drill press?

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willy m

Joined
Nov 27, 2007
Messages
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i have been wanting a drill press but all the ones in my price range (?-250) have step pulleys to change speeds.the slowest speed is usually 500-600 rpm's this is too fast,right? another thought is a drill press that i can attach a variable speed hand drill? lastly has anybody tried the drill press attachment for the dremmel? although with the dremmel you are severely limited to bit size. any thoughts would as always,be a great help. thanks,willy:confused::)
 
I have a large bench top drill press with a 4 step pulley system. I paid like $120 for it 8 years ago and I use it to death. From metal to to plastic. Get yourself a delta or sears bench top and start drilling.
 
Why is 500-600 rpm too fast? What are you trying to drill holes in? Believe it or not I found a 5 speed drill press at Harbor Freight for 39.99 that I have been using for a long time and as long you not doing anything crazy with it, it works just fine for all my knife making and general home needs. I even chuck up buffing wheels in it to double as my buffer. I also do very light milling (nail nicks for folding blades) with the addition of the xy vise.
 
I've been using the cheap one from harbor freight too and though not the best drill press I have ever used for the price it can't be beat! On the lowest setting (around 640 RPMs I believe) it will go through annealed steel with no problem.
 
I have a 12" Delta which has been very satisfactory. It runs slow enough to run carbide bits through hardened steel, has enough range for just about any mild steel or wood application and works well with a variety of sanding drums which actually came with it.
 
A cheap drill press will serve you fine!if you plan to do folders you'll need to invest in the appropriate undersize drills and reamers.
 
they also sell the 16 speed floor model

it goes down to 210 rpm 3/4 horse

cost is about 150-180
 
i use a crftsman 10" and it seems to be plenty usefull the only problem i have seen with just about any drill press i have put my hands on is quill walk thats something that really drives me crazy but somehow i have learned to live with it
 
i read a post awhile back that if i remember correctly said you should drill steel at as slow a speed as possible (200-3oo) so i have been using that for a reference.
 
willy m said:
i read a post awhile back that if i remember correctly said you should drill steel at as slow a speed as possible (200-3oo) so i have been using that for a reference.
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Whoever told you to drill steel at as low a speed as possible was over generalizing. It depends on size of the drill.

Small tools are turned faster than large tools. You're trying to achieve an RPM that will give you the peripheral speed optimal for the cutter material and the material being cut. A good starting point for drilling annealed carbon steel would be 50 surface feet per minute, which will give you different RPM at different diameters.

500 RPM to 1500 RPM is a good range of speeds for the materials and bit sizes we commonly use. A less rigid machine may need to turn a little slower to reduce chatter.
 
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