would get something with a little more travel so that I drill blanks without having to adjust the height on big pens.

 

[pds0006]

I don't have a Ryobi drill press, but have had good success with the brand in general.

I had a question for everyone about the quill travel. I have a Shopsmith and the quill has a 4" + travel. What is a normal travel for a drill press? I've started realizing I'm somewhat in the dark about mainstream tools and their capabilities.

 

[ctEaglesc]

I have the Ryobi you are talking about and it does the job...
BUT
If I had it to do again I would get a floor model.
I agree with Daniel about the floor model and a cabinet
The Ryobi serves me well,I don't care for the way the depth stop sets but playing around with it makes it work.
ANything more than 3&1/4 inch quill travel and you are paying quite a bit more.(check the Grizzly catalog and you'll see what I mean.)
From what I have seen 2" travel is the norm for "budget" machines.
BTW that price at H.D> is the same I paid 3 years ago.Unless they have gone up it is not a sale price.
I believe the Ryobi comes with a 30 day no questions asked return guarantee and a 2 year warranty.
Like I said mine has served me well but it won't be my only or last drill press.
Here's a link to a current thread that discusses drill presses
http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6229

 

[jdavis]

Ryobi has made great strides in improving their products. This one will do you a good job, John.

 

[wayneis]

I have a Delta VS that I really like but if I were to do it again I would get a floor model. Not much more money but a lot more possibilities if you do other woodwork other than penmaking.

Wayne

 

[Rifleman1776]

Originally posted by ravo
<br />I too, was planning on getting the 12" Ryobi. Then I read a review of it and several others. It came in last. I ended up with the Delta DP350 for few dollars more.

A friend did some planing for me recently on osage orange, tough wood. He was using a little 12" Ryobi that handled that wood with ease. Afterwards, he said it was over 20 years old. This guy is a heavy-duty wood worker, that machine has been used very mucho. He also said that he thinks it is time to get the blades sharpened or replaced. Original blades, never sharpened in twenty years of hard use. And someone says they are good "these days"? Matter of opinion, I guess. Only downside, by my way of looking at things, wish we could say the same about American made tools. []

 

[alamocdc]

John, I've had my benchtop Ryobi four years now and I've had no problems with it. And it gets used almost every day. Like Daniel, I wish it was a floor model, but it was what I could afford at the time and there are work arounds for the short comings.

 

[epson]

I use the Royobi bench drill press. It does everything that I need for making pens. I am pleased with it.