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Drill press recommendation

ghotiphry

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Hi guys.  I'm looking to buy an inexpensive drill press, say the $100-$200 range.  Those of you who have them, what do you recommend?
 
What's the purpose? If you're wanting to use it to drill on guitar bodies you're going to need  to make sure you get a long enough throat. At least a 13" drill press. (Drill presses are usually quoted as 'swing' which is 2x the depth of the throat, or the biggest round object you could drill into.
 
IMHO, get a used made in North America one from an estate sale.  It will be cheap and good quality and likely not a lot of hours on it.  Look at several until you get the throat you need.
 
^^^^ THIS!!!!! ^^^^

Just like guitars, you'll get a better deal on a quality used piece.
Shoot for old school brands like Delta, Clausing, Craftsman, etc.
 
Well, I thought maybe ebay.  Found this:

s-l500.jpg


Local pickup only, and it happens to be in Chicago...  It's a bit "more" than I was thinking.
 
Now that's a deep throat! 

You're going to have to live with the fact that it sticks way out from the wall  :)
 
I did some reading on that particular radial arm drill press, Delta 11-090.  There were some complaints over too much flex, no crank on the table, and not low enough rpm.  I think I'm going to keep looking.
 
You definitely want one with a crank on the table. Mine doesn't have that and it's a PITA. If it didn't do such a good job otherwise, I'd go find a newer one.

 
I'd recommend the Delta I have, if you could still get them. But, in the price range you'd like, you're going to need to find a used one. I assume you want it to work on guitars/basses, so that means no less than a 12" model. You can get 12" swings with a benchtop, but past that it'll be a standalone and prices go up fast. There's not a great deal that can go wrong with them, so a used tool isn't much of a risk, especially with older units. The older units were generally overbuilt, compared to what you'd get today with the same specs from the usual suspects.

Just remain calm and keep an eye on Craigslist. Due to the population density in your area, I'd imagine they would be showing up all the time. Unless you find a local pickup, eBay is going to involve some painful shipping charges for a tool as large and heavy as we're talking about. Unless you're looking for a deal on a new one from an importer/jobber, that's not the place to shop. You're not going to get what you want from them at that price anyway.
 
Or you could just buy a good used milling machine and be done with it.
I have access to a Bridgeport whenever I need it, which saves me buying and storing one.
 
As badly as I want a milling machine, 1) they cost much much more than a drill press. 2) you'll still want a drill press.
 
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