Craftsman Drill Press

[FrankLee]

Re: The Classic Craftsman 100/150 Drill Press

SUCCESS!!!!
I chipped away enough paint around the pawl nut to get some WD40 into the pawl. I was just barely able to pull the pawl knob to tighten the spring up. I removed the bumper and will install an oring on the quill. Once I sprayed some WD40 down the spline shaft at the top of the head, MAN did that loosen things up. Feels brand new now (feels like 1938). Back to drilling holes.
Thanks for your help & guidance. If I get a break in the action, I may just restore it.
Two questions:
1: I found the serial number 101-03662. Could this number verify year of mfg?
2: Any idea what the original color was????

Good news!

101.03662 would be the model number. If you haven't discovered it already, you can find an manuals and photos on that vintage machines website.

On repainted machines, especially those that were not dismantled prior to re-painting, you can usually find remnants of original paint. In your case, with a flashlight, you may be able to look inside the pulley guard from the rear.

You could also remove the chrome spindle guard from the top and remove the pulley guard. There's just the one bolt in front. You'll need to lower the quill to the bottom to clear the guard from the spindle. The newer paint may make it somewhat difficult to pull the guard off. Nice clean original paint should be seen where the guard is wrapped around the front of the head frame casting.

Original paint is likely blue or gray.

​

 

[FrankLee]

Dp#79, Jig Saw, 115.6962 Motor

2/26/2020

I picked up this trio yesterday.

The tiny drill press, dp#79, is a Dunlap 103.21720. I'm not sure I should even count it. The quill feed mechanism is missing and presumably broken. I guess I got it out of curiosity.

The jig saw is a model 103.23151 and very rusty. It's Dayton 3/4 hp motor was connected to a rather nice drum switch. It was kind of an odd set-up for a jig saw.

The motor is a 1/2 hp 1750 rpm model 115.6962. It is nasty, but I'm determined to refurbish it.

For a $12 investment total, I think I should do OK.

​

2/26/2020

Banned on o w w m again. LoL!




2/27/2020

The motor is apart and the cast iron somewhat de-rusted. The center band is fubar and the badge is barely legible. Both shaft ends on the original rotor are badly rusted and scarred. One of the springs on the centrifugal switch is broken. Fortunately, I've got a good spare rotor to replace the original.

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3/14/2020

As I said above, the center band from this motor is unusable. I want to use aluminum for a replacement, but a small 6" x 24" piece of aluminum from HD was too much for me, so I was looking for other options. I finally found a larger 24" x 72" roll of textured aluminum at an estate sale for CHEAP!

I cut a piece to fit, primed and painted it with Rustoleum Hammered Gray. This will work well and look good with the cast iron pieces painted Satin Black.

​

I won't be mounting the badge on the new band. It looks so bad, I think I'll just attach it to the bottom plate under the base.




3/27/2020

Technically, it was too cold to spray paint outside. It was sunny, so I did anyway.

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4/2/2020

Top coats are complete.

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4/4/2020

I assembled the motor enough to perform a bench test. It still needs a new cord, but it runs nicely!

​

 

[Pagliuca]

Looks like a great find. I'm interested to see how the motor turns out. Looks fun.

 

[FrankLee]

Looks like a great find. I'm interested to see how the motor turns out. Looks fun.

Thanks. I can't believe how well that cast iron cleaned up already. It hardly seems possible that those are the same parts as in the original picture. I didn't think there was any original paint remaining.

After Grez-Off, that was about a 12 hour soak in citric acid. I like citric acid much better than vinegar or evaporust.

 

[whateg01]

Well, I've joined the club, having picked up my first 100 last night. It's been sitting outside, but the quill moves, the spindle spins, the motor spins. Everything is a little stiff, but I'll take it apart and clean it up. Feels like a bunch of grease and grime in everything, not gritty, so hopefully that **** has done a good job of keeping any water out.

