About a year ago I wnt through I posted about some major problems I had with the PM2800. Here is a list of problems I was having:
Excessive Vibration
Hard to change speeds
LED Lamps did not work
Since I did not want to load up the machine and take it to the nearest PM repair facility, they sent me new belts, new control module, new LED lamps. When the parts arrived I tucked them away so that I could fix the unit when I had time.
Well the other day the speed selector froze and it was time to dig into the machine.
I tried replacing the belts. It was a no go. The problem it seems was that the variable V pulleys were froze. After close inspection I could see that there was rust on the shafts. So I decided to tear down both the variable motor pulley and spindle pulley.
Taking them apart was very easy.
I released the little ring thingy and all the springs went flying. It couldn’t have been easier.
After locating all the parts. I tried to remove the actual pulley halves. No good, they were rusted. I added a little oil and used a piece of scrap wood and mallet worked the pulleys off the shaft. I then used oil and steel wool to clean the rust from both the shaft and pulleys.
After a bit of work, I could easily slide the pulley halves up and down the shafts.
Now I had to get them back together. I cut a makeshift jig on my CNC that let me collapse the spring and pulley onto the shaft.
The jig consisted of two wooden parts that were separated by threaded rod. The lower part mounted under the quill. The top part mounted over the pulley spring assembly. It had a hole that would allow the main shaft to pass through as the springs were collapsed. Once collapsed enough the retaining ring was attached.
All I can say is OMG. This is how the machine should have operated out of the box. I could use a pinky to change the speeds. The two variable V belts keep the belt tensioned perfectly and the vibration is gone.
I replaced the LED lamps and now its like I have a new machine.
I know for a fact the box that is received from China is then sent directly to the consumer. I am sure that the rust on the shafts were a result of the trip from china to the US.
Unfortunately Powermatic has zero quality control on such items.
All this said. I love the drill press. I wish I had taken it apart and fixed it the day I brought it home. Even for the $1000 I paid it was worth the effort. No other VS drill press comes close. If you do decide to purchase this drill press you may want to do the same.
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Originally Posted by john bateman
