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Drill Press?

J

JR_Charger

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Looking for something for occassional use. Wondering if the Harbor Freight stuff is good enough? I need to drill through some square steel tubing which I'll mount sway bar brackets too, like this -

20190926_190756.jpg
 
H.F. will be ok. They actually have good stuff.
I have a small Craftsman and have drilled thousands of holes over the years.Probably same as H.F.
 
Some of the HF stuff is ok. For most hobby and DIY people they work great.
 
I would instead recommend a good old used used one. Plenty of good used ones around for good prices.

How big do you want? I agree with a floor mounted one.
 
I don't know what your price range is, but here is a very nice older one that I am referring to. As an example. This type can be fairly routinely found for $200 - $300 in decent shape. I have a similar one I inherited from my dad.

FS: Delta DP-600 17” Floor Model Drill Press

This is a recently completed rebuild – it is a Delta DP-600 17” floor model drill press from the early 1950’s. It came to me with a serial number of 105-1580 which puts it as a 1952 build. It has been completely disassembled, cleaned and painted. The drive system is a Wagner Electric 1/2 HP 3...
www.practicalmachinist.com
 
Harbour Freight quality should be fine for small stuff.... HF = Hobby Freight.
 
I have a hf bench mount 5/8 Chuck drill press. It has worked great for 15 years. My only regret is not getting the floor mounted one.
 
Look around for a nice used one from USA. Drill press is not a high priced item.
 
Well, the if the purpose is to drill a nice hole in metal, I suggest get the biggest drill press you can afford, first thing I look for is how large is the quill, larger diameter often being stiffer, truer and better. New or used, grab it by your hand and see what play/slop you can feel in the quill. A larger part/work table is seldom big enough, and get a nice size proper vise. You can usually judge your operator skills and expertise by how many holes you inadvertently drill in the vise and the table. Small drill presses used seldom hold their value for resale, the larger ones do much better it seems. I don't favor typical non electronic variable speed units as I find them problematic long term. I have now only one, a Powermatic 20" drill press bought new for home use. Being I also have a Bridgeport Mill, I have most of my bases covered on generating holes where I need them.
 
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HF is good and they have a 90 day full refund return policy so if you don’t like it take it back. Plus they have a lifetime warranty on all their hand tools. I’m not sure if a drill press is considered a hand tool, but I think it would be. I returned a pneumatic floor nailer well used when it finally gave up, and they gave me a new one.
 
dadsbee said:
They'll all work! The question is do you really need a drill press for 4 holes?
Click to expand...

The need comes up from time to time, but right now it would be easier to buy the press than to try to coordinate with a shop.

Generally I find, any project I can do by myself will get done. Any project where other people have to be involved, good luck . . . And that was before I was working 12 hour night shifts.
 
JR_Charger said:
The need comes up from time to time, but right now it would be easier to buy the press than to try to coordinate with a shop.

Generally I find, any project I can do by myself will get done. Any project where other people have to be involved, good luck . . . And that was before I was working 12 hour night shifts.
Click to expand...
I have always felt a Drill Press is the first piece of machinery purchased and needed of any shop. If OP''s direction is that way, it could always be his first or his last.
 
This Harbor Freight drill press has been with me for years.
Suits me well, for what i need in a drill press.
Haven't had any problems with it.

P3190007 (Small).JPG
 
The Mrs and I were in Lowes Hardware this afternoon to pick up gardening stuff, but we swung by the tool department out of curiosity.

I'm not in the market for a bench drill press, but I was disappointed by this 10" Kobalt priced at $199. It felt cheap and flimsy.

Item #5472278
Model # DP10102

They did not have any other drill press brands available for my viewing pleasure. :p

20250323_144701.jpg
20250323_144709.jpg
20250323_144720.jpg
 
I inherited a bloody great heavy used one from dearly departed Larry, and gave away my smaller unit. Took three young men to get it up four steps from Larry’s place. But any solid drill press is better than a hand drill. My large hand drill jammed, and I broke the handle. Was plastic. I like the idea of making it solid to the floor. Mine is solid without being attached to anything. Ozzy David has his name on it, if I croak before him. My 41 Ford tractor too.
 
Here's the only floor unit Harbor Freight has -

BAUER 17 in. Variable-Speed Drill Press with Light​


Thoughts? I imagine tracking down parts for this in the future would be nigh impossible.

$500 is a lot more than I was looking to pay, but not more than I can afford. But, "once and done," don't want to deal with this again.

Used would be nice, but I don't think I've ever seen one come up in this area.
 
JR_Charger said:
Here's the only floor unit Harbor Freight has -

BAUER 17 in. Variable-Speed Drill Press with Light​


Thoughts? I imagine tracking down parts for this in the future would be nigh impossible.

$500 is a lot more than I was looking to pay, but not more than I can afford. But, "once and done," don't want to deal with this again.

Used would be nice, but I don't think I've ever seen one come up in this area.
Click to expand...

RR Fan Dan said:
HF is good and they have a 90 day full refund return policy so if you don’t like it take it back. Plus they have a lifetime warranty on all their hand tools. I’m not sure if a drill press is considered a hand tool, but I think it would be. I returned a pneumatic floor nailer well used when it finally gave up, and they gave me a new one.
Click to expand...
 
It would be nice to get the kind of insight DeltaV offered on the Kobalt, if anyone is familiar with the Bauer.

For only $230 more, there's this Central Machinery Press/Mill.

I don't think I need a mill, but I didn't think I needed a Dremel either.

It's a benchtop unit though.
 
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