I had originally thought this might replace my "big" drill press, but now I am thinking it may become the small drill press which I use mostly for pilot holes and the like, leaving the bigger drill press setup for slower spindle speeds for bigger drills.

Somebody has added a jackshaft and pulleys to reduce the spindle speed. I'd like to set up something similar to the Vari-slo attachment, but for now, since this is going to be the fast drill press, I may just remove what's there and put it back to original. There's no way to tighten the first belt here. It looks like they just used washers to space the jackshaft away from the motor until the belt was tight.

Funny thing, though. I drive a Cadillac SRX as my daily driver. I didn't want to deal with unloading or unhooking the trailer from the truck, so I took the car. I pulled up and I guess the seller thought I would be in a truck. He looked at it and asked me where I was going to put the drill press. Don't worry, it'll fit. And it did.

Dave

 

[FrankLee]

Well, I've joined the club, having picked up my first 100 last night. It's been sitting outside, but the quill moves, the spindle spins, the motor spins. Everything is a little stiff, but I'll take it apart and clean it up. Feels like a bunch of grease and grime in everything, not gritty, so hopefully that **** has done a good job of keeping any water out.

I had originally thought this might replace my "big" drill press, but now I am thinking it may become the small drill press which I use mostly for pilot holes and the like, leaving the bigger drill press setup for slower spindle speeds for bigger drills.

Somebody has added a jackshaft and pulleys to reduce the spindle speed. I'd like to set up something similar to the Vari-slo attachment, but for now, since this is going to be the fast drill press, I may just remove what's there and put it back to original. There's no way to tighten the first belt here. It looks like they just used washers to space the jackshaft away from the motor until the belt was tight.

Funny thing, though. I drive a Cadillac SRX as my daily driver. I didn't want to deal with unloading or unhooking the trailer from the truck, so I took the car. I pulled up and I guess the seller thought I would be in a truck. He looked at it and asked me where I was going to put the drill press. Don't worry, it'll fit. And it did.

Dave

Welcome to the club, Dave! I'm glad to see another one will be rescued from decay. Keep us informed on your journey.

 

[whateg01]

I have done a little searching, but apparently not enough. I don't even really know what to search for, I guess. But on other drill presses, I see the rods that slide into the casting are fixed at the motor plate end. Mine has slotted rods and the motor plate can tilt on it. What is the reason for that?

Dave

 

[whateg01]

Nevermind. I don't know why I didn't see the section on the hinged motor plate before, but I found it now. I'm going to do some reading...

 

[faultymechanics]

Looking for some guidance. I've been trying to find a quill/spring return knob for my 103.0303 Flying Head drill press and have had a ton of trouble.

Today I may have found one (twice the cost of my drill press) but I'm not 100% sure it will work with my drill press.

I definitely need the type of knob with the spring IN the knob, and the opening on the press head for the knob has a pin which SHOULD fit in one of these slots, however, I've never seen the proper part, so I don't know 100% that this will work.


Any help would be great, I just want function. Having no return spring stinks!

 

[FrankLee]

I have done a little searching, but apparently not enough. I don't even really know what to search for, I guess. But on other drill presses, I see the rods that slide into the casting are fixed at the motor plate end. Mine has slotted rods and the motor plate can tilt on it. What is the reason for that?

Dave

Nevermind. I don't know why I didn't see the section on the hinged motor plate before, but I found it now. I'm going to do some reading...

I'm glad you found the info you needed. Your machine is a late 100 with several updated features.

Looking for some guidance. I've been trying to find a quill/spring return knob for my 103.0303 Flying Head drill press and have had a ton of trouble.

Today I may have found one (twice the cost of my drill press) but I'm not 100% sure it will work with my drill press.

I definitely need the type of knob with the spring IN the knob, and the opening on the press head for the knob has a pin which SHOULD fit in one of these slots, however, I've never seen the proper part, so I don't know 100% that this will work.


Any help would be great, I just want function. Having no return spring stinks!

