Benchtop Drill Press stands

[gfry]

My wife just bought me a Jet JDP-15M 15" bench top drill press for my birthday and I wanna build or buy a stand for it... any ideas (and/or photos) out there? Thanks in advance!

[leehljp]

I built a mobile stand for my benchtop DP when I lived in Japan, but left the stand behind. I don't have any pictures of it and it was not anything special. IF I remember correctly, it was about 20 inches wide, 26 inches front to back and about 26 to 28 inches tall (I think). It was open under for storage of large items (stored a small air compressor there) and the top allowed for several boxes of drill bits and even behind the stand I stored my two boxes of Frostner bits (1/4" to 3+").

It was great having it on a moble stand rather than a fixed position on a bench. But in that situation, I had limited space and had to move large tools around in order to use them.

WELCOME!

[dbhost]

One suggestion I have. Make it big enough, with either drawers, or slots that will hold your handheld drills, and all of your drill bit sets, including ones you want but don't own yet... Forstner bit sets can be pretty big, so size accordingly...

Depending on the size of your shop, and the layout, you may want to size it so that the table can be set in a position to act as a continuation of a neighboring table such as a miter saw stand...

FWIW, I have done in sketchup, just not built yet a cabinet for my drill press, but I have a floor model, this one will straddle the foot of the drill press, and be held down to, but removeable from the mobile base. I have designed it with the following drawers or slots / compartments. I am merely mentioning this to maybe help give you some thoughts to design.

2 compartments sized to hold 1 each of my corded electric handheld drills in their cases.
1 Compartment sized to hold my Grizzly 31 piece forstner bit set.
1 drawer sized to hold my loose large forstners, spade bits, counter sinks, and other misc bits that do not have cases.
1 drawer for bit sets with cases. Standard twist drill bits, brad point, spade, auger (Speed Bor Max), quick disconnect standard twist, hole saws etc...
1 drawer for extensions, dowelling jig, pocket hole jig, sanding drums, etc...

My idea is to put the lighter objects (hand drills in plastic cases) up higher, while the heavier, less frequently accessed objects are toward the bottom (Large forstner bit set, drawer packed with loose bits...

So from top to bottom it would be...

Drill compartment, drill compartment, jigs and misc, bit sets in cases, loose bits and misc, large forstners.

Make sure you arrange something to store any hold downs for your table, as well as a place to store your chuck key.

One last tidbit. You never hear anyone complaining that their casters are too good... It is tempting to cut costs on casters, but some of the cheapo casters will drive you to distraction, especially if your floor has cracks or big gaps... Spend some extra in there!

[pelligrini]

Here's a shot of mine http://www.bt3central.com/showpost.p...07&postcount=4

I've added two drawers in the top and one in the bottom since then.

[greenacres2]

I'm at the other extreme from Erik--quick and simple. 20" wide x 24" deep, top is 24" from floor. 4 x 4 uprights probably overkill, but the "benchtop" DP weighs close to 100 pounds on its own. OSB on the back side to create a little torsion. Adding the DP Table last weekend put the casters right on the edge of being too hard to roll--but not enough to inspire lifting the DP off there!!

earl

[DLyon]

FWIW, I have done in sketchup, just not built yet a cabinet for my drill press, but I have a floor model, this one will straddle the foot of the drill press, and be held down to, but removeable from the mobile base. I have designed it with the following drawers or slots / compartments. I am merely mentioning this to maybe help give you some thoughts to design.

Would love to see your design. I also have a floor model and that empty space is begging to be used.

[gfry]

Benchtop Drill Press stands

Now THESE are great suggestions! Thanks for the photos and things to think about when designing a stand! I've got a good idea now - incorporating something of each of your ideas!
One more question, though, and I'm on my way...
Castors: I really like the idea of using castors, but doesn't that set up for vibration while machining? (BTW, my DP weighs 163 lbs. just by itself!).
Again, thanks in advance!

[mpc]

There are several types of casters out there - in how they mount, their materials, and how they lock.

