Bench Top drill press

[Greg Labacz]

Well I used the hf 25% off coupon at HD on Sunday and bought a Ryobi Dp102l drill press and put it together yesterday and started drilling hole in some wood and the motor burned out and it stopped. That's what I get for trying to save money by buying cheap Chinese junk. I bought a bench top because I have a small shop and don't have room for a stand up drill press. What I need from any creekers out there is recommendations for a good reliable bench top drill press.

[Matt Meiser]

Around here there are regularly older bench top DPs on Craigslist. Sometimes the prices are ridiculously high, other times very low, not necessarily corresponding to condition, but here, I bet you could find a nice one at a fair price within a few weeks. An old Delta or Craftsman would be much better made than anything new.

[Paul Wunder]

Is it possible that you simply got a bad motor? It can happen with other brands also. Did it seem to be made well enough to suit your needs at the price you were willing to spend?

[Mike Cutler]

I've had a Delta bench top for quite a few years. It's an unheated, non climate controlled, shop and it works just fine. It does not however have a slow enough setting for larger Forstner bits for wood and larger metal bits. That's a different issue though. In retrospect a bench top milling machine would have been a much better investment for me.

[Brian Tymchak]

I have the Jet benchtop DP 12" and it handles most of my needs. It's only 1/3 HP motor though so I have to exercise some caution trying to push a forstner bit through something like 8/4 ash... And it will only get down to about 550 rpm. There are times when I would like a slower speed, but not often. It's a little pricier than other comparable models. Although you can order it from Amazon or other tool sites, I tend to want to pick my machines up from a dealer, like Woodcraft, to help minimize the hassle from shipping damage, and DOA.

[steven c newman]

For about $70, or so, Harbor Freight has a bench top one. I've used mine for a couple of years now, even used forstner bits in it. It just has five speeds, nothing fancy.

[David Hostetler]

Just wondering. How does a bench top drill press on a bench take up less floor space than a floor model with a cabinet built to fit over the foot of the drill press?

Seriously, if you can afford it, and get creative enough to fit it in, a floor model drill press will typically have much better quill travel, speed selections, and motor power compared to the bench top models. You just need to get creative with a base cabinet, but lots of folks do... I have been lazy with the build, but have been working on designing a base cabinet for mine. That is typically where you would store your bit sets, forstner bits, hand held drill etc...

[Rick Cicciarelli]

I was going through this same issue...I'm currently planning on the Porter Cable floor model from Lowes. For the price, I have not seen anything
near as nice in that price range. The next step up would cost me a couple hundred bucks more.

[Jerome Hanby]

For me the issue was quill travel and minimum speed. Addressing either issue after the fact was going to be messy, so I held out until I found a model with 6" of travel and 200 or so minimum RPMs.

[Mark Ashmeade]

For about $70, or so, Harbor Freight has a bench top one. I've used mine for a couple of years now, even used forstner bits in it. It just has five speeds, nothing fancy.

Now that would be poetic. Replacing a Ryobi discounted with a HF coupon with a "genuine HF" model. I can't believe I just said genuine HF!

Get a Delta and quit worrying.

[Myk Rian]

What I need from any creekers out there is recommendations for a good reliable bench top drill press.

Get a good one like this.
12932-A.jpg

[steven c newman]

Actually, the HF was an "up-grade", from the old Monkey wards POWRKRAFT benchtop I used to have. Couldn't keep a motor on the MW, at least it would work for a day. Also five speeds. Same chuck size, no less. HF had more quill travel, though...

[glenn bradley]

Just wondering. How does a bench top drill press on a bench take up less floor space than a floor model with a cabinet built to fit over the foot of the drill press?

The difference is minor enough so as not to count. The problem folks run into, I believe, is that they don't have the floor footprint to stand it in but, they do have some bench to give up. I would cut the bench down to make room and move on ;-) I have a floor standing cousin of the one Myk shows. They can often be found for $100 to $140. <=== this link will probably go bad soon. As seen in the ad people selling them often don't know what they have.

[Jim Falsetti]

I also have a Delta Bench top model, but it is the 10" Shopmaster. Has five speeds, lowest is 620, and a 3.2 amp motor. Was about $100 at the time, I think from CostCo. So far, it has worked well for several years.

Jim