I'm not familiar enough with those King-Seeley models to answer your question.

Several members here have that model and hopefully, someone will come along soon with the answer. I believe model 103.0305 is very similar, so include that model in your searching.

 

[FrankLee]

dp#80

Yesterday, I brought home dp#80. This one is a 12¼" Dunlap model 103.23621.

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3/1/2020

Small parts are clean.

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3/2/2020

Cast iron parts are clean and unit is assembled.

​

3/11/2020

Refurb complete.

​

 

[FrankLee]

Re: The Classic Craftsman 100/150 Drill Press

#80, Holy cow! I envy your track record and accomplishment. I'm hopeful my impending retirement will enable me the opportunity to do something similar with my time.

Yeah, it hardly seems possible.

There were also a couple not in my count; my original 12¼" Dunlap I had since the early '90s that belonged to my father, and a small Duro Metal Products dp. I gifted that Dunlap to my brother several years ago and parted the Duro early on.

My dad's Dunlap was an interesting machine. The original column was replaced with a ~40" very thick-walled column. Growing up, my dad's basement workshop spanned nearly the entire width of the house. He mounted the base of the dp up-side-down from the I-beam in the basement and hung the rest of the dp from the base.

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[Rileysan]

This DP popped up on OfferUp Thursday evening and thanks to a text from Smokeshow, I was able to procure a late 50s Heritage logo Power Bronze DP100 with a middle pulley for $125.

I spent ~12 hours this weekend cleaning it up (cleaning the column sucked) with scotch-brite pads & WD-40, a wire wheel, and 400 grit emery cloth.

I added a table lift taken from another DP100 I bought last year (which proved to be a hybrid, so I don't mind robbing parts). I also had to steal a pulley from the motor on the other DP because the top of the pulley was broken on this DP.

I also took the rigid motor plate from the other DP because I dislike the hinged motor plate this one came with. I hope that was a short-lived option as it was terribly designed.

The motor needs a new switch and pigtail so I'll bring it in to work this week and bribe one of our electricians to work on it.

The first picture is where I left off, this evening.

Brian

 

[paulm12]

FrankLee: I see you have picked up a few Dunlap machines recently. What is your latest opinion on them? Good users still? Just wondering.

tx

 

[FrankLee]

This DP popped up on OfferUp Thursday evening and thanks to a text from Smokeshow, I was able to procure a late 50s Heritage logo Power Bronze DP100 with a middle pulley for $125.

I spent ~12 hours this weekend cleaning it up (cleaning the column sucked) with scotch-brite pads & WD-40, a wire wheel, and 400 grit emery cloth.

I added a table lift taken from another DP100 I bought last year (which proved to be a hybrid, so I don't mind robbing parts). I also had to steal a pulley from the motor on the other DP because the top of the pulley was broken on this DP.

I also took the rigid motor plate from the other DP because I dislike the hinged motor plate this one came with. I hope that was a short-lived option as it was terribly designed.

The motor needs a new switch and pigtail so I'll bring it in to work this week and bribe one of our electricians to work on it.

The first picture is where I left off, this evening.

Brian

Looking good!

It's very nice to have a stash of spare parts to fall back on. I often wish I would have saved some parts I sold on ebay, but you never know what you'll need.

 

[FrankLee]

FrankLee: I see you have picked up a few Dunlap machines recently. What is your latest opinion on them? Good users still? Just wondering.

tx

Yes, if they're in good shape, they do the job. Many of the Dunlap machines have sleeve bearings. I used my dad's Dunlap 12¼" drill press, DP#0, for decades before I realized run-out was quite poor.

DP#80 seems nice and tight, has nice original paint, and I believe I had a buyer before I ever found it. I should be finishing that up this week.

I'm still not sure why I bought that tiny DP#79, but it's cute.

Dunlap motors are pretty good. I sold a very nice 1/4 HP that I could use right now.

