Great video mate, I'm about to buy a drill press and wasn't sure what to look for, your video has helped me know what to look for. Muchly appreciated, ta!
All in all this was a great video. I feel better informed as I'm planning my purchase. I wish you would have explained which types applications makes quill travel is so essential. I'm struggling to imagine when depth beyond 3" would be important for me, but I'll be the first to admit very well may be missing something. Hearing when it matters for you could help me better figure out if it applies to me in my situation. Thanks for a great video!!
Here is why quill travel is so important if you are doing precision work. This applies to metal mostly. When you drill a large hole in metal you quite often start with a short center drill, then a pilot drill and depending on the hole size you might step up a few more times before getting to your final diameter. Each drill gets longer as you get bigger. Of course you can move the table down to fit the longer drill under the chuck but you lose your horizontal position. There are ways around this, like letting a vise float around on the table so that the larger drill hits the center of the hole but sometimes this can be dangerous and it also reduces accuracy. I have a video on a Square Column drill press I made. The table moves straight down and makes the shorter quill travel a bit easier to deal with. Still at least a 4 inch travel is important. Any less and you will be moving your table constantly.
@@WinkysWorkshop Gotcha. Thanks for the reply! I'm primarily a woodworker, although I do occasionally find myself doing metal work. I hadn't considered stepping up holes before -- makes a lot of sense. I have given it some thought, and agree that it my case, >3" will be important for mortising thicker lumber and drilling into slabs. Use cases greater than that would be so infrequent in my shop that I'd use a chisel or futz with the table. Thanks again!!
Gday Winky, you have a lot of good points there, the depth stop on yours is a hole lot better idea then mine which is a round dial on the quill handle shaft, I’m really impressed with how your column conversion works and the cross slide table, this is a real asset, thank you for another great video mate, Matty 🇦🇺
My last drill press had the depth stop you described. It worked okay but I do like my current one better. This drill press is made by Dayton. It's been a mix of terrible and outstanding. The base and column were flimsy (mostly the base) and the motor mount holes were drilled at an angle. The motor slides on bars that go into the casting. I had to turn the bars down to stop them from binding. On the plus side, the quill travel, split quill lock and depth stop are outstanding. With the square column and slide table I'm overall happy with it. Something really weird, I tried to get a manual and Dayton said they never made this model. I took a picture of the name plate and they said... we have no record of this drill press.
The nice thing with the rotating stop is that you can set the depth from the scale, and pull the quill down to its stop at zero. With the vertical stops the scales are usually fixed so you have to do the math which you will sometimes get wrong. The other problem with vertical stops is that some have a pair of thumb wheels that take time to wind up and down the stop shaft.
My brother put a linear motor on his drill press for raising and lowering the table. He ran a cable up to the top and down to counterbalance it, but I think that isn't needed. I think his counterbalance was the first idea and didn't quite meet his requirements.
This is nice to have you share what your years of experiences with drill presses has taught you what is going to be good and not good, this is important sharing from you then. We were going to say we like our vari speed control on the front. Nice speed limit share as well. We like your square column have mentioned this in a prior video from you. Thank you. Lance & Patrick.
Great ideas. One that I go a bit further on is the depth stop. Instead of the common ones that you see, I like to get what is called a speed nut. That is a nut with a push button on the side that releases it's threads. So you grab the speed nut and push the button and it can be positioned anywhere along the threaded rod it rides on within 1/16". The most popular speed nuts fit on a 1/2-16 threaded rod. Then you release the button and it stays there. BUT, you can then adjust it within that 1/16" distance (or more) by turning it. So you can set the distance both quickly AND with accuracy down to a thousandth of an inch or so. And when you are finished with that job, just hit the button again and zip it back to the top. This is the only type of depth stop that I actually wind up actually using on my drill presses. The other kinds are either too inaccurate or they take too long to set and then return to the top afterwards, so they just stay at the maximum depth. One of the jobs that I regularly do with my speed nut depth stops is countersinking holes in metal for flat head screws. You can easily and quickly set the stop for a flush screw head.
