Drill Press Recomendations

[ChuckD]

I am getting ready to buy a drill press. I want to make sure it will be able to do tasks like completing the new TM 10-22's and other more precise drilling than just demilling parts kits. Any recomendations on what to look for will be appreciated. Also want to go as cheap as possible af course (probably used from craigs list).

[goober]

Benchtop or floor-standing?
Used is great but be sure to scrutinize how it was used and maintained. Check runout of the spindle, motor at all speed settings, table movement, all moving parts, etc. Lots of good deals out there but some folks will ask too much for really tired tools.
If you buy new, you can be confident that if any of these things are too far out of whack you will have some recourse, as long as you buy a decent brand. I have a Rigid (Home Depot house brand) floor press that I'm pretty happy with. It cost $200-300 if I remember right. You can spend a lot more for real professional quality press, but for what you're looking to do you won't need it.

[50BMGBOB]

I sold my drill press and got a small mill (a Grizzly G0619). Space for me is vary limited. I can do the drilling I need with it and most of the machining I want with it. While it was more money, I am vary happy with it.

[anothergunnut]

No recommendations but here's what I got for $40 off of Craigslist. It's a 15" bench top model from 1955. It works perfectly with just has a little surface rust. It also came with a drill press vise. I wasn't looking for a drill press but the seller was advertising a grinder which I wanted and, for $40, I couldn't leave without the drill press.

[wash]

Low rpm, 180 at the highest on low speed, anything higher is intended for wood only.

If you are looking at used drill presses, look for something heavy, in good condition with spindle bearings that do not have a lot of play. The cheap stuff will usually be Chinese but not all Chinese is bad. Taiwanese is usually good. Some brands will have replacement parts available, some will not.

If you want to go cheap, your choices will be limited, the hard part is figuring out if it's a diamond in the rough, cheap for a reason or just junk.

[dls]

Dayton makes good equipment. I purchased a floor standing one for our shop at work a few years ago,along with a Wilton drill press vise.It's been great so far. It may be kinda pricey for home use though.

Here are a few

http://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHKZ_enUS438US438&gcx=c&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=dayton+drill+press#q=dayton+drill+press&hl=en&rlz=1C1CHKZ_enUS438US438&prmd=imvns&source=univ&tbm=shop&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=MFKSTt6lDcrSiAL0sPjMCA&ved=0CGMQrQQ&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=b07143d35d34e2f0&biw=1280&bih=675

[ChuckD]

Thanks for the advice. I am leaning toward 50BMGBobs direction and purchasing a mini mill. I found this one http://www.grizzly.com/products/Mini...-Machine/G8689 used, the seller is asking $630 (almost Grizzly's price shipped) but includes HD grizzly 4" milling vise, Clamping kit and various end mills. Also I may be able to talk him down a bit. Any recomendations or warnings for this product?

I have also been watching craigslist.com & found some drill presses on sale but none that go less than 220 RPM in the lowest speed, how important is that?

[goober]

that's a decent little X2 clone, i have the HF version (HF44991). the only downside to the Grizzly one is the MT-3 taper on the spindle, R-8 is preferable b/c you will be able to use it on larger mills when you garduate to one (notice i didn't say "if")
unless its it pristine condition or includes lots of tooling, that price is a bit high... try talking him down a bit.
as far as DP minimum speed goes, it really depends on how you will be using it; the kind of metal and type of cutting tool determine best RPM. i'd say 300 RPM is a good min, as opposed top 220.

[50BMGBOB]

I went one size larger with my mini. With it, I got a larger working envelope and a little more horsepower. Biggest draw back with these mini mills is they loose a lot of torque at smaller rpm's due to how the vfd works. Gearing down would leave more torque. Other than that I love mine. I know I would like a bigger one but I don't have the room. I have as much into mine as I would with a used Bridgeport, in fact I passed on a few Bridgeports, but I don't have room for a larger mill.

As far as speeds for a drill press go, using a standard drill bit (HSS) into mild steel, 306rpm will run a drill bit up to 1 1/8" (a cutting speed of 90fpm). 220rpm will turn a 1 9/16" bit (same 90fpm). If you use a 1/2" bit, 688rpm. Harder metals need slower cut speed and some bits can run higher cut speeds.