 

[whateg01]

Well, I got the motor apart and the bearings are pretty rusted and gritty. The interior wiring is all in need of replacement. I do have wire for that from another motor repair. But, the cap is probably shot, too. All in all, the motor is in pretty bad shape. It's not the same color as the rest of the drill press, so I doubt it's original, so I don't feel bad about considering putting one of my 3ph motors on it with a VFD. I am a little hesitant to put the smallest of them on it, though due to it being a 1-1/2 hp. The little 5/8" diameter spindle seems a little puny for that much power.

I also noticed once the quill was out, that the chuck has some runout. I took the chuck off and put the spindle in the lathe and it looks like the spindle has a bend in it right above the taper. I need to set it up a little better to be sure, which I'll do when I get back home from this work trip. I hate to put a lot of money into repair parts that I don't already have, so I am going to try either straightening it in the press or using heat/cold to shrink the stretched side. Heat will be slower, which is probably a good thing, but I can control it pretty will on the press, too.

Dave

 

[FrankLee]

Dp#81

It looks like that machine spent a long time outdoors, so it's not surprising that the motor is in such bad shape.

It's nice that you have other motor options and the means and expertise to straighten the spindle.







3/5/2020

DP#81 is a rather uncommon floor standing 13½" Craftsman 80, model 103.21770. This one came from Ypsilanti, MI, a 120 mile round trip.

The Craftsman 80 floor standers were shown only in the '54 to '57 catalogs.

​

I got the head frame dismantled this afternoon.

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There were the several typical issues:

• both retaining screws were broken
  
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• the feed stop bracket was deformed due to over-tightening while not fully seated
  
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• the set screw in the spindle collar was tightened in multiple incorrect locations
  
  ​

and a couple not so typical issues:

• the spindle collar, rubber washer and steel washer were installed up-side-down
  
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• the original Jacobs chuck was replaced with a Supreme Superhold chuck
  
  ​

3/6/2020

I figured out why the spindle collar was up-side-down.

A previous owner had the chuck taper re-turned/repaired; presumably because the spindle was bent. Because the taper end of the spindle was shortened by ~1/8", the thrust collar had to be moved up the spindle by the same ~1/8". The spring pin was removed from the thrust collar/spindle. The spring pin hole in the thrust collar was drilled and tapped for two 1/4-20 set screws. Two new shallow holes were drilled into the spindle for the tips of the set screws.

​

It was a clever fix, but it wasn't complete. The spindle collar at the top of the quill was reinstalled with the taper against the inner race of upper bearing... essentially without the rubber and steel washers.

I drilled a new shallow hole near the top of the quill on the opposite spindle from the original hole. I then reinstalled the spindle collar with the washers in the correct locations to get proper bearing pre-load.

​

I cleaned and reassembled the quill, spindle and bearings. Run-out measured 0.002. I'll take it!




3/7/2020

I got a lot done today. The pinion, spring, feed handle assembly and the spindle pulley assembly were cleaned.

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The head frame was reassembled.

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3/12/2020

Refurb complete. DP#81 was converted to a bench model, 103.23640.

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[Bill C]

I’m picking up a 100 floor standing unit tomorrow. It has a crack in the head (see attached photo) but the price reflects that). Do you think this crack will actually be a problem in use?
I’m personally buying it only for the floor standing base/column and multi-speed center pulley. My current 100 is a fully refurbished benchtop that I’d like to convert to floor standing. My plan is to then resell a complete benchtop drill press. I’m just curious what y’all think about this crack and it’s location.

 

[Reversepolarity]

Re: The Classic Craftsman 100/150 Drill Press

Braze it


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[whateg01]

As I disassembled mine, I was impressed by the fact that they designed them to use split cotters everywhere a cylinder needed to be fixed instead of the more common set screws used today. I've always liked split cotters for things like that.