So what is the benefit of the square column if you can't easily raise or lower the table? The drill press I have at home now has an infinitely variable spindle speed from about 300 to 2500 which I love. When I had to change the belt between pullies, it meant I tended to compromise because of the time it took. I use my home drill press mostly for woodwork (I am a retired toolmaker by trade, and still use machine tools in my retirement) so I have a wooden table with t-slots and a fence. The fence is a huge time saver. If I need a series of holes the same distance from the edge for instance, but the fence is a convenient thing to clamp the part to.
Hello Trevor, your question baffled me at first but after watching the video again I realized I didn't show the hand crank for the square column. It has a lift screw in the back and the hand crank is up toward the top. You can see it in the video but it's easy to overlook. Also after making this video I replaced the crank with a motor. I'm guessing you understand the advantage of the square column and now that it is motorized it is amazing. Now I just need to add the VFD. I don't mind the belts so much but the drill press doesn't go slow enough. ruclips.net/video/3p5AD3kFqTY/видео.html
Your first tip, you can just drill and tap an m6 thread on the face if your drill does *not* have a quill pinch stop i.e. a slit face like yours. It's a cheap and nasty option if you have a cheap press but it works much the same. M6 puts enough torque on the quill to stop it where you want providing the drill housing has plenty of thickness in the material to grab at least 3 threads
That would work. Other methods work well but the split casting locks stabilize the quill better. It can be locked slightly and eliminate clearances without being too tight to move. In reality the differences are small but it's a better method in my opinion.
Winky, i just found your channel..love it. Im looking at a South Bend 14" for purchase..floor model. Any opionon on them..guy is asking around 250..good buy?
Considering it would likely bring over $100 in scrap I'd say yes, a very good buy! Plus, even if there was a major expensive problem you could sell the parts and make a profit! If you don't buy it, let me know. Ha
Probably cost related. The slower speed requires an intermediate pulley and the longer quill is more expensive to make. I've seen many presses with a 3.5" travel which is terrible in my opinion but finding one much over 4" is hard. Mine is 6-inch which is very unusual. Funny thing about my Dayton drill press. I got it used and tried to get a manual. Dayton said they had no record of my drill press. In fact, the lady on the phone said it wasn't even their model number. I finally sent her a picture of the name plate and she said... wow, I guess that is a Dayton but we have no info on your machine.
@@WinkysWorkshop I'm surprised to see that's a Dayton. I have a Boice Crane that's exactly the same, from casting, to quill travel etc. Every single detail on that is exactly the same as mine, other than you modifications. Could one company have bought out the other or something and switched names on the same drill?
@@AJ........ VERY interesting. I contacted Dayton and tried to get a manual and they told me they never made this model drill press. I then took a picture of the name plate and sent it to them and they said, "Obviously we made the drill press but we have no record of it." PLEASE send me a model number on your drill press! You can reply to this post or email me winkysworkshop@GMX.com Thanks!
@@AJ........ Thanks for the info. This drill press looks the same for sure although the top guard on mine was much different. I removed it and replace it with a front pulley guard to stop my hair from getting caught in the pulley. It was very poorly made and rattled no matter what. I tossed it. I was hoping to find a manual or at least a blow apart diagram but so far no luck... no big deal anyway, I'm sure I'll figures it out when I take it apart in the future. Thanks again!
I generally agree with your recommendations. However, I never have seen a drill press with a split quill housing. Your square column modification is a nice one but I have a simpler means of achieving the lateral alignment when adjusting the table height. If you had an email address, I could send you the details.
There are many still being made with the split casting. It isn't a deal breaker if it does not have one but the quill is more stable if it is made like this. My last drill press had the lock toward the bottom of the quill and even with the quill locked it had movement. I've seen some locks mounted up higher which would stabilize the quill better. The square column worked well for me primarily because I did not have a lift crank and rack. I suspect your design is parallel rod which I did on my last drill press. My first try was using the rack as a guide but accuracy was an issue. If you posted an email address I don't see it.
