Drill Press must haves

[DNK]

with the latest endeavor with my neighbors drill press I think it's time.
The one I borrowed only had a flat plate that moved vertical

Bench top? Floor?
What else does one frequently use and is a must have for these?

 

[George_H]

A good quality bench top should do 99% of what we normally do. I personally would rather buy good quality older tools than a newer one. I use a 60 year old walker-turner and wouldn't trade it for anything. Make sure whatever you buy can mount a drill press vise. Also make sure the spindle does not have "play" in it.

 

[TR3driver]

I really like my X-Y vise. I wouldn't say it is a "must have", but a good accessory to have. Makes it a lot easier to get the bit lined up "just so". I also have the jaws machined to help hold round objects either vertical or horizontal.

Obviously drill bits & more drill bits. I keep the 29 piece set (1/16 to 1/2 by 64ths) next to the press, but frequently visit the other sets next to the lathe (A-Z; 1-60; 9/16"-1" by 16ths with reduced shanks; and metric). Center drills are handy in combination with the X-Y vise (don't need to center punch). I keep a chip brush hanging on a string on one side, and the chuck key on the other.

I opted for a floor model. Offhand I can't think of any time I've used all that space, but it's good to know it's there if I need it.

 

[DNK]

Thanks

 

[Bayless]

Bench unit will probably do 90% or more of what you need but those few other times you will be glad you got the floor model. Also, they don't take up any bench space.

 

[TR3driver]

Forgot to mention : the floor model I got was kind of top heavy and easy to tip over. I didn't want to bolt it down, in case I decided to put it somewhere else in the future. So I added some lengths of 2x4, probably 3' long or so, under the base to help stabilize it.

 

[AN5Sprite]

My choice would be: Floor model. Delta or Walker Turner (W/T only if no missing/broken parts- and I'm jealous of George H, W/T's are fantastic machines I've had a few and I have a small W/T bandsaw) Anything from 1935-1974. After that, forget it. The new (last 8 years or so) Grizzly, Rikon, Powermatic, Delta etc machines aren't worth a pisshole in the snow. Craigslist is the best place.

 

[aeronca65t]

We're refurbishing our engineering lab right now. The lab has three 1970s-vintage drill presses (Clausing and Delta) . I just had them all rebuilt with new belts, bearings, etc. This turned out to be much more complicated than just throwing them out and buying new, imported crap. But I wouldn't have it any other way. I had all our US-built Bridgeport and Cincinnati mills plus our Logan and Lodge/Shipley lathes rebuilt too. Again, it would have been easier to "surplus" them and buy new, imported.......ummmm, "stuff". My old, US-built machines will still be working long after the imported junk will be re-melted into frying pans. At home, I'm ashamed to say that I have a cheap imported drill press that someone gave me. It's worth exactly what I paid for it. My father-in-law wants me to take his old (US built) drill/mill and I will probably do that at some point. I like ~THESE~ floating drill press vises. Use them at work all the time and would like one for home use.

 

[DrEntropy]

Steve's date spread is spot-on, IMHO. My dad was responsible for a machine shop in a PA steel mill laboratory, in about '75 they needed to do something about the Bridgeports used for cutting test pieces. All he could find as "new" equipment were imports, they wouldn't hold to tolerances! He had the old ones rebuilt a couple at a time instead. And he had a few strong words about what was happening to U.S. industry to boot. Micrometers were another issue he struggled with a while later. That was the first time I'd seen "digital" measuring tools... still don't trust 'em unless I have a standard sitting near-by to assure calibration. I've a drawer full of Starrett and P & W measuring instruments. "Batteries not required"!!!

 

[TR3driver]

Just to weigh in on the other side, though, a drill press is not the right tool if you are trying to hold .001" or even .010". My cheap import press is certainly inferior to more expensive brands; and yet the $800 or so that I saved buying it instead of a Delta with the same capabilities bought me a nice old Atlas lathe.

Professional work is a lot different then amateur. I wouldn't even consider buying the same press if I ran a professional machine shop, but I don't.

After nearly 25 years of occasional use (and abuse), it still does what I need. Sure, the spindle doesn't run as true as I would like (the angle is off a bit, you can see the wobble with a long bit installed), and the idler pulley makes odd noises; but even if it crumbled to dust tomorrow I wouldn't be sorry that I bought it. And even if I break down and buy a nice CNC Bridgeport VM tomorrow, I'd still have a use for the old drill press.

 

[DNK]

The press I used had the speed changes done by moving belts on different pulley grooves.
Are they are like that?

 

[TR3driver]

The press I used had the speed changes done by moving belts on different pulley grooves.
Are they are like that?

Mine is and I believe most of them are. Although variable speed motors are becoming more common these days, they still can't cover a really wide range of speeds.

 

[TomMull]

Agree in general but it's nice to have a versatile machine. A cog that moves the table up and down is wonderful. A table that tilts is great too. And finally, a big plus if you can really slow it down and do it easily. Of course, many of the imports have these features and many of the old classic machines do not.
Tom

 

[Gliderman8]

I have a 1960's Delta drill press. The things I like on it are:
1. Micrometer depth adjustment; makes it easy to set the desired depth.
2. Table with x -y movement; table also has slots to accommodate a vise.
3. Pulleys to change speed settings.
This was my dad's drill press and it still works great and I wouldn't trade it for a newer one made "over there".

 

[DNK]

I have a 1960's Delta drill press. The things I like on it are:
1. Micrometer depth adjustment; makes it easy to set the desired depth.
2. Table with x -y movement; table also has slots to accommodate a vise.
3. Pulleys to change speed settings.
This was my dad's drill press and it still works great and I wouldn't trade it for a newer one made "over there".

Hmmm...when's the next time you are out of town ,Elliot?

 

[Gliderman8]

Other inherited tools include a Delta band saw and a Delta jig saw with air nozzle to keep cutting line clean.

 

[Jerry]

You need a drill sharpener also. I can sharpen up to 1/2, but I am not too good with larger than that.
Jerry