Dave

 

[FrankLee]

I’m picking up a 100 floor standing unit tomorrow. It has a crack in the head (see attached photo) but the price reflects that). Do you think this crack will actually be a problem in use?
I’m personally buying it only for the floor standing base/column and multi-speed center pulley. My current 100 is a fully refurbished benchtop that I’d like to convert to floor standing. My plan is to then resell a complete benchtop drill press. I’m just curious what y’all think about this crack and it’s location.

It's difficult to see the direction of the crack. It doesn't look like it's straight through. Check for additional cracks at the casting seams at the column bores.
IMO, if that's the only crack, it should not affect use.

 

[FrankLee]

As I disassembled mine, I was impressed by the fact that they designed them to use split cotters everywhere a cylinder needed to be fixed instead of the more common set screws used today. I've always liked split cotters for things like that.

Dave

IMO, the spring pins made for easier assembly with fewer steps. Dismantling is often more difficult and sometimes those pins are in blind holes.

 

[whateg01]

I did notice that the roll pin in the collar at the bottom of the spindle is in a blind hole. I'm going to try to run a carbide end mill through it.

 

[ClappedOutBport]

Most cracks develop at areas of greatest stress, and failure to fix tends to lead to propagation. I'm a brazer, personally.

 

[FrankLee]

I did notice that the roll pin in the collar at the bottom of the spindle is in a blind hole. I'm going to try to run a carbide end mill through it.

I've never removed a thrust collar for a refurb. It's easy enough to clean. I think the only reason get it off would be to repair the spindle.

 

[whateg01]

I've never removed a thrust collar for a refurb. It's easy enough to clean. I think the only reason get it off would be to repair the spindle.

Recall that I believe the spindle is bent near the top of the taper, so I need to remove that collar to get a better picture of it.

 

[sheltonfilms]

Re: The Classic Craftsman 100/150 Drill Press

Because bent spindles are being mentioned I just wanted to throw out this awesome technique by Keith Finner on straightening a shaft with a very methodical process:

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FrankLee]

Recall that I believe the spindle is bent near the top of the taper, so I need to remove that collar to get a better picture of it.

OMG... I knew that and already forgot.
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=8373511

 

[Enigma]

Recall that I believe the spindle is bent near the top of the taper, so I need to remove that collar to get a better picture of it.

Im just curious how does a spindle get bent?

 

[FrankLee]

Im just curious how does a spindle get bent?

It can bend when failing to clamp work and the drill bit grabs and spins it.

 

[whateg01]

Re: The Classic Craftsman 100/150 Drill Press

Because bent spindles are being mentioned I just wanted to throw out this awesome technique by Keith Finner on straightening a shaft with a very methodical process:

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That's the heat shrinking I was referring to. Bear in mind, the shaft straightening he does is small amounts over long distances typically. It's a slow process.

 

[Rileysan]

I’m picking up a 100 floor standing unit tomorrow. It has a crack in the head (see attached photo) but the price reflects that). Do you think this crack will actually be a problem in use?
I’m personally buying it only for the floor standing base/column and multi-speed center pulley. My current 100 is a fully refurbished benchtop that I’d like to convert to floor standing. My plan is to then resell a complete benchtop drill press. I’m just curious what y’all think about this crack and it’s location.

Bill, I've had this DP on my radar for a couple days, but didn't have time for it. After you finish your conversion, I'd be interested in the remnants for parts - especially if you don't wanna fuss with repairing that head. Smokeshow and I both have need of parts off that one.

Brian

 

[fasteddie313]

I have had my variable speed Cman DP for a while now, and have added an XY vice..

I have beat the **** out of it milling things and running adjustable fly cutters on it etc..

It will even work kinda good as a surface grinder if you can chuck up your piece and put an angle grinder in the XY vice.. Like fitting a TB shaft to mate with a TSP..


Cman DP is still a beast and still going strong!!!
Badass DP.. Better than anything sold at the homegamer shops today..