@@WinkysWorkshop As I said, I've never seen a new inexpensive drill press with a split quill housing. I intend to open my drill press up and put in shims to remove excessive slop in the quill. You're close with the parallel rod. I would use a piece of 3"x1/4" flat stock held in place by brackets so the larger axis is perpendicular to the column axis. This would give maximal stiffness in preventing rotation. Suitable guides against the bar edge would stop the table rotation. A rod unless it were rather large would be potentially too flexible. Also, a "foot" from the table against the column would minimize the table droop before clamping it. Also, it would reduce the binding friction when raising or lowering the table. My drill press has a rack like most out there but it's only about 1/2" wide which makes it too flexible to use as guide. It could be pinned to the column in multiple locations but I would prefer to retain the ability to rotate the table out of the way for specialized drilling operations. I didn't post an email address but here is one that will forward to my real address: winks-workshop.3.tfl2@recursor.net It will only forward 3 emails before it self destructs. If you email me, I'll answer with my real address in private.
@@tlum4081 - Yeah... I sacrificed the ability to swing the table out of the way. I've only done this one time and it was on a large bench top model. If I really need to do this I can remove the table. One bolt
Thanks Rick, apparently finding a new drill press with more that a 4 inch quill travel and a split casting to lock the quill is impossible. I say that's a very good reason to buy a used one.
@@WinkysWorkshop Now I'll know what to look for! Both of my old drill presses (Craftsman) have the inferior type of quill lock. But I'm always looking around at old stuff, so one will come along. The new stuff can't compare, like you said.
Great video mate, I'm about to buy a drill press and wasn't sure what to look for, your video has helped me know what to look for. Muchly appreciated, ta!
You're welcome! Thanks for the comment.
I’m an older woman and love to build craft things. I have always wanted a table top drill press. I appreciate the video. Tfs
You are so welcome! Thanks for watching.
All in all this was a great video. I feel better informed as I'm planning my purchase. I wish you would have explained which types applications makes quill travel is so essential. I'm struggling to imagine when depth beyond 3" would be important for me, but I'll be the first to admit very well may be missing something. Hearing when it matters for you could help me better figure out if it applies to me in my situation. Thanks for a great video!!
Here is why quill travel is so important if you are doing precision work. This applies to metal mostly. When you drill a large hole in metal you quite often start with a short center drill, then a pilot drill and depending on the hole size you might step up a few more times before getting to your final diameter. Each drill gets longer as you get bigger. Of course you can move the table down to fit the longer drill under the chuck but you lose your horizontal position. There are ways around this, like letting a vise float around on the table so that the larger drill hits the center of the hole but sometimes this can be dangerous and it also reduces accuracy. I have a video on a Square Column drill press I made. The table moves straight down and makes the shorter quill travel a bit easier to deal with. Still at least a 4 inch travel is important. Any less and you will be moving your table constantly.
@@WinkysWorkshop Gotcha. Thanks for the reply! I'm primarily a woodworker, although I do occasionally find myself doing metal work. I hadn't considered stepping up holes before -- makes a lot of sense. I have given it some thought, and agree that it my case, >3" will be important for mortising thicker lumber and drilling into slabs. Use cases greater than that would be so infrequent in my shop that I'd use a chisel or futz with the table. Thanks again!!
Gday Winky, you have a lot of good points there, the depth stop on yours is a hole lot better idea then mine which is a round dial on the quill handle shaft, I’m really impressed with how your column conversion works and the cross slide table, this is a real asset, thank you for another great video mate, Matty 🇦🇺
My last drill press had the depth stop you described. It worked okay but I do like my current one better. This drill press is made by Dayton. It's been a mix of terrible and outstanding. The base and column were flimsy (mostly the base) and the motor mount holes were drilled at an angle. The motor slides on bars that go into the casting. I had to turn the bars down to stop them from binding. On the plus side, the quill travel, split quill lock and depth stop are outstanding. With the square column and slide table I'm overall happy with it. Something really weird, I tried to get a manual and Dayton said they never made this model. I took a picture of the name plate and they said... we have no record of this drill press.
The nice thing with the rotating stop is that you can set the depth from the scale, and pull the quill down to its stop at zero. With the vertical stops the scales are usually fixed so you have to do the math which you will sometimes get wrong. The other problem with vertical stops is that some have a pair of thumb wheels that take time to wind up and down the stop shaft.
My brother put a linear motor on his drill press for raising and lowering the table. He ran a cable up to the top and down to counterbalance it, but I think that isn't needed. I think his counterbalance was the first idea and didn't quite meet his requirements.
Interesting... I did that too (counter weight) ... before my square column.