[ChuckD]

Goober,
Thanks for the input. As far as the spindle taper (MT3 vs R8) I can't imagine outgrowing this size mill, and if I do I could still keep this one set up for small projects - so no loss there. Or I could pass it on to the next guy who wants to start on a small machine.

Bob,
I like yours better too, but it is almost 3x the price + I would have to purchase a vise, and clamps (the one I'm looking at also say's it comes with some endmills but I am going to assume they're not ones I need untill I know for sure). I don't want to spend 3 grand, but if I can get what I need for $600 (as long as it is what I need) I think it'll be worth it.If I can finish 80% AR, 60% 1911, & 80% TM10/22's as well as use as a drill press I'll be happy.

[gatesbox]

I have to specifically suggest a small mill...I actually bought a floor model drill press specifically for finishing a 10/22 receiver. In the end I decided there was just too much wobble to commit to boring out the barrel hole. I wish I had saved the $100 bucks and bought a mini mill or found a mill on CL.

[goober]

Goober,
Thanks for the input. As far as the spindle taper (MT3 vs R8) I can't imagine outgrowing this size mill, and if I do I could still keep this one set up for small projects - so no loss there. Or I could pass it on to the next guy who wants to start on a small machine.

You may not be able to imagine it now, but if you're anything like just about every other person I know that has gotten into this pursuit, you will want a bigger mill before you know what hit you .

Bob,
I like yours better too, but it is almost 3x the price + I would have to purchase a vise, and clamps (the one I'm looking at also say's it comes with some endmills but I am going to assume they're not ones I need untill I know for sure). I don't want to spend 3 grand, but if I can get what I need for $600 (as long as it is what I need) I think it'll be worth it.If I can finish 80% AR, 60% 1911, & 80% TM10/22's as well as use as a drill press I'll be happy.

X3 is definitely more capable and nicer than the X2 clone, in terms of work envelope and other features... Wish I had gone that route when I first bought a mini. But the price jump is significant.
ChuckD, you'll be able to do all those projects and more on the X2 if that's what you get. I strongly suggest 3 mods that will make a huge difference in ease of use as well as capabilities: DROs, belt-drive, and air-spring.
Adding DROs is really almost a must given the inevitable backlash in these ChiCom minis. The belt drive quiets the machine a lot and frees you from the woes of broken gears. And the air-spring gets you a bit more Z-travel and lets you ditch the lame torsion spring. The latter two mods can be purchased from LMS, see the thread I linked for one way to go with DROs.

[wash]

I'm not the fastest machinist out there and most good machinists would say that I like to use speeds and feeds that are very slow.

With that said, I would never buy a drill press with a 300 rpm minimum speed unless it was strictly for wood working.

Try drilling a 1/2" hole at 300 rpm in stainless steel, your margin for error is very small.

The same hole at 120 rpm has a lot more margin.

Now if you factor in a slightly (or more) worn out drill press and a bit that isn't sharpened perfectly, you might want to have 120 rpm for a 1/4" hole.

Slower is better and the only reason why some drill presses don't have low speeds is that their motors don't have the torque to turn them. Seeing a low rpm setting on a drill press tells you that it was designed to do some real work, not just drilling some holes in wood.

[goober]

I'm not the fastest machinist out there and most good machinists would say that I like to use speeds and feeds that are very slow.

With that said, I would never buy a drill press with a 300 rpm minimum speed unless it was strictly for wood working.

Try drilling a 1/2" hole at 300 rpm in stainless steel, your margin for error is very small.

The same hole at 120 rpm has a lot more margin.

Now if you factor in a slightly (or more) worn out drill press and a bit that isn't sharpened perfectly, you might want to have 120 rpm for a 1/4" hole.

Slower is better and the only reason why some drill presses don't have low speeds is that their motors don't have the torque to turn them. Seeing a low rpm setting on a drill press tells you that it was designed to do some real work, not just drilling some holes in wood.

if the OP said he wanted to drill 1/2" holes in SS, then 300 rpm wouldn't have been a reasonable minimum. but he didn't.
there's a lot of ground between wood and stainless steel.

[wash]

Yes but since he posted in the gunsmithing section, I think it's a good guess that he's probably going to drill some steel.

A 1/2" hole in stainless is difficult but if he doesn't do anything difficult, he could probably get away with a hand drill.

I would be disappointed if I bought a drill press and it could only do 75% of what I want to do. It's that other 25% that makes a tool worth it.