Recommend a Drill Press?

[scopEDog]

Bah..

Freak electrical issue and i blew the motor on my drill press. Out of warranty and a new motor will almost cost the price of a new press. I'm having a bad day today :-(

Anyways, I'm shopping around for a new one, what are you guys using? What are your impressions of your drill press?

[Starbuck3733T]

I've got an ancient (and I mean 1940s) millhead rigged as a drillpress. It came with my house, and it is SOLID. Obviously you can't buy that.

My benchtop drillpress is a smaller one from grizzly, and it works well, other than being benchtop. Have a look around www.grizzly.com - anything you get from there I can get at the factory outlet for a bit less (the outlet is about 45 minutes from my house), and then it gives me an excuse to drive to NYC for some moddin and beer!

[dutchcedar]

I have a benchtop drill press from Craftsman with a 1/2" chuck picked up from a friend in a trade... it works fine for most 'puter modding stuff. Its certainly one of the most often used tools for me. I would love to grab one that's a bit more robust, but might step into a small benchtop mill next...

The last time I was tool gazing, there were a few nice benchtop drill presses for less than $200. Heck, some were less than $100. :o

[fivecheebs]

I have the same budget laser guided drill press that nexxo has posted pictures of. Does the job well for what i need. I only paid £40 for it too ^_^

Doesnt really help you over there though scope, sorry.

[mnpctech]

I couldn't even tell ya who made my relic, but I agree with dutch... Check out Craftsman.

http://prudhoe.codeword.com/mnpctech/BIO/garage1.jpg

[Knipex]

Have a look at getting the motor rewound. Normally a fraction of the cost of a new one.

[duhwht]

I have the same antique as mnpctech...

But as of right today this one is on sale at sears stores and it seems to be decent for the price... (50 and tax)

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00921499000&subcat=Drill+Presses

Besides for that price if you find it isnt right for the things you want to do , (Not that I think you will...) youre not out a whole lot...

[zer0]

hey that sears drill press looks like its the perfect price for my first drill press
scope are you looking for a full sized floor standing one or a benchtop one like what duhwht posted?

[dutchcedar]

duhwht... thanks for the link...

I'm using this one: http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00924803000&tab=spe#tab

Were I to have a "do over", it would be this one: http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?pid=00921900000&BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&cs=e1

[duhwht]

Went to my local sears store and asked about the one I linked to above and they did have one...

Doesnt look to be any better or worse than the one I have here at home... (Meaning belt cover may squeak and rattle during use , chuck may deflect a bit on hard drilling through quarter inch or more steel plate)

Was in thier clearance tools section , Tagged down to 29.00 ...

(Just a heads up , May get one hell of a deal if you have a sears close.)

Edit: And as for do-overs , I think if i had one , i would have went for the floor model that was at the garage sale next to the place i got this one :D

[scopEDog]

Thanks for that guys, I think im gonna go shopping this weekend to see what deals i can find. I'm thinking floor standing, cause i need to drill some big pieces. Lets see what I find.

And SB thanks for the offer! Your always welcome by for a few brewskies :thumb:

[Da_Rude_Baboon]

Hey scopE check these (http://www.screwfix.com/app/sfd/sea/searchresults.jsp;jsessionid=4A4ETWNS3PV5LCJO2C1CJ 0Q?_dyncharset=UTF-8&q=tapping+drill+bits&n=&pn=1&pd=1&pi=1&cn=1&cd=1&x=0&y=0)out. I found them in the screwfix catalogue. Drill bits that tap a hole for you while drilling.

[scopEDog]

Hey! Those are neat, too bad i'm on the wrong side of the pond :-( I've been meaning to get M taps too, maybe I can find the same here (Getting good quality taps/dies in bsp or M has been tough in the past).

[WiLieR]

If you have a bench top press and you are wishing you had a full floor stand press, that can be easily solved. What is the main difference between a floor press and a bench top press? The length of the pole! Simple break out your calipers, or other suitable measuring instrument, and measure the outside diameter of the pole the press is mounted on. Go find a steel pole that is the correct diameter. Now the hard part: using either wood or metal, fabricate a large steady baseplate to mount the new pole on. Once mounted, measure and cut the pole for the proper height of the press. Now remove the press head from the bench top pole, slide the table off the pole, slide it down the new custom floor pole, then mount the press head on the pole. Sure, it might not have any extra long travel like some fancy floor presses, but I am sure it will work just fine.