Steel City drill press gloat ... and disappointment

[Kyle Kraft]

I agree that SC should be notified about the defect, but you could have tapped the hole and been up and running in the amount of time spent discussing the matter on a forum!

[Al Willits]

Prob with just tapping it, what happens when he sticks the tap in and the hole is the wrong size and he breaks it???
I'm betting most expected the hole to be the proper size.

Sounds like he did just fine, he kept his warrt and got a response from SC, now if he breaks it he covered.

Little lube is not needed for cast but it helps, least that's been my experience.

Sounds like SC did just fine, I still see a band saw by them in my future.

Always thought the difference between a $500 tap and die set and a $100 set was the difference of the number of times you planned on using them and the number of times they actually worked..

Al

[Pete Janke]

Picked up my Steel City drill press on the MLK Holiday from Woodcraft and put it together last night. Needed my son to help lift the head onto the column. All parts were present and in good shape, nice straight holes, easy to change belts, and smooth and vibration free. Mike, the Woodcraft owner in Dublin, CA, was a pleasure to purchase from. Both knowledgable and helpful. Laser was free but hasn't arrived yet. I'm anxious to receive it and test it out.

[Peter Quadarella]

I picked up one on the same day Pete, at my local Woodcraft over here in NC.

I'm having a little issue with it though. When on the highest speed, the belt tends to slip lower on the motor pulley. I'm not sure if I just need to tighten the belt up tighter; I don't want to crank it down too hard and cause excessive wear. I also noticed that the motor pulley is angled away from the other two pulleys - is that normal? Also, one more question - when I turn on and off the machine, it makes a little extra noise, like a jump - is that normal? I sent in these questions via their website but haven't gotten a response yet. I will give them a call tomorrow if I don't hear back by then.

Can anyone with the machine let me know if I'm worrying about nothing?

[Rick Levine]

Just thought I'd add my $.02 to the tread. I purchased a SC 8" jointer and 15" planer and when they were unpacked I notice that the base of the jointer was missing the built-in wheels. It turned out that it was an early production run that was at the store and the newer ones came with them. I contacted SC and learned that the unit itself had not changed just the base. Anyway, they sent another base to replace it which also included a new 2hp motor and magnetic switch. The only problem was UPS damaged it in shipping. I again contacted SC and this time they actually built a wooden crate and sent another one! Now that's what I call service.

The kicker is they let me keep the other bases, motor and switch and I gave one to a friend (he helped me assemble the jointer) and built a light weight wooden mobile base for the other one and use it to mount my Foredom rotary tool.

[Randy Klein]

Also, one more question - when I turn on and off the machine, it makes a little extra noise, like a jump - is that normal?

I noticed that too. I just assumed it was the belts getting going and stopping.

[Mark Rios]

I just saw this thread and read it to the end. Sounds like Steel City proved themselves to be a true customer oriented company.

WELL DONE STEEL CITY.

Well done to Randy as well for not being afraid to expand his knowledge base and getting that hole tapped and his DP up and running. While reading the thread I found myself looking where Randy lived. If he was even remotely close enough I would have offered to help him tap the hole. As it turns out, he has helped himself more than I could by learning a new skill. Kudos to Randy.



And speaking of kudos, didn't read any kudos for Nancy. I've got a feeling the she had a "small" part in getting this issue to the attention of the right people with her connections. WELL DONE NANCY.


So Randy, what's your first project with your new DP?

[Pete Janke]

I picked up one on the same day Pete, at my local Woodcraft over here in NC.

I'm having a little issue with it though. When on the highest speed, the belt tends to slip lower on the motor pulley. I'm not sure if I just need to tighten the belt up tighter; I don't want to crank it down too hard and cause excessive wear. I also noticed that the motor pulley is angled away from the other two pulleys - is that normal? Also, one more question - when I turn on and off the machine, it makes a little extra noise, like a jump - is that normal? I sent in these questions via their website but haven't gotten a response yet. I will give them a call tomorrow if I don't hear back by then.

Can anyone with the machine let me know if I'm worrying about nothing?

Peter,

Just went out and fired it up. The motor pulley is slightly angled away from the other pulleys. My belt did not slip off the lower pulley when on the highest speed. It did make a liittle noise as it slowed to a stop each time, but I couldn't tell exactly where it came from, although I don't think it was the motor. We have a 5 year warranty. Hopefully we don't have to use it. Pete

[Peter Quadarella]

Thanks very much Pete, that makes me feel better. I was really worried about the motor being angled away, but since yours is also I will assume it is part of the design. Probably I just didn't tighten enough and I am good to go.

[Randy Klein]

And speaking of kudos, didn't read any kudos for Nancy. I've got a feeling the she had a "small" part in getting this issue to the attention of the right people with her connections. WELL DONE NANCY.


So Randy, what's your first project with your new DP?

Mark, you're right about that. Without Nancy's help, I'm not sure my situation would have been resolved as quickly as it had.

My first project will be a lumber rack that I've been desperately needing. I stole the idea off a guy on Woodnet, using 2x4's and 1/2" galvanized pipe.

[Bruce Benjamin]

Just thought I'd add my $.02 to the tread. I purchased a SC 8" jointer and 15" planer and when they were unpacked I notice that the base of the jointer was missing the built-in wheels. It turned out that it was an early production run that was at the store and the newer ones came with them. I contacted SC and learned that the unit itself had not changed just the base. Anyway, they sent another base to replace it which also included a new 2hp motor and magnetic switch. The only problem was UPS damaged it in shipping. I again contacted SC and this time they actually built a wooden crate and sent another one! Now that's what I call service.

The kicker is they let me keep the other bases, motor and switch and I gave one to a friend (he helped me assemble the jointer) and built a light weight wooden mobile base for the other one and use it to mount my Foredom rotary tool.

This is what I would call fantastic customer service. Really above and beyond what I would expect. I'm not surprised that they sent you the new stuff but it seems that they would've at least asked you to box the old base, motor, and switch up and send it back on their dime. That's really nice of them.

Bruce