How much does one really need to spend on a new drill press?

[Trevor Remster]

Uhmmm...I've been down this road. Just absolutely a crap shoot. You either live with potential quality problems(runout, quill slop), or design issues as it relates to woodworker needs(lower limit on spindle speed too high, small table, short quill stroke). I ended up with a used Bridgeport Mill, but that is obviously overkill and not really feasible for most people. Good luck rolling the dice on this one.

[Dave Lehnert]

I have a cheap, no name, floor drill press I purchased for $99 at a closeout type store about 15 years ago. The adjustments are crude, the handles are cheap plastic.
Having said that, That press is 100% accurate.
Like others have said. I think its luck what you get.

+1 for the Shopsmith as a drill press. It's made for woodworking but takes up a lot of room if that's all it will be used for.

[Ron Kellison]

For my money, I would look around for an old (vintage) drill press. You can find great old Deltas, Powermatics, Buffalo, Walker-Turner, etc. in good working condition for $2-300. Worst case you might have to replace a couple bearings and put some JB Weld in the smile on the table. Spend the money you save on other gear!

[david minnery]

I had a Jet 17DX for about 3 years. The head casting cracked, it was a manufacture defect and covered under warranty. The press was pretty good, though I could have used a longer quill travel. I did have some slop in the travel, but it was acceptable. The one thing that I did not like was the chuck, it was horrible. I had a lot of bits slip.
To replace it, I ended up getting a great deal on a powermatic, the newer model. It was a floor model that I picked up at a powermatic/jet surplus shop.
It's a great press. It is stout with no slope, It has a fence which was not on the jet. You can also change speeds on the fly, which is not a big deal to me. The lights are LED, which is much better than the jet.
Overall, I'm very happy with the powermatic.

[Jared Walters]

I had a Jet 17DX for about 3 years. The head casting cracked, it was a manufacture defect and covered under warranty. The press was pretty good, though I could have used a longer quill travel. I did have some slop in the travel, but it was acceptable. The one thing that I did not like was the chuck, it was horrible. I had a lot of bits slip.
To replace it, I ended up getting a great deal on a powermatic, the newer model. It was a floor model that I picked up at a powermatic/jet surplus shop.
It's a great press. It is stout with no slope, It has a fence which was not on the jet. You can also change speeds on the fly, which is not a big deal to me. The lights are LED, which is much better than the jet.
Overall, I'm very happy with the powermatic.

PM2800 or PM2800B?

[david minnery]

PM2800 or PM2800B?

I think it's the B.
I got it for 800, looks brand new.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Uhmmm...I've been down this road. Just absolutely a crap shoot. You either live with potential quality problems(runout, quill slop), or design issues as it relates to woodworker needs(lower limit on spindle speed too high, small table, short quill stroke). I ended up with a used Bridgeport Mill, but that is obviously overkill and not really feasible for most people. Good luck rolling the dice on this one.

Lol, that's classic overkill! I like it!

[Peter Aeschliman]

I myself own the Porter Cable and love it. I just don't see the need to spend a lot of money for a drill press. This is my opinion only though. As long as it drills straight, has enough power, what else do you need? The Porter Cable has plenty of power, drills straight, has a light and a laser. I will admit that the base that came with mine is a little warped and doesn't sit exactly flat, but a little shim fixes that right up.

My personal opinion, spending more than a couple hundred bucks on a drill press for woodworking is crazy. Woodworking is such an easy life for a drill press, you really don't need a feature laden uber press to make a very nice drill press. Don't we all make our own jigs/tables no matter what anyhow?

Count me in the same camp as these two gentlemen. There's lots of variation in peoples' working styles though. For me, I just don't understand the need for extreme drilling precision for woodworking. I get it if you're running a machine shop though.

[Ole Anderson]

I am not sure if it a feature on any of the machines under consideration, but for me an absolute requirement is a quill lock. Many don't have that feature. I use it almost every time I use the DP. Mine is a 20 year old Craftsman (no longer available) and has been used for production with aluminum, used it with a 5/8" mortising bit and currently has a Rockler add-on woodworkers table. Only thing missing is a table elevation crank. The skinny belt makes for quick speed changes, but I have never seen it on any other DP. I also have a mill-drill.

[Erik Manchester]

I have a used Steel City 17" DP (20520) and I find that the speed range 215-2720 is sufficient for all I require.

