Correcting Drill Press runout

[John Sanford]

How does one go about eliminating/reducing drill press runout? I have a Jet 17" DP with what seems to me to be a lot of runout. No, I haven't measured it (no dial indicator), but it is easily visible.

[Randy Rose]

How does one go about eliminating/reducing drill press runout? I have a Jet 17" DP with what seems to me to be a lot of runout. No, I haven't measured it (no dial indicator), but it is easily visible.

I`d verify that the run out is not caused by the chuck before trying to compensate for tolerences in the quill. If that`s the culprit, see if a Jacobs brand chuck is available for your machine.

[Gene Howe]

How does one go about eliminating/reducing drill press runout? I have a Jet 17" DP with what seems to me to be a lot of runout. No, I haven't measured it (no dial indicator), but it is easily visible.

John, do a search of FWW articles re drill press runout. There is an excellent article with pics that explain how to remedy runout, if it's chuck based.
CAUTION: You will need a dial indicator.

[Brad Noble]

John, do a search of FWW articles re drill press runout. There is an excellent article with pics that explain how to remedy runout, if it's chuck based.
CAUTION: You will need a dial indicator.

Not to hijack this thread from the original poster ........ but, what if it's NOT chuck based? I have a drill press that I haven't used for almost a year because of its problems. I have replaced the chuck and the tapered shaft the chuck mounts on. Still it wobbles.

Brad

[Warren Clemans]

I had a similar problem with a 6 or 8 year old Jet drill press. I procrastinated calling Jet until years after the warranty period ran out, but once I finally called, they sent me a new quill and chuck assembly for free, no questions asked. That fixed the problem. I would advise gathering as much information as possible--measure the wobble of a rod in the chuck, and also of the collar that the quill inserts into. Dial indicators are cheap and worth having, so get one. Then call Jet and see if they'll take care of you. Good luck.

[Tom Veatch]

John, it could be the drill bits. If/when you check the runout, be sure to check it very near the chuck or use a known straight rod in the chuck. I have a cheap set of drills that look straight to my eye, but in the DP, they wave around like semaphore flags. Other, quality drill bits, show no visible runout. My DP is also a 17" Jet.

[Jim Becker]

The very first thing to do is to remove and re-seat the chuck/taper...and yes, don't assume your bits are straight, either. If both of these things check out, then you may need to replace the chuck/taper.

[Jules Dominguez]

I agree with Jim. It's quick and easy to do and may well fix the problem. Make sure the mating parts are clean before reassembling.

[Dan Forman]

I wanted an extra chuck for drilling on my lathe, assumed a Jacobs brand would be the best, paid nearly $100 for it. Got it home, measured run out with a dial caliper and it was .004". I returned it for another of the same model, got same result. Returned that too, got another Golden Goose brand chuck from Woodcraft, which measured .001", and cost only about $30. These measurements were taken on the lathe, not the drill press. Lesson learned, you often get what you pay for, but now and then there is a true bargain. The Jacobs brand was much more substantial, and may last longer, but the GG is more accurate, and has not given me any problems yet.

Dan

[Vic Damone]

I wanted an extra chuck for drilling on my lathe, assumed a Jacobs brand would be the best, paid nearly $100 for it. Got it home, measured run out with a dial caliper and it was .004". I returned it for another of the same model, got same result. Returned that too, got another Golden Goose brand chuck from Woodcraft, which measured .001", and cost only about $30. These measurements were taken on the lathe, not the drill press. Lesson learned, you often get what you pay for, but now and then there is a true bargain. The Jacobs brand was much more substantial, and may last longer, but the GG is more accurate, and has not given me any problems yet.

Dan

+1 Dan

My southeast Asian manufactured press had runout issues. After cleaning and reseating the taper and replacing the chuck with a $30 keyless the runout was greatly reduced and I'm spoiled by the keyless.

[Clifford Mescher]

I wanted an extra chuck for drilling on my lathe, assumed a Jacobs brand would be the best, paid nearly $100 for it. Got it home, measured run out with a dial caliper and it was .004". I returned it for another of the same model, got same result. Returned that too, got another Golden Goose brand chuck from Woodcraft, which measured .001", and cost only about $30. These measurements were taken on the lathe, not the drill press. Lesson learned, you often get what you pay for, but now and then there is a true bargain. The Jacobs brand was much more substantial, and may last longer, but the GG is more accurate, and has not given me any problems yet.

Dan

Can you measure concentricity runout with dial calipers? How do you measure it on a lathe? Just curious. Clifford.

[Joe Chritz]

I expect someone has fabbed up something to measure runout with calipers but a dial indicator is relatively cheap and useful for lots of things, especially with a magnetic base.

I recommend getting one sooner rather than later.

Joe

[David G Baker]

I stupidly tried to use a 1/2 inch milling cutter in my drill press to mill some aluminum and bent the chuck taper enough to make the DP almost useless. I mounted a magnetic mounted dial indicator so it rode on the side of the chuck took a 2"x4"x12" with a thick rubber pad mounted on one end, held it against the side of the chuck and tapped on the 2x4 with a 5 pound hammer while turning the chuck by hand until the chuck had almost no movement on the dial indicator. I haven't had any problems since. I now use my mill if I want to work on milling metal.

[Chip Lindley]

Hi Clifford! Sorry but dial calipers are measuring diameters or thicknesses of anything that will fit between the jaws, down to .001" (one one-thousandth) This is what they do!

A dial indicator is used to find concentricity of a rotating shaft, OR variation in height of planer/jointer knives when rotated past the indicator tip. The dial shows any variation in .001" increments, usually.

A shaft would be chucked in a metal lathe and adjusted for zero runout at the chuck nose. The dial indicator is held in the tool post (which travels parallel to the chucked spindle) the indicator tip touching the shaft and a base readout noted. Then readings would be taken as the DI travels along the protruding part of the shaft while rotated. This would show if the shaft is bent or otherwise misshapen, thus measuring the T.I.R. (total indicator runout)

A shaft can be straightened while held in the lathe chuck, or on the drill press, by judicious blows of a mallet while observing the T.I.R. as the process continues. A shaft can be brought back to almost exact concentricity in this manner, with patience and just the right hammer!

[Clifford Mescher]

I stupidly tried to use a 1/2 inch milling cutter in my drill press to mill some aluminum and bent the chuck taper enough to make the DP almost useless. I mounted a magnetic mounted dial indicator so it rode on the side of the chuck took a 2"x4"x12" with a thick rubber pad mounted on one end, held it against the side of the chuck and tapped on the 2x4 with a 5 pound hammer while turning the chuck by hand until the chuck had almost no movement on the dial indicator. I haven't had any problems since. I now use my mill if I want to work on milling metal.

That is how I do it, too. Put shaft in chuck and keep tapping until it runs true. Clifford.