Radial drill press Poll

[LCHIEN]

I know that the late Rod Kirby was a fan of the radial drill press.

It allows a greatly increased swing for drilling - more room between the drill axis and the post because of the horizontal adjustment.
It both extends and it can rotate the head so the drill is pointed at angles other than vertical.
Also drilling at weird angles (compound angle between table and head). But many people don't like it because the head is so floppy and
flexible it decreases accuracy when bearing down and its very top heavy and prone to fall over (moreso than a regular DP which is prone to falling over anyway)
The other bad thing is you can't put it too close to the wall!

I'm wondering how widely they are used. Here's a quick poll

[mpc]

Seemed like a good idea when I first saw them. I have the Rikon version. It works pretty well but, as the opening post noted, there is more "give" between the vertical and horizontal tubes... so that 90 degree angle sometimes isn't. Especially when drilling into hard materials, using large diameter bits, etc. Like the BT3, it requires a somewhat different approach compared to "normal" drill presses. Basically, less bearing down on the handles and taking things slower. Would I buy it again or switch to a regular drill press? I haven't used the radial features much other than the throat depth adjustment... yet I still like the idea of the flexibility a radial drill press offers so I'd replace this with another radial if it ever dies. Moving the throat depth adjustment to the minimum necessary for a particular job reduces the effect of any "give" in the two main tubes.

mpc

[cwsmith]

I've looked at them in the Grizzly catalog and on line, and they certainly add to the versatility of a drill press operation. However they take up more room than I have (not to mention a bigger bite out of the wallet). Not only do they swing (which would be a great feature all by itself), but the move forward and back too. I suppose it could be likened to the difference between a regular miter saw and a sliding miter saw or even a RAS. Just a lot more versatile.

BTW, I have a floor-standing Ridgid 15" DP. Just a conventional DP and not the best in the world, but I'm really happy to have it.

CWS

[leehljp]

I have one but have not used it in 8 years. I bought it in 2001 from Harbor Freight and used it in Japan as my drill press. As mentioned, there is flex between the horizontal and vertical tube when a fair amount of pressure is applied. I learned that real quick. So, learning not to apply extra pressure (that we have a tendency to do) - will let it work fine. Also, we often apply extra pressure as a bit begins to dull a tad in order to push through. KEEP the bits sharp and there will be less need for pressure and it can be fairly accurate.

ON metals, if possible, bring the drill head in as close to the vertical pole as possible. This decreases the flex considerably. BUT, make sure the fittings are firm or tight as possible without constraining movement of the horizontal tube. Snug fittings on the base or the "T" that are not tight enough will cause the head to shift/tilt back a degree or two simply from the weight of the motor hanging way back there.

For wood and drilling holes 12 to 14" out, let the bit cut and don't make it flex. I made a couple of items in which I needed the repeated angles drilled out in the middle of a piece of plywood. To be honest, and it might be just me, but I LIKE a level table and the angled drill head much better than a squared head and angled table. Just don't force it. I have trouble drilling on an angled table, even with clampdowns; things have a tendency to move on me on a table tiled 30° or 45°.


The reason that I have not used mine is that when I left Japan, I disassembled it, Motor, head tube setup, vertical tube, table and base. I have a 16 speed drill bit and have not yet re-assembled it. I need more space in my shop.

It requires a slight different mindset to not misuse it, which could cause accuracy problems. Done right, it is fine.

Loring - I thought I did. I clicked 2, then thought about 3, clicked it and MEANT to go back to number 2. I thought I settled on 2.

[LCHIEN]

You should have voted choice #2

[capncarl]

I had a radial drill press for a while, didn’t like It because of the flex in the head. Granted I was using it to drill steel plate, but I expected more. I can’t say that I ever had a need for the radial application, if I needed to drill something that was deeper than the throat allowed, I probably couldn’t pick it up anyway. I don’t think that my head tilted for angle drilling, and the one in the photo doesn’t look like it will tilt either. Drilling with a tilted (angled) drill head just about can’t be done on metal because the bit will walk across the material. I needed to build a number of race car roll cages and wanted to use the radial drill with a carbide hole saw to cut all the pieces to be coped out in fishmouths. The machine wasn’t sturdy enough and would not turn the spindle slow enough so I sold it an purchased an drill/milling machinery that did the job nicely. I still have and use the drill/milling machine in my shop for wood and metal. It cost more but I felt it was worth it and will probably never wear it out or need a larger drill press.
Photo of a Jet, not mine but identical.

[LCHIEN]

Yes, it will tilt. The rack pivots around the horizontal tube just like the vertical rack pivots around the vertical column. On the side of the white "T" there is a black knob to move the rack and pinion, and the black lever is to lock the horizontal tube. When loosened the tube can rotate as well as be driven back and forth. When it rotates the head assembly, motor and all goes with it.

[leehljp]

. . . and the one in the photo doesn’t look like it will tilt either. Drilling with a tilted (angled) drill head just about can’t be done on metal because the bit will walk across the material.

Yes, the specs for it says it does tilt. IF I remember correctly, I did drill in aluminum a time or two. I always started a hole, (like I do with a punch) to get started and then with patience, drill away at an angle - not a clean hole per se, but it worked. BTW, I hate putting washers on tilted bolts and drawing them up with the nut. Angled wood spacers did fair.

[Jim Frye]

Looked at them when I was purchasing a drill press. At the time, with a 12'x12' shop, there just wasn't room for one. The flex and the work to get it truly vertical after tilting also were decision makers. Turns out, I never have had the need for one. The few angled holes I've drilled over the decades were accom\plished just fine on my regular non-tilting drill press. Angling the table with its shop built oversized table and clamps were sufficient. Now the question is: Is there something I didn't do because I didn't have a tilting head drill press, or is it another one of those answers in search of a question?

[leehljp]

Now the question is: Is there something I didn't do because I didn't have a tilting head drill press, or is it another one of those answers in search of a question?

I had a Craftsman 12 inch bandsaw in Japan (and left it there with a friend ) - that band saw head tilted and the table stayed flat/level, not angled when wanting bevel cuts. I now have a more powerful Grizzly 14 inch with the riser, however I don't use it as much as I did the craftsman because I cannot stand a tilting table. With tilting tables you have to deal with keeping everything in the right place with gravity pulling it down while you just simply want to push it forward - meaning you have to deal with two forces from different directions simultaneously. Tilting tables don't do as well with fences in many situations either. So, yes for me, tilting tables keep me from doing a lot that a flat/level table does simply because a flat/level table doesn't have gravity pulling it against it in the cut line. Same with a drill press - with the drill press table at an angle, unless you have the fence lined up front to back or clamped down, the downward push of the drill bit will force it downward the table angle direction, which has to be counteracted mostly with the hands. Clamps are OK unless you have 6 - 8 - 10 or more holes. A flat/level table and angled head such as on a table saw makes a huge difference at this point.

Ever wonder why the table saw is considered so versatile and most popular single machine in wood shops? Because you can make straight and bevel cuts on a level table. Only dealing with forces in a single plane - horizontally, and gravity is your friend, not your enemy as in a beveled table.
I don't think most people think about this when considering the angled/beveled tables on anything but a table saw. My bandsaw I left overseas is sometimes called a ships saw because tilting head bandsaws were used to make the main beam/keel for wooden hulls. They needed the table to stay flat and the head tilted to make it perfect. Imagine trying to make a keel on a tilted table. The forces of gravity would introduce terrible wobbles.

I will grant you - if you never felt the ease of bandsaw cutting or drill press drilling angles on a flat/level table, you won't know that you have missed anything.

I have a nice DeWalt scroll saw, and for all the people that like it, I don't like tilting tables because you have to countermand the downward pull while trying to feed the board front to back - AND trying to keep it in position while the mild vibrations make it want to drift downward on the table at the same time. There are a few scroll saws that have the table that stays level and the head tilts. That is what I really need, but I didn't know that they existed when I got mine. These types cost much more than the DeWalt. Cutting/drilling angles on flat level tables are a whole 'nuther experience. Good Too!

[Carlos]

Like others, I just haven't been in a situation to find such a thing useful. What I do need is to have my DP always be perfectly 90 degrees in all directions from the table, and it can be challenging to get that with the radial.

[Relative]

I have a nice DeWalt scroll saw, and for all the people that like it, I don't like tilting tables because you have to countermand the downward pull while trying to feed the board front to back - AND trying to keep it in position while the mild vibrations make it want to drift downward on the table at the same time. There are a few scroll saws that have the table that stays level and the head tilts. That is what I really need, but I didn't know that they existed when I got mine. These types cost much more than the DeWalt. Cutting/drilling angles on flat level tables are a whole 'nuther experience. Good Too!

Lee, with the lighter weight of a scroll saw and the desire to get back to a flat table, why not rig up a mount that will allow you to tip the table to the angle you want, then tip the saw to bring the table back to level? Shouldn't be too difficult a task for a woodworker?

Mike

[leehljp]

Mike, that has crossed my mind more than once; however, I am the point I would rather make things than jigs. I would rather make enough off of my rarely used DeWalt and buy a tilting head scroll saw; they are a step up in quality anyway. DeWalt is nothing to sneeze at for sure, but on serious scroll saw forums, they are generally spoken of as the best of the bottom tier scroll saws, or middle tier saws at best. I like the Dewalts quality, but I want a tilting head. 🤪