This is nice to have you share what your years of experiences with drill presses has taught you what is going to be good and not good, this is important sharing from you then. We were going to say we like our vari speed control on the front. Nice speed limit share as well. We like your square column have mentioned this in a prior video from you.
Thank you.
Lance & Patrick.
Thanks for watching! I'd love to have a variable speed on the front! Maybe someday I'll add a VFD and 3 ph motor.
Thanks for video, great insights for first time buyer
Glad it was helpful!
Great ideas. One that I go a bit further on is the depth stop. Instead of the common ones that you see, I like to get what is called a speed nut. That is a nut with a push button on the side that releases it's threads. So you grab the speed nut and push the button and it can be positioned anywhere along the threaded rod it rides on within 1/16". The most popular speed nuts fit on a 1/2-16 threaded rod. Then you release the button and it stays there. BUT, you can then adjust it within that 1/16" distance (or more) by turning it. So you can set the distance both quickly AND with accuracy down to a thousandth of an inch or so. And when you are finished with that job, just hit the button again and zip it back to the top.
This is the only type of depth stop that I actually wind up actually using on my drill presses. The other kinds are either too inaccurate or they take too long to set and then return to the top afterwards, so they just stay at the maximum depth.
One of the jobs that I regularly do with my speed nut depth stops is countersinking holes in metal for flat head screws. You can easily and quickly set the stop for a flush screw head.
Mine just clamps and has not threads.
So what is the benefit of the square column if you can't easily raise or lower the table? The drill press I have at home now has an infinitely variable spindle speed from about 300 to 2500 which I love. When I had to change the belt between pullies, it meant I tended to compromise because of the time it took. I use my home drill press mostly for woodwork (I am a retired toolmaker by trade, and still use machine tools in my retirement) so I have a wooden table with t-slots and a fence. The fence is a huge time saver. If I need a series of holes the same distance from the edge for instance, but the fence is a convenient thing to clamp the part to.
Hello Trevor, your question baffled me at first but after watching the video again I realized I didn't show the hand crank for the square column. It has a lift screw in the back and the hand crank is up toward the top. You can see it in the video but it's easy to overlook. Also after making this video I replaced the crank with a motor. I'm guessing you understand the advantage of the square column and now that it is motorized it is amazing. Now I just need to add the VFD. I don't mind the belts so much but the drill press doesn't go slow enough. ruclips.net/video/3p5AD3kFqTY/видео.html
Very helpful, thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Good vid. I just picked up a 60's Atlas 1020 15" bench top drill press for $90. Runs as smooth as silk. They don't make em like they used to.
Thanks, you are right...many older machines are better.
Your first tip, you can just drill and tap an m6 thread on the face if your drill does *not* have a quill pinch stop i.e. a slit face like yours. It's a cheap and nasty option if you have a cheap press but it works much the same. M6 puts enough torque on the quill to stop it where you want providing the drill housing has plenty of thickness in the material to grab at least 3 threads
That would work. Other methods work well but the split casting locks stabilize the quill better. It can be locked slightly and eliminate clearances without being too tight to move. In reality the differences are small but it's a better method in my opinion.
How's she goin'? You covered some very good points on drill press selection. Thanks!!!
Thanks.
@@WinkysWorkshop j,sivasankaran
Good job, Sir.
thanks
Winky, i just found your channel..love it.
Im looking at a South Bend 14" for purchase..floor model. Any opionon on them..guy is asking around 250..good buy?
Considering it would likely bring over $100 in scrap I'd say yes, a very good buy! Plus, even if there was a major expensive problem you could sell the parts and make a profit! If you don't buy it, let me know. Ha
I've noticed that with a lot of drill presses, they don't go slow enough and they don't have enough travel.
Probably cost related. The slower speed requires an intermediate pulley and the longer quill is more expensive to make. I've seen many presses with a 3.5" travel which is terrible in my opinion but finding one much over 4" is hard. Mine is 6-inch which is very unusual. Funny thing about my Dayton drill press. I got it used and tried to get a manual. Dayton said they had no record of my drill press. In fact, the lady on the phone said it wasn't even their model number. I finally sent her a picture of the name plate and she said... wow, I guess that is a Dayton but we have no info on your machine.
