Cummins drill press questions

[Tom C]

I just bought a 5 speed Cummins drill press with a round table. It's older than what I see advertised and seems to be a good piece of equipment. I have some questions about it though and I'm hoping this is the place to ask for answers.

First of all, two out of the three rods used to move the bit up and down are loose and won't re-tighten. Also, one of the end knobs is broken and has to be replaced. I would also like to have an owner's manual if one still exists. Does anyone know where I could look for these parts? I've already gone online looking at Cummins but no luck.

I was pleased to see it has a light but when I looked up into the source I saw that the hole that the light shines through had been crudely widened. Does anyone know what the original opening looked like and/or why anyone would put a lot of effort into making the opening larger?

I really appreciate any advice offered.

[LCHIEN]

the "rods" are the quill elevation handles. The all screw into the hub that drives the quill up and down.

Usually the rods are just that, simple rods threaded at both ends.
For a replacement ball, I'd go to the hobby shop and geta wood ball (avail in all diameters), drill and thread it on to fit, or drill and glue on.

The rods on all three DPs I own tend to get work loose after use. I suppose after being retigtened frequently, they can becpome too loose and hard to tighten. I always used teflon tape (for plumbing threads) to wrap the threads which will keep them from coming loose. You may need to use a few layers of teflon tape (wrap tightly to where the tape is slightly stretched and pulled into the threads) if the joint is really loose.
There will often be a flat on the rod, this is for using a wrench to tighten them.

[TB Roye]

I had the same problem on my HF drill press. A drop of Loctite from NAPA or other auto supply store will solve that problem. Don't use more that a drop or you may never get them loose again.

Tom

[Tom C]

Guys


Thanks for the tips. I think I'll try the teflon tape first since I use Loctite at work and agree that if you ever want the rods out again, you have to be very careful with that stuff.

Thinking I could clean up the movement of the chuck, I also ended up taking the spring and the rod assembly apart. By the time I realized how the spring was designed and worked, it had jumped off the DP and was sitting in my hand. A good sized band aid on my thumb and some basic maintenance later, it works better.