Pillar drill advice

[slarti42uk]

Hi,

Well I have a simple (hopefully) question. I have narrowed the field to two drills:

http://www.dm-tools.co.uk/product.php/s ... BEDP5530LZ

and

http://www.dm-tools.co.uk/product.php/s ... n/DRA42638

I think I favour the Ryobi but I wandered if any one could tell me if the price difference in these two would make much odds with the drilling quality. Would the Draper be as good at 'holes' just without the bells and whistles of variable speed and lasers?

My planned project to

this purchase is a cabin bed for my son and I'm needing to drill nice square holes (well round holes that go through the wood perpendicular ) through 63mm pine for the bed bolts to go through, and then into the end of the frame parts.

Any other recommendations are welcome but my budget has been set at £200 +- £20 and I found the Ryobi on tooled-up.com for £226 delivered.

Cheers in advance

Steve

PS I'm trying out a £20 Clarke drill stand with power drill just to see if I could get away with it. Is this a REALLY bad idea? I only have about 12 holes on this project.​

 

[cambournepete]

Or you could try what I did when I made our king-size bed.
Start the holes off with a router using the right size bit to give you a perpendicular hole and then complete with a hand held drill.
The result wasn't perfect but it was good enough and the bed is still standing

 

[John. B]

If you want square holes, why not buy a morticer?
It will make much better square holes than drilling round holes then chopping them out with a chisel. It will also be that much better when you make the rails and stiles. :? :?
Axminster has three under £175.00


John. B

 

[slarti42uk]

Thanks cambournepete I didn't think of using a router to start of the holes. How deep would you need to plunge to make sure the drill stays perpendicular? I'm using M6 bed bolts so I guess a 1/4 spiral cutter would be ok? or a little close?

John. B - Yes I realised as I wrote it that it sounded like I wanted square holes. What I meant was round holes that go through the wood 'square' as in perpendicular to the face. So the come out the other side at the same distance from the edge they went in.

Cheers for the replies!
Steve

 

[Racers]

Hi, Steve

I managed for years with a drill stand made lets of stuff, but after getting a drill press I realised what I was missing!
You can drill from both sides of the post with a hand held drill and then put the side rail in place and drill through with a long 6mm drill, although 6mm seems a bit small to me I would go for 8mm bolts.

Pete

 

[cambournepete]

Thanks cambournepete I didn't think of using a router to start of the holes. How deep would you need to plunge to make sure the drill stays perpendicular? I'm using M6 bed bolts so I guess a 1/4 spiral cutter would be ok? or a little close?

I went as deep as my half inch* cutter would got - over 2 inches I think.

*It's a big bed

 

[ProShop]

I have the Ryobi your looking at. It's an OKish drill.
Mine vibrates a bit, I think the spindle is slightly out of true. But it cuts clean accurate holes.
It's a bit crudely finished, especially the castings. The lazer suprisingly works quite well, although with wide bits in the chuck it's rendered useless.
Variable speed works well and the digital indicator is useful. I only paid £135 for mine plus P&p, to be honest I think that's all it's worth (maybe a bit more)
but it's not a £200 plus drill imho.

 

[slarti42uk]

Thanks for the input. Was the Ryobi on special offer at the time? Where was it from?

Yes I may well go for M8. The side rails will be mortised then secured in place with the bolts.

Thanks again all.
Steve

 

[Steve Maskery]

For that budget you could get a top-class elderly piece of solid British engineering on eBay. Yes you may have to wait a while to find the right machine, but I bought a Meddings for 160. A tenner on a new switch and a tin of paint and I have a machine that sings like a roller. It took me a couple of days' labour, of course, but I am well pleased.

Cheers
Steve

 

[misterfish]

For that budget you could get a top-class elderly piece of solid British engineering on eBay. Yes you may have to wait a while to find the right machine, but I bought a Meddings for 160. A tenner on a new switch and a tin of paint and I have a machine that sings like a roller. It took me a couple of days' labour, of course, but I am well pleased.