I particularly wanted this one for the 6" stroke and 16 speeds. I have a mortising attachment for it and the 6" stroke really is handy here.

I have built a custom table with a fence, jigs and hold downs to optimize it for woodwork and I have had no complaints.

I paid $350 for it lightly used and so far it has done all that I have asked of it.

I have an extra VFD and as soon as I scare up an inverter duty 3 phase motor for a good price I am going to swap out the motor and add a digital speed read out for convenience.

I also have an old Walker Turner 900 set up with a machinists vice that I use for metal drilling. I would love a Clausing mill drill or equivalent, as another has said, they are not optimized for woodworking.

What matters is what you require and how much you are willing to pay to get those features. Lots of good deals on used old arn but you had best be ready to act quickly as lots of folks are looking also.

[Daniel Smith]

I've had the Delta for a couple of years now and am happy with it. It's not the most heavily used tool in my shop, but it's done the job for me whenever I've needed it. I've seen the recent posts about Delta's out of the box quality and parts availability, and that would certainly concern me. I picked mine up at a significant discount when my local Rockler stopped stocking them. If you end up being serious about the Delta, you might see if someone would be willing to sell you a floor model. At least you'd know it was functional at the time of purchase.

[Jared Walters]

Lots of great advice... unfortunately used just isn't an option. I can't find anything decent in my area for used drill presses nor do I know enough about them to verify if I'm getting a good deal or just a headache. I feel like I can give some additional points of information to help narrow some options down.

I woodwork on an apartment balcony. I don't have a ton of space, but drill presses have a small footprint so they are okay. The bigger concern is keeping noise down. I have no idea what results in quieter work on a DP... is it having a smaller motor, having a larger motor (so it doesn't struggle), do the belts and variable speed adjustments make a difference, are quality bits more important than anything? It will exclusively be used for wood working. Maybe once every long while it will drill a hole or two in thin metal. It will primarily be used to start mortises (which will then be squared off with a chisel) and drill holes for lathe projects or little miscellaneous tasks.

Here is my evaluated list of priorities...

1. Quiet... if you're neighbor was using it on his balcony at 9pm would you complain about the noise?

2. It must be accurate enough... It doesn't need to be hyper-precise though. The most demandingly accurate task it will likely ever see is drilling out large holes in wooden hardwood jaws for a veritas quick release front vise. I used the poorly maintained porter cable press at the college workshop for this task and it deflected so much that the jaws are almost unusable.

3. Ease of use. My wife will be learning to use this as well and she can be easily intimidated by power tools. I don't want to have to drill every one of her pen blanks because she is afraid of messing up.

The press definitely 100% needs a woodworking style table. But it doesn't have to come with one, I can add an aftermarket table. Before anyone comments, I can't make my own. I don't have access to a table saw or a router and it's not worth the effort to try and make one without them. I would rather just pay $100 and but a premade one.

Let me push out another comparison. Lets say the choice was between an expensive drill press and cheap drill press with high end accessories. Which of the following would you say is the better choice for an overall more positive experience?

Powermatic PM2800B + Set of cheap (but usable quality) forstner bits = $1500 approx

or

Jet JDP-17DX + Large set of Colt forstner bits + Albrecht chuck + Woodpecker or Veritas table = $1400-1500 approx

[Peter Kelly]

4. Powermatic (PM2800B) - $1400 approx.

For that much money, you could get a very nice used Clausing if you're willing to drive to LA. I don't advocate buying Delta stuff these days but the variable speed one on Phoenix CL looks pretty clean. Not a lot that could really go wrong with it.

$1,400 just seems excessive for a made in China drill.

[Dan Hintz]

I have the Delta 18-900L you mentioned... picked it up shortly after the model hit the store shelves and I've been quite happy with it. The 6" quill travel and multiple speeds was a must for me (though I would have preferred a VFD for changing speeds, not belts). The table is plenty large, but I ordered a Woodpecker's table to extend my clamping capabilities (I'll be adding it once my equipment shifts to my new shop at the end of the month). So quiet you'd hardly know it was running. I have owned several Jet/Powermatic items... I feel Powermatic is simply an extra fee for an ugly color compared to Jet, but overall they have decent equipment.

But you could very well get a lemon of whatever you buy, and that's never fun.

[Thomas Hotchkin]

Jared
Rethink the used part. I picked up a used Powermatic 1200 for $500. Sweet drill press.