Bench-top drill press.

[pswallace]

Hi all, 'am thinking of buying a benchtop drill press.

I have been considering the SIP 01703, the Record power DP58B or the Charnwood W380.

All are pretty much the same spec' with the Record power being the most expensive by around £45.

I know lots of people say get a second hand Fobco but over here in Northern Ireland they very seldom come up for sale and with the weight involved I dont think shipping one over would be worth the cost or hassle.

Has anyone had any experience of the above mentioned models?.

As always any advice would be greatly appreciated

Thanks Phil.

p.s I did get the chance to have a look at the floor standing version of the SIP and was quite impressed.

 

[Stevebod]

Hi I recently got the Charnwood W380, (it was at a show, so got about £30 off list). I ahd been looking for a basic drill for a while, and on the face of it this seemed to be good value for money, a wide speed range, 16mm chuck, and looks "robust".

I have not had much chance to us it yet, but on the face of it it seems good value for money, (made in China I presume). No noticeable play in the spindle and a laser "drill guide".

Only "slight"problem I note is regarding the intermediate "pulley". This drill has one pulley on the motor, a second pulley on the drill spindle column, and a 3rd "intermediate pulley that "floats" between the 2. each pulley has 4 discs, (ie big to small). ie 2 drive belts, one from motor to "intermediate", and one "intermediate" to spindle, which give a wide range of speeds....HOWEVER...the intermediate pulley is a bit "crude". It "floats" in a basic bush but only at the bottom.

If you put the motor belt on the "top" pulley, and the spindle pulley on the "bottom Pulley, then this "pulls" the intermediate pulley over...ie it does not remain "upright". As the pulley is only supported at the bottom, this can cause the 2 drive belts to "bind" and caused excess friction that the motor is not powerful to overcome,and the drill wont turn!

It may be just a setting problem and I ned to reduce the "tension", (the motor can be mover back and forward to allow this), but it more or less means you can't actually use the full speed range. (I have set it so that the two belts run on adjacent pulleys so as to minimise this effect.

I hope you can understand what I am talking about..(difficult to describe). But if you get chance you may want to take the pulley cover off and have a look. In hindsite I would have preferred to buy a drill with only two pulleys, (ie on the motor and the spindle), and live with a slightly smaller chuck and speed range.

In general when I have been comparing Record products with Charnwood, the Record stuff always seems to be that little better on quality..all be it Record stuff is a bit more expensive, but all things being equal I would always go with Record from what I have seen to date. (Recently got their 12" disc sander....very impressed as seems to be really good quality, again buy at a show and get £30 off...)

Hope this helps...good luck

 

[tomasgursky]

I had a SIP and finally I returned it and got my money back. The play in a quill was 2+ mm when it was extended. So to drill a straight hole was impossible.
So I'm back in search for a decent drill press. All manufacturers claims that it is a DIY range. But I don't know why do they think that accuracy is not important? I would not buy online again. I prefer to go to shop and have a play to see if the quill has a massive play or not.

 

[lurker]

Hi I recently got the Charnwood W380, (it was at a show, so got about £30 off list). I ahd been looking for a basic drill for a while, and on the face of it this seemed to be good value for money, a wide speed range, 16mm chuck, and looks "robust".

I have not had much chance to us it yet, but on the face of it it seems good value for money, (made in China I presume). No noticeable play in the spindle and a laser "drill guide".

Only "slight"problem I note is regarding the intermediate "pulley". This drill has one pulley on the motor, a second pulley on the drill spindle column, and a 3rd "intermediate pulley that "floats" between the 2. each pulley has 4 discs, (ie big to small). ie 2 drive belts, one from motor to "intermediate", and one "intermediate" to spindle, which give a wide range of speeds....HOWEVER...the intermediate pulley is a bit "crude". It "floats" in a basic bush but only at the bottom.

If you put the motor belt on the "top" pulley, and the spindle pulley on the "bottom Pulley, then this "pulls" the intermediate pulley over...ie it does not remain "upright". As the pulley is only supported at the bottom, this can cause the 2 drive belts to "bind" and caused excess friction that the motor is not powerful to overcome,and the drill wont turn!

It may be just a setting problem and I ned to reduce the "tension", (the motor can be mover back and forward to allow this), but it more or less means you can't actually use the full speed range. (I have set it so that the two belts run on adjacent pulleys so as to minimise this effect.

I hope you can understand what I am talking about..(difficult to describe). But if you get chance you may want to take the pulley cover off and have a look. In hindsite I would have preferred to buy a drill with only two pulleys, (ie on the motor and the spindle), and live with a slightly smaller chuck and speed range.

In general when I have been comparing Record products with Charnwood, the Record stuff always seems to be that little better on quality..all be it Record stuff is a bit more expensive, but all things being equal I would always go with Record from what I have seen to date. (Recently got their 12" disc sander....very impressed as seems to be really good quality, again buy at a show and get £30 off...)

Hope this helps...good luck

Steve,
If I were you, I'd e-mail Charnwood and mention this.
They have a very good technical support chap who might offer a fix

 

[geoffshep]

Have you looked at Axminster? http://www.axminster.co.uk/machinery/dr ... lar-drills

 

[tomasgursky]

Yes I have. I went to their store in Nuneaton and the basic hobby one had a play in a quill too. I think the next one up (around £250+) looked much better. I will make a trip there again when I decide to buy one to make sure there is no significant play. The same way I bought a mitre saw from them. Had a DeWalt on the list but finally went for Bosch and don't regret at all as I had a chance to play with all of them.

 

[skipdiver]

From those you listed i would go for the Record Power. I have some of their machines, though not the pillar drill and they perform well for the price point. 5 year guarantee gives piece of mind and they are generally a good company to deal with should things go wrong.

One thing to consider is spindle travel. I know the Record is 80mm as i have thought about purchasing one myself, but it may be worth checking what the travel is on the other models.

 

[memzey]

I got one of thes for £50 off gumtree a couple of years ago:

Rock solid, 00005" play in the quill at full extension, 240v and weighs a ton! I'd have to pay x 100 for something as good new I'd think. Spent a while waiting for the right one to come along though.