Drill Press Modification

[JSUPreston]

I've got a question that I'd like to bounce off you guys before I try something. I've got either a 9" or 10" Craftsman benchtop drill press. Aside from issues with the motor possibly being a little underpowered, I was wondering what you guys would think of me possibly converting this to a floor standing model. I figure a quick trip to Lowe's or HomeDepot to buy a steel pipe would do the trick. Just wondering if anyone else has done this and what problems you've had, or if I've been in front of my computer way too long and should be sniffing saw dust instead.

[LarryG]

Isn't there a toothed track (or similar) that the table rides up and down on? You'd have to figure some way to extend that, unless you'd be willing to limit yourself to whatever vertical table travel you have now.

A lot of us here agree that the drill press is the tool that suffers the least when one "settles" for a benchtop instead of a floor model. Ergo, what's the movitation for doing this? If you just want to get the thing off your bench, you could build a rolling cabinet to sit it on and pick up some extra storage space. If you need to drill holes in the ends of long pieces, one trick many people have used is to mount the drill press base backwards, so to speak, so that the head hangs over the edge of the workbench or cabinet.

[sweensdv]

IMO, the primary advanage of floor DP's over most benchtop DP's is the increased swing capacity. In your case, that capacity wouldn't change. For what it would cost you to do the modification, you could have a good start to saving up for a floor DP.

[sacherjj]

You can get a very servicable floor standing DP from HF for just over $100, on sale with a coupon. Selling the model you have and not buying the pipe would put you about there. For extended reach, you can hang the benchtop DP over the edge a little.

[LCHIEN]

I would agree withthe other posters. First what is your motivation?
Free up Space on the benchtop? For that mounting to a cart with storage would be better.

More room under the bit to drill tall objects? Assuming you can't match the column diameter perfectly, then you would not gain being able to lower the table further.

No improvement in swing, power, speeds, quill travel etc.

Depending on whether you hoped to gain the above, you'd be better off starting fresh with a floor model drill press with better capabilities.

[JSUPreston]

Larry, my table doesn't have the tracks, so that wouldn't be the issue. I was more or less wondering if it was possible to make it work, and if anyone had tried it. However, it looks like given the reaction that this wouldn't be the way to go. Not really looking at doing it for space, I already have it on a stand on the floor. I was looking at it for the ability to handle thicker stock. Looks like I'll be saving up for a while instead.

Thanks for the input, guys!

BTW: what's the opinion on the HF DP?

[Tequila]

If you're just looking for the ability to handle thicker stock, you can usually rotate the drill press head so it's not directly over the base. You'll need to bolt down the base since it will want to tip over, but many presses have a flange at the bottom of the tube that mounts to the base.

My Delta has 4 bolts that attach the tube to the base. If I were to index it, the head would be 90 degrees or 180 degrees away from the base, and would give me clearance all the way to the floor.

[Jes Pidlin]

I had the same idea several years ago, except I didn't want a floor model, I just wanted to have a longer tube in order to have more space between the chuck and table.

Mine wasn't a Craftsman, but it was a small bench-top. I couldn't find a piece of pipe with the exact same OD as the tube, so I got a piece slightly larger, took it to a machine shop and had them turn it to the proper size. It turned out fine, matter of fact, the pipe had a thicker wall even after turning.

I still had a small swing capacity, so I finally donated it to my son-in-law and bought a larger one, still a bench model, but 13" swing, and taller tube.

Others have stated good reasons for both the bench top and floor models, this is a matter of personal preference. I stayed with the bench-top as it suits my needs, and for my small shop, I have additional storage space in the cabinet beneath it.