Cheers
Steve

Definately the way to go. I got a scruffy Fobco for £50 - rock solid, heavy and not a bit of play anywhere.

Misterfish

 

[crazylilting]

here's a nice little bench top model.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/W-J-Meddings-...Home_Garden_PowerTools_SM?hash=item35a43518b6

Should be able to drill a few holes with that.

 

[misterfish]

If you do go down the 'used' route, watch out for single or 3 phase. I always find it takes longer to find decent used kit that is single phase.

Misterfish

 

[DaveL]

If you do go down the 'used' route, watch out for single or 3 phase. I always find it takes longer to find decent used kit that is single phase.

Misterfish

I agree that buy a second hand machine is a good route to go.
The motors on this sort of machine are quite easy to replace, so if you find a nice 3 phase machine close to home, consider replacing the motor.

 

[Boz62]

The other thing to remember is that the big old beasts are great because they are heavy and don't move. This means that it is difficult to move them because they are so heavy :evil:.

If you can place the drill in a location that gives good access around it, it is a one time job and not an issue. If it is stuck in a corner and needs to be moved to another bench for some jobs then it will rapidly become a pain. Yes, I'm in this position, so am having to consider a modern one, at around 37Kg, for my next upgrade.

Boz

 

[OPJ]

I have the Ryobi your looking at. It's an OKish drill.
Mine vibrates a bit, I think the spindle is slightly out of true. But it cuts clean accurate holes.

My Clarke machine has developed a similar problem (although, as with yours, mine still cuts with accuracy) and I suspect this could be down to one of the bearings above the chuck, rather than the actual spindle. Trouble is, I'm not sure how to remove it... :?

 

[crazylilting]

I don't know to much about the pillar drills from these parts but happened apon this one and was wondering what others think before i bid on it?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230388090405&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I have a newtool one and it really sucks so would like to get a better one.

The one on E-bay doesn't have the ability to move up and down as it is fixed to the table but i was thinking of mounting it to a piece of I beam and rigging up a table that can be folded away to save room. I don't do much drilling but when I need it i really need it.

 

[misterfish]

I don't know to much about the pillar drills from these parts but happened apon this one and was wondering what others think before i bid on it?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230388090405&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I have a newtool one and it really sucks so would like to get a better one.

The one on E-bay doesn't have the ability to move up and down as it is fixed to the table but i was thinking of mounting it to a piece of I beam and rigging up a table that can be folded away to save room. I don't do much drilling but when I need it i really need it.

There are a couple of Fobco 3 phase machines on the 'bay currently at about £50. Fobco and Meddings have both got good reputation. I assume you have a 3 phase supply, otherwise yuo'll either need a converter or to change the motor. It took me a while to find my Fobco - both local and a reasonable price (£50).

Misterfish

 

[crazylilting]

Thanks very much misterfish. I've saved an e-bay search for those two names so when something comes up i'll be aware. I noticed looking at the options available right now on ebay that there is even a difference in quality between models in their own brands. How do you know which one's are the higher end models within the two brands you mentioned?

 

[misterfish]

I think the quality of Fobco, Meddings and Startrite are excellent throughout the ranges. As far as I can see it is the capacity and flexibility that is different. My drill is a 'basic' Fobco Star - 4 speed single phase and comparing it to my old Axminster drill is like comparing it to a toy. It is a solid, heavy (2 man lift type heavy) and well engineered with no play in the quill. The motor shows no sign of stalling when doing heavy work.

Remember these are industrial type machines built for that type of environment rather than a lot of the hobby/trade rated machines that are widely available new.

Bear in mind that with old kit you may need to spend some time cleaning it, but I think it time well spent.

If you do have a 3 phase leccy supply then you will find a much wider range of kit available to you.

Misterfish

 

[beesondirect]

Hi John thanks for all good inputs.I had a similar problem.I wanted to make a square hole and used Morticer ,it was very useful.