Mounting: either flat plate mounted to the bottom of the cabinet with screws, or a threaded stem (post) that pokes through a hole in the floor of your cabinet and is held down by a washer and nut or gets screwed into threaded inserts/T-nuts in the underside of the cabinet. Threaded setups are easier to adjust for level if your cabinet ends up not-quite-square. With stem mounted casters going into holes in the floor of the cabinet you can place a false floor above the caster stems to hide them when all is done. (and you'll also form a shallow hidden "safe" between the false floor and real floor if you want to hide some valuables) I've used both styles, no significant difference in performance - pick whatever makes the most sense for mounting to your cabinet.

Materials: metal wheels or hard rubber or various types of plastic. The hard rubber & plastic varieties roll over small bits of grit, sawdust, etc. better than the metal ones in my experience. And they're certainly quieter. And they slip/slide across the floor less easily than metal wheels. That's all I use now. Look for wheels with a solid hub area and a rubber or plastic tire - they're strong. Avoid those with rubber or plastic "spokes" (wheel + hub as one piece) as they tend to be less strong.

How they lock: this is the biggie. Most locking casters just lock the wheel from turning but do NOT lock the castering portion. So cabinets on such casters can still wiggle a bit. Double-locking casters lock both the wheel AND the caster and are quite rigid when locked. I have several cabinets on such casters and they stay put when locked - often I just lock 1 or 2 out of the 4. They're that solid. Rockler and Woodcraft sell examples of these if you want to eyeball some up close. I've had good luck with both. They're not the cheapest suppliers though.

mpc

[gfry]

Castors...

Thanks MPC,
I was not aware of locking wheels that both locked the wheel AND the castor?!
That's what I'll go for!
And, having worked in machine shops for over 30 years, mounting is no big deal for me... but thanks for the full-rounded tips with good information for other users viewing this post - very thorough - I like that!
Thanks again!

(You're never too old to learn something new!)

[pelligrini]

There's some good threads on casters on these forums too.

I've used the Woodcraft casters on many projects. I usually get them on sale. They have 30% to 50% sales about twice a year. I think last month was one. I like using a 3" caster. My floors are too uneven (and messy) for 2". I used some 5" Woodcraft casters on a cart that carries six 120lbs. steel dart board standards a few years ago. They have taken a beating with thresholds and rough sidewalks and are still rolling strong as of last weekend.

I've heard good words on the Peachtree's casters too: http://www.ptreeusa.com/wheels_casters.htm
Too bad they weren't included in their Memorial Day sale: http://www.ptreeusa.com/edirect_052412.htm Looks like they've got some decent deals on other drill press accessories.

[greenacres2]

When i built my lumber cart, i put 4" casters on thinking that was plenty. Loaded it up and really had to lay into to get it to move at all and it was really hard to park where i wanted it. Found a set of 6" Knaack Box casters on e-bay for something like $35, swapped them out. Now--overloaded--i can roll that puppy around with my index finger. Have to lock the casters to keep it from moving on its own!!

Almost everything i've got is on some sort of caster--wish i had the space to not need to.

earl

[gfry]

Castors on everything...

Well finally!
A forum that's actually active -and- informative!
This is the first forum I've joined that's actually paid off!
I'll be back whenever I run into a woodworking , tool or shop problem.
Thanks everyone!

[Pappy]

Another version....





I think it is riding on 3" casters, but they could be 4". I don't think I have ever locked them down and movement has not been an issue.

Heavy duty casters I get from Darnell Rose (casters.com). They will custom make what you want (wheel type/size, type of wheel bearings, size of attachment plate, locking type) for about tjhe same as you would pay for imported casters from Woodcraft. All of their swivel casters have a double row of bearings in the swivel.

Lighter duty casters I get from Grizzly. The ones in the top section are what is under my DP cabinet and router station. The 3" give you a total load rate of 600#'s. The 4" would give you a load rate of 1100#'s. I have those under a tool cart that weighs in around 550#'s and ahs never been a problem to move.

http://www.grizzly.com/catalog/2012/Main/317

[greenacres2]

Hey Pappy--that is a very slick stock support system!! Simple, flexible and looks real effective. Great thinking.

earl

[gfry]

At this forum last May or so, I asked for some ideas & pics for a benchtop DP. After reviewing everyone's input and photos there, I chose to copy greenacres2 design - mostly! Rugged, sturdy and functional! Have a look: