Commercial Craftsman Drill Press

[oldisnew]

Has anyone had any experience with this Craftsman drill press. The nameplate claims it is "Commercial" which I am wondering if that was just a sales gimmick. The guy is asking $200 for it which I thought is a little high. I am torn between buying an older drill press or taking a shot at buying a newer drill press but most of them seem to be imported and hit and mostly miss from a quality perspective. Any thoughts would be appreciated.



I am also looking at this 1 HP Craftsman drill press in the $150 dollar range. Does anyone see an advantage of one over the other?

 

[FJ 432]

No knowledge of that unit however the placard on the side suggests that you have pulleys inside that offers various speeds.

Looks clean, so one vote to go see the unit and possibly buy.

 

[ex_nihilo]

My step dad has one that looks very similar, except it says "Contractor". It is 2hp with 12 speeds and a 3/4" chuck. If that's what the first one is, I'd go for it. The thing is a beast.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

 

[Provincial]

The "Commercial" drill press appears to be the standard Craftsman design from the 1970's, but with a larger table incorporating T-slots. In that generation, the drive belts were a very small cross-section Gates V-belt that allowed twice as many speed options. I don't know if the Commercial series used the small belts. I have a standard model from that time period that I bought new in 1973. I have never had a problem with belt slipping, and I finally replaced the belt in 2009! I don't drill real large holes, but have drilled 5/8" diameter in mild steel with it.

The big problem with these drill presses is that there is no table raise/lower mechanism. You have to do it by brute force, and that larger table will make it a real effort! Some have used a counterweight in the column with a cable and pulley to attach it to the table.

If that one has a table raising mechanism, the price isn't real bad, but still a little high.

 

[marinusdees]

I have that drill press, bought new whenever. It has served me well. It currently sports a 1 hp Baldor PM motor fed by a homemade variable voltage power supply. It has a hand crank raise and lower mechanism bought new from Sears. I added a HF long hydraulic jack, sold to replace the jacks on cherry pickers, to raise and lower the table. It still has the original (small cross section) V belt. That being said, I have a larger (Chicom) drill press, bought at HF fed by a VFD , rarely used. The Craftsman is my go-to press. I am not a commercial shop, nor do I abuse my equipment. I'd pay $200 for one if I needed one.

 

[Davefr]

It's a "no brainer". Get the second one:

- It has a table lift mechanism
- It comes with an Albrecht chuck!!!
- It has the more conventional 3 pulley arrangement vs the rubber band style belt.
- I'm guessing it also has table tilt/rotate.

It might be early Taiwan but I wouldn't worry about it. You could probably sell the Albecht chuck for the price of the DP.

I've had the first one and it's worthless without table lift. (especially since it has the auxiliary bolt on table). Small/quick tweaks to table elevation are a royal PIA!! I also hated the rubber band drive belt that keeps twisting around by itself. The only thing that makes it "commercial" is the 1 HP motor and t-slot table.

 

[exmaxima1]

It's a "no brainer". Get the second one:

- It has a table lift mechanism
- It comes with an Albrecht chuck!!!
- It has the more conventional 3 pulley arrangement vs the rubber band style belt.
- I'm guessing it also has table tilt/rotate.

It might be early Taiwan but I wouldn't worry about it. You could probably sell the Albecht chuck for the price of the DP.

If the x-y vise is included in the deal, $200 might not be too out of line. Regarding the chuck, the black sheen looks like an Albrecht clone (not a real German chuck), but it's still worth about $30 or so--it looks like the chuck on my home drill press. Personally I would not spend $200 for a DP with such a cheap looking open-construction motor, but it could help with negotiating a better price.

 

[Davefr]

If the x-y vise is included in the deal, $200 might not be too out of line. Regarding the chuck, the black sheen looks like an Albrecht clone (not a real German chuck), but it's still worth about $30 or so--it looks like the chuck on my home drill press. Personally I would not spend $200 for a DP with such a cheap looking open-construction motor, but it could help with negotiating a better price.

I agree, that's not a real Albrecht based on the closeup image.

 

[Rileysan]

It's a "no brainer". Get the second one:

- It has a table lift mechanism
- It comes with an Albrecht chuck!!!
- It has the more conventional 3 pulley arrangement vs the rubber band style belt.
- I'm guessing it also has table tilt/rotate.

It might be early Taiwan but I wouldn't worry about it. You could probably sell the Albecht chuck for the price of the DP.

I've had the first one and it's worthless without table lift. (especially since it has the auxiliary bolt on table). Small/quick tweaks to table elevation are a royal PIA!! I also hated the rubber band drive belt that keeps twisting around by itself. The only thing that makes it "commercial" is the 1 HP motor and t-slot table.

The second drill press is from the 90s and was made in China. I bought the 1-1/2 HP version new in 1998 and it has served me well for 20 years, but the HP ratings were exaggerated. I also dislike the base as they are VERY small and the DP can tip quite easily (mine fell over once - now it has a hundred lbs of weight on top of the base). I suspect that all things being equal, the older DP is going to have more power, more options, and last longer. Just my 2 cents.

Brian

 

[Provincial]

It's a "no brainer". Get the second one:

- It has a table lift mechanism
- It comes with an Albrecht chuck!!!
- It has the more conventional 3 pulley arrangement vs the rubber band style belt.
- I'm guessing it also has table tilt/rotate.

It might be early Taiwan but I wouldn't worry about it. You could probably sell the Albecht chuck for the price of the DP.

I've had the first one and it's worthless without table lift. (especially since it has the auxiliary bolt on table). Small/quick tweaks to table elevation are a royal PIA!! I also hated the rubber band drive belt that keeps twisting around by itself. The only thing that makes it "commercial" is the 1 HP motor and t-slot table.

If the belt is twisting, it is worn out. That is the reason I replaced the belt on mine, even though it looked sort of OK.

 

[Davefr]

If the belt is twisting, it is worn out. That is the reason I replaced the belt on mine, even though it looked sort of OK.

It did that from when it was brand new even after aligning pulleys. Maybe the belt was defective from the factory or just too small for the torque.

 

[JZiggy]

I have one like the older style which should be mid 70's or later. It's nicely built and the "commercial" style ones have a slit in the front of the head casting. There are two bolts you can use to tweak the shape of the casting to get a perfect fit with the quill as it wears. With most drill presses if the quill gets sloppy then that's kind of it.

I don't love the thin belt either but it gives you a nice range of speeds and seems to work fine.

Agreed that a table lift is a requirement! The crank style aftermarket ones are hard to find but do show up. I've picked up a half dozen over the last few years.

 

[WWShop]

I had a similar DP for a while but always hated that thin belt.