Drill Press question

[daddo]

More complexity, more problems.

[Hank Knight]

You can't beat "old arn" drill presses (1950s era and earlier). They are simple machines, built like tanks and run forever. I gave away my modern 16" Delta and bought and rehabbed an old Walker Turner. I couldn't be happier.

[KyleD]

I wonder why Powermatic ever got away from the old design. I have an 1150 Powermatic 15" drill press built around 1961 and the variable drive is controlled by a ball bearing following a cast iron cam. it is in as good of condition today as the day it was built. it also has a two speed transmission that is built into the motor housing that gives it a back gear. 50 rpm and un-stallable torque. just got done drilling a number of 2 1/2" holes in 15/16" cast iron plate (an old semi truck flywheel) using a bimetal hole saw. had to re-sharpen the hole saw every three holes to keep from burning it up but the drill press never broke a sweat.

[3finger]

A sad state of affairs.  Have heard lots of negative about that tool.  Not like Powermatic to sell something like that.

I have an old Delta 17-900 that I rescued thirteen years ago from the industrial arts department at the school I worked at.  The kids had pretty well trashed it.  I donated $50 for it, took it home, cleaned it up and put another $125 in parts into it.  (You could still easily get parts from Delta back then.)  Has worked beautifully ever since and will probably be the only one I'll ever need.  Does a woodworker need a drill press?  IMHO absolutely!

[Cub_Cadet_GT]

I would get a vintage Clausing if I were you.

[Mr Eddie]

I bought a VS Clausing from the estate sale of a retired machinist.  I paid $1000.  Very pleased with it.  Solid as a tank.  Here's a link to a previous post about drill presses:

https://forums.woodnet.net/showthread.php?tid=7324128

I have pictures posted towards the bottom of the thread.

Lonnie

[Bob Vaughan]

The more varied the projects you do, the more a drill press comes into play.  Simple holes can be done with any piece of trash from Harbor Freight.   Many large deep holes with a multi-spur bit will require something a lot better.

A good 15" VS drill press such as the Powermatic 1150A would cost well over $3000. these days if available.  The new shiny-from-China Powermatic 2800 costs about half that, so some disappointment with quality should be expected.

[BloomingtonMike]

I have a Rong Fu RF30 round column milldrill. It is my go to drill press if the work will fit under it. Mine is from 1987. I really enjoy using it for wood and metal. I keep a 5" vice that is easy to index and a wood sub table for it too. Might be worth a look. R8 collets open up a world of tooling options and that table is fantastic. 140-2436 rpm, 2hp, T-slot X/Y table, Heavier than most ww drill presses so keep that in mind.

Grizzly sells new versions of them too. G0705. Look for one used too as they have been made by tons of folks.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/Drill-Mi...rizzly.com

[EvilTwin]

I bought a VS Clausing from the estate sale of a retired machinist.  I paid $1000.  Very pleased with it.  Solid as a tank.  Here's a link to a previous post about drill presses:

https://forums.woodnet.net/showthread.php?tid=7324128

I have pictures posted towards the bottom of the thread.

Lonnie

I responded to this post so I'll save most of the typing.  Some really good discussion on used presses, well worth the read and hopefully will point the OP in the right direction.

[CARYinWA]

I haven't heard anything good about the PM2800.  I hear good things about the new Delta but I wouldn't buy from them since they are all but dead.  I bought a older PM 1200 variable speed and restored it.  A Clausing would be a good choice also.