# Bench Top Drill Presses Not To Buy



## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

Lately considering picking up a new or used bench top drill press to feed my tool buying addiction, and to drill holes in stuff. I appreciate the good reviews and info a lot of you Lumberjocks have posted on all kinds of tools, but usually when I buy things I first like to rule out specific makes and models first, then drill down to 2-3 models to choose from. For used I'll consider something 10 years old or newer, assuming well maintained. Obviously I loathe the thought of being disappointed by and incurring wasted time and money dealing with a lesser-than-great product, especially being a tool costing $100+.

So, in the category of bench top drill presses, in your opinion, which one(s) where you not impressed with, had quality issues, sloppy controls/adjustability or poor customer service (under warranty) or had decidedly less features than others within the same price range. I can see how drill presses should be generally well made, but they do have motors, chucks, lasers, alignment setups, etc., that can't all be perfect. I guess recommended models are welcome too. Thanks in advance for your feedback. Cheers, guys.


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## toolie (Mar 16, 2011)

i've a ryobi 12" benchtop that is adequate but by no means special or above average. it only cost me $40 on clearance and sometimes i wish i still had the ryobi 10" that preceded it or the c-man 8" which preceded the 10". it's not a terrible DP, it's just not anything that i'd pay retail for. i'd imagine a delta would be better. maybe when i drive to my parents home in fla., i'll bring back dad's old split head delta bench top and CL the ryobi 12".


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## RonInOhio (Jul 23, 2010)

Can't say, as I don't own one. Might be easier to identify the good ones.

In my research of benchtop drill presses, Shop Fox performed strong in a comparison done by a woodworking magazine a few years back to half a dozen or so other benchtop presses.

I believe it had 3/4 h.p. and has a built-in spindle sander capability in the table-top.
I think they are sold at Grizzly. The Shop Fox got the editors choice.


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## shampeon (Jun 3, 2012)

Any particular reason to eliminate older or vintage drill presses from consideration? My Craigslist is full of decent Taiwan benchtop drill presses from the '70s and '80s that are inexpensive and well built. And then the occasional Delta, Craftsman 150, or Walker Turner vintage model for about the same price. All of these are beefy, cast iron presses that are fairly simple to maintain. Compared to a new Ryobi or Porter Cable drill press, they're better built, heavier, and typically have a better motor.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

I still use my 1993 Craftsman 1/3hp 8" DP (*bought it new), and the only complaint I have is that I wish I had a bigger one. Oh, the chuck key is about worn out so I have to be careful how I use it, but it too still works…


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## jimig11 (Mar 11, 2013)

Any particular reason to eliminate older or vintage drill presses from consideration? My Craigslist is full of decent Taiwan benchtop drill presses from the '70s and '80s that are inexpensive and well built. And then the occasional Delta, Craftsman 150, or Walker Turner vintage model for about the same price. All of these are beefy, cast iron presses that are fairly simple to maintain. Compared to a new Ryobi or Porter Cable drill press, they're better built, heavier, and typically have a better motor.

Mate last week I picked up a 10" CM DP for $50 on kijij. It was an hour drive to Wasega beach but it was only $20 in gas and a nice drive. Buddy was asking $75 I offered $50 cause of the gas and immediate p/u. I have to say i was hesitant, I had been searching Kijiji and CL for a solid 2 weeks and nothing decent under $100.
So I picked it up, brought it home, set her up. There was rust on the beds, but just surface rust, quick hit with the R/O and 220 grit and sparkling. The rest of the machine is totally mint. Moral of the story is, be patient and vigilant. As for the drill, I had a month worth of projects backed up and its been running hot since I got it, no it's not the craziest DP you can get, however it's my first DP and for $50 it will let me figure out what it is I need in a Drill press that i will pay several hundred for, only thing I would say is don't go smaller then 10", 12" is preferable, 8" is a joke.


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

What size "benchtop" DP are you looking for? Anything without its own stand sits on a bench : )
They even make radial DPs that sit on benchtops.


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## BillWhite (Jul 23, 2007)

Why are ya so hooked on bench tools?
A good,old floor model can be had for the same $ if ya have the room.
I bought a C'man from the '50s (KingSeely) for about $150.00. They are out there if ya wanna search.
Bill


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## knotscott (Feb 27, 2009)

My first DP was a small 8" Griz. It was under powered, and vibrated more than I liked. I think it's more a matter of the size than a quality issue. My current DP is a 13" benchtop HF 38142 that I like much better.


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## renners (Apr 9, 2010)

Don't bother with the Scheppach RAB13. There's a lot of movement in the quill and the depth stop is pathetic.


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## Tedstor (Mar 12, 2011)

The current Craftsman 12" DP is one to avoid. Its actually pretty well made, but not very powerful. Only 4.8 amps. Fine for light duty, but not much else.


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## jimig11 (Mar 11, 2013)

I noticed that to, when I was price checking CM tools, seems there new models are all very under powered. Like you said the current 12" is only 4.8amps mine is a 10" with 6amps. So my thinking is if your buying CM buy an older model.


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

I guess I will consider older drill presses as well, depending on what I can find - a lot of older quality is standing the test of time as some of you are saying. I'm looking (short-term?) for a bench top model since it will get infrequent use (I think), and I have very limited floor space, and small budget allocated. Although I've trained myself over the years to use a variable speed corded drill to drill holes very straight and fast, perhaps I am underestimating how much I will end up switching more of my drilling over to a drill press?


