Drill Press Table

OK, there’s a little bit more to the story than meets the eye in this one … not long before the fall semester started, I attended an auction in Southwest Michigan … the temps were in the 90’s, I was just coming off the third shift, and I couldn’t find anyone to go with me … but the flier said there was a Delta Unisaw and a bunch of other woodworking tools up for auction so I figured what the heck. Well, as it turned out … the Unisaw was actually an 8” Delta Unisaw Jr. ... that nobody else wanted … and I couldn’t pass up for $50 (nobody else was dumb enough to take on the task of getting it out of the basement in 90 degree temps). By the time I had managed to get the saw and all the rest of the loot into my truck … it was already pretty late and the only people left at the site were some of the family members of the deceased. The daughter of the guy was pretty amazed when she found out I was alone … and had gotten the saw out of the basement without help (I looked like I had been swimming in the lake) ... so, she offered to let me have anything that was left over in the workshop … and I got some pretty nice stuff … including his workbench … and some hand tools … anyway, one of the things nobody even bid on was this old drill press … I have to admit … it’s not much of a drill press … and it wasn’t working that day … but we talked for awhile … about her dad … about my grandpa … and eventually she specifically asked me if I could do something with this drill press … she said she remembered her dad using it … but everyone from her brother to the auctioneer told her it wasn’t worth a dime … and she didn’t want to see it go to waste … well, I’m happy to report … after some tinkering … I’m happy to report that it works as well as I imagine it’s ever worked … so , I hope this one makes her old man proud!

The core of the table is made from two pieces of 1/2” MDF
The edging is 1/2” thick oak trim I picked up at the Habitat For Humanity ReStore for under a buck.
The blue laminate for the top and bottom I picked up at the ReStore for under $2 and cut out the defect
The mounting bolts and tee nuts – yup, you guessed it … Habitat for Humanity ReStore!
And in case you’re wondering … yes, the glue and adhesive for this project was picked up at the ReStore too!

What can I say, I’m a sucker for a bargain!

The fence you see is actually from my Rockler Router Table … I haven’t really used it since I got the Incra System … so figured I’d try to put it to work here. If for some reason it doesn’t end up working … I guess I’ll just have to suck it up and make my own.

-- Lip's Dysfuncational Firewood Farm, South Bend, IN