@@WinkysWorkshop I'm surprised to see that's a Dayton. I have a Boice Crane that's exactly the same, from casting, to quill travel etc. Every single detail on that is exactly the same as mine, other than you modifications. Could one company have bought out the other or something and switched names on the same drill?
@@AJ........ VERY interesting. I contacted Dayton and tried to get a manual and they told me they never made this model drill press. I then took a picture of the name plate and sent it to them and they said, "Obviously we made the drill press but we have no record of it." PLEASE send me a model number on your drill press! You can reply to this post or email me winkysworkshop@GMX.com Thanks!
@@WinkysWorkshop I can't seem to find any numbers on it, but based on Google images search it's either an RR 210, or 1670-2
@@AJ........ Thanks for the info. This drill press looks the same for sure although the top guard on mine was much different. I removed it and replace it with a front pulley guard to stop my hair from getting caught in the pulley. It was very poorly made and rattled no matter what. I tossed it. I was hoping to find a manual or at least a blow apart diagram but so far no luck... no big deal anyway, I'm sure I'll figures it out when I take it apart in the future. Thanks again!
Very helpful. Thanks.
Your welcome!
Wow awesome insight!!!
Thanks!
I generally agree with your recommendations. However, I never have seen a drill press with a split quill housing. Your square column modification is a nice one but I have a simpler means of achieving the lateral alignment when adjusting the table height. If you had an email address, I could send you the details.
There are many still being made with the split casting. It isn't a deal breaker if it does not have one but the quill is more stable if it is made like this. My last drill press had the lock toward the bottom of the quill and even with the quill locked it had movement. I've seen some locks mounted up higher which would stabilize the quill better. The square column worked well for me primarily because I did not have a lift crank and rack. I suspect your design is parallel rod which I did on my last drill press. My first try was using the rack as a guide but accuracy was an issue. If you posted an email address I don't see it.
@@WinkysWorkshop As I said, I've never seen a new inexpensive drill press with a split quill housing. I intend to open my drill press up and put in shims to remove excessive slop in the quill.
You're close with the parallel rod. I would use a piece of 3"x1/4" flat stock held in place by brackets so the larger axis is perpendicular to the column axis. This would give maximal stiffness in preventing rotation. Suitable guides against the bar edge would stop the table rotation. A rod unless it were rather large would be potentially too flexible. Also, a "foot" from the table against the column would minimize the table droop before clamping it. Also, it would reduce the binding friction when raising or lowering the table.
My drill press has a rack like most out there but it's only about 1/2" wide which makes it too flexible to use as guide. It could be pinned to the column in multiple locations but I would prefer to retain the ability to rotate the table out of the way for specialized drilling operations.
I didn't post an email address but here is one that will forward to my real address:
winks-workshop.3.tfl2@recursor.net
It will only forward 3 emails before it self destructs. If you email me, I'll answer with my real address in private.
@@tlum4081 - Yeah... I sacrificed the ability to swing the table out of the way. I've only done this one time and it was on a large bench top model. If I really need to do this I can remove the table. One bolt
The Jet JDP-20MF has a split column and a 4-5/8 quill travel although it isn't cheap.
is a craftsman 100 floor model from 1955 ok?
I think so. I have not seen one in person but it looks like a good one. A table lift would be a plus however.
Good info--Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Rick, apparently finding a new drill press with more that a 4 inch quill travel and a split casting to lock the quill is impossible. I say that's a very good reason to buy a used one.
@@WinkysWorkshop Now I'll know what to look for! Both of my old drill presses (Craftsman) have the inferior type of quill lock. But I'm always looking around at old stuff, so one will come along. The new stuff can't compare, like you said.
@@RickRose - I'm most cases I agree. Older machines are usually better.
The Jet JDP-20MF has a split column and a 4-5/8 quill travel although it isn't cheap.
hey willy, can I get your 2 cents on the new drill press model KC-15HS-VS
by king industrial?
It looks like good drill press to me.
He should do audio books. Westerns
You think so??? Why Westerns? Ha
Not sure but I like the information !!!! Thanks
Vintage sears craftsmen all the way.
I'd say they are good drill presses. I dad had one that was well made.
Uh…
Uh huh?