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

I appreciated your perspective there, jimig11, thanks.

Also, looks like I should up my budget a bit to get a bit more power and size up slightly too.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

I have a Duracraft that I paid $15 for at a garage sale years ago. It was made in 1978 and has been a great drillpress.


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## NiteWalker (May 7, 2011)

I didn't read the whole thread, but quite simply, the best deal on a drill press bar none is the pc 15" at Lowe's. Get a mover's coupon, or try to find a local lowe's that will accept a HF 20% off coupon and you're golden.

I'd not get a benchtop press to save space, because it doesn't.
A floor model takes up about as much floor space as a 5 gallon bucket.

For benchtops, avoid anything with a 1/3HP motor, which is most, unless you spend as much as a floor press would cost.


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## EEngineer (Jul 4, 2008)

I'm with jimig11. I hate all the cheap Chinese benchtop drill presses I looked at. Just run the quill up and down and you can usually see that a drill bit won't track straight up and down.

I bought an old Western Auto drill press made in 1958 and restored it. See it here . It probably wasn't top-o-the-line in 1958. But it is head and shoulders above the cheap Chinese drill press I had before.


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

Thanks for your perspectives, guys. This LJ forum is just too valuable for words - pun intended.


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## madts (Dec 30, 2011)

The problem with the bench tops is the the most you can drill through is about 2" ( 50mm.) which for me is not enough.


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## crank49 (Apr 7, 2010)

I have a couple of HF bench top DPs and the second one is good.

For me, the things to look for, which I didn't do the first time, is distance from chuck to table and the quill stroke.

Those little 8" and under, inexpensive machines don't have but about 8" between the chuck and the table.
Put a drill bit in there and your work piece has to be less than 3 or 4 inches.
Also, the quill stroke is usually less than 2 1/4" on these machines.
I think they were intended for metal working, where the workpiece is normally less than an inch thick.

What I got the second time around was a 12" 16 speed bench top machine. 
These machines are available from several sources and are all around 41" to 42" tall, over all.
They have 16" work space between the chuck and table and over 3 1/4" of quill stroke.
Not as much stroke as I would like, but enough to live with.
And, with 16 speeds I can get down to less than 200 RPM for drilling large holes.


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## cutworm (Oct 2, 2010)

There are positives to a benchtop press. I built a mobile cabinet for mine. It takes up about the same floor space as a floor model and you have storage and mobility. And the Ryobi drill press is great.


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## LepelstatCrafts (Jan 16, 2011)

Why not get a floor model and drill a hole in your bench top to slide the pole into? You then can just raise the platen above the bench top. I don't know how many times that if I had a bench top dp I would have had more work than with a floor model.


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

GRIZZLY G7943
Is what I bought in 2007 and it works well for me.


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

Personally, I like the old drill presses. Many of them have a wing screw that you can use to stop the spindle down as a certain location. I use that a lot om my old Atlas drill press. No matter what age it is, I like at least a 6" throat to drill big enough pieces.
Another useful feature is threaded rod for a depth stop. Put a quick nut on there and it is sweet. Add a foot switch and you are all set.
...........................Jim


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

The only thing that makes me want a bigger DP than my old 8in, is the speed range. My little 8in slowest speed is 600rpm and that readily burns larger Forstner bits. I would love to get the speed down to 250rpm or so.


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## SOLTC (Jul 1, 2009)

I have a Toolkraft Drill Press that I bought in 1975 from Silvo Hardware in Philadelphia.
I have never been able to slow this tool. It is really powerful.
It has a 3/4" Jacobs Chuck, and a top spindel that can take another chuck or a shaper attachment.
It's also veriable speed.


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## ssnvet (Jan 10, 2012)

GRIZZLY G7943

That's what I have as well… 3/4 HP, nice solid table, 12 speeds.

The thing I really like about buying tools from Grizzly is that they actually support them…. you know, with things like parts…. and they don't pork you on the price of their parts either.

I broke a knob on my quill handle while moving the DP and for a whopping $2.50 got another one.


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## NiteWalker (May 7, 2011)

I used to have the G7943 before I bought my ridgid.
It's a great benchtop press but very heavy.

I did fine the 3 1/4" quill stroke a bit limiting a few times.


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## Richforever (Mar 19, 2008)

I bought a Jet benchtop a few years ago. It arrived broken. I had to return it. (It took four ropes to hold the container together.) I bought it again from another retailer. After six uses, the printed circuit board controlling the display of RPM's and the laser quit working. They sent me a new circuit board, and I wired it myself. This whole process took three months. I recommend NOT purchasing a Jet brand. Overall design and quality are lacking.


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## NiteWalker (May 7, 2011)

The jet 12" is a crappy press.
Their "15 benchtop is great.
They make the same model in a floor version as well. Too much $$ though for a 15" dp with only 3 1/8" of travel when the grizzly g7943 has 3 1/4".


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## Kreegan (Jul 10, 2012)

I have a Skil 10" benchtop DP. (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003LSSS0W/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1) I can't say I'd recommend this one. The lowest speed of 570 is too fast. The drill chuck is an asspain to get aligned. The laser is a joke. More often than not, I end up drilling things on my lathe instead.


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