Vari-Slow or some such name for the variable speed I forget..
I like how the belts will slip when you feed her hard, rather than it just stopping up the motor completely..

I have also used it to drill out broken studs, and then as a tapping jig to clean out those holes with a tap in the chuck and the chuck key as a leverage wrench...
Darn good way of keeping a flat plane while tapping a hole..

Say you have 2/4 flange bolts broken off in a cast iron WG..
Chuck up one of the remaining bolts to put the piece on plane..
Match the table to it and clamp it good..
Swing the table and XY to the broken ones..
Then you can drill out the broken ones perfectly straight, and then without changing the table at all, put a tap in the chuck and chase the old holes perfectly straight with hand power only, just as a jig..

It has so many uses!!

Check out this thing I built/machined mainly on my old Cman DP...

And that was 2017 so yeah... I have been beating on it a long time..


LMK when this thing is worth $2,500 and maybe then I'll stop using it hard..

 

[Bill C]

Well I got DP#2. The one I posted about earlier with the cracked head frame. With the exception of the crack in the head, it’s pretty solid. The power cord appears original and needs replacement. The quill return is slow despite being adequately tensioned (likely just gummed up and needs a thorough clean + lube). The thing came apart for transport with ease.... even the column came right out of the base without a fight. I spied a multi-speed pulley in the photos listed by the seller, which was the main reason for my interest.
I paid $70 for it, mostly for the multi-speed middle pulley. I also had been wanting to convert my benchtop 100 into a floor standing unit. So for $70, I couldn’t pass it up.
I think the plan will be to swap the stuff I need off this unit over to my restored benchtop and then pass the rest of it off to Rileysan and Smokeshow as they are also in need of some stuff. Seems like a win-win for everybody.
Here are some photos:

Little Arc of a Shame

No rust on the base!

The multi speed assembly is in good shape. It spins smoothly. It looks like somebody got tired of the loosening set-screw that’s holds the pulley shaft to the sleeve and they welded it together. It’s gonna make servicing or replacing the bearings a total PITA... but for now I’m ok with it.

 

[FrankLee]

Well I got DP#2. The one I posted about earlier with the cracked head frame. With the exception of the crack in the head, it’s pretty solid. The power cord appears original and needs replacement. The quill return is slow despite being adequately tensioned (likely just gummed up and needs a thorough clean + lube). The thing came apart for transport with ease.... even the column came right out of the base without a fight. I spied a multi-speed pulley in the photos listed by the seller, which was the main reason for my interest.
I paid $70 for it, mostly for the multi-speed middle pulley. I also had been wanting to convert my benchtop 100 into a floor standing unit. So for $70, I couldn’t pass it up.
I think the plan will be to swap the stuff I need off this unit over to my restored benchtop and then pass the rest of it off to Rileysan and Smokeshow as they are also in need of some stuff. Seems like a win-win for everybody.
Here are some photos:


Little Arc of a Shame


No rust on the base!


The multi speed assembly is in good shape. It spins smoothly. It looks like somebody got tired of the loosening set-screw that’s holds the pulley shaft to the sleeve and they welded it together. It’s gonna make servicing or replacing the bearings a total PITA... but for now I’m ok with it.

Amazing deal, Bill!

Too bad that head frame is cracked, but three (or more) other drill presses will live on.

Hopefully, that weld/braze on the MSA can be ground/sanded/milled off to make it serviceable again.

 

[Bill C]

Hopefully, that weld/braze on the MSA can be ground/sanded/milled off to make it serviceable again.

I’m not too worried about it. Perfectly useable right now as the bearings feel pretty good. I figure the tack weld kinda solves one problem (loosening set screw) but creates a another. If and when I need to service the unit, I will figure out the weld issue. It’s just a small tack weld, so it shouldn’t be too hard. For now though, I’ll leave well enough alone.

 

[whateg01]

Got a little farther on my machine last night. Turned a fixture to press the bearings out into. That worked a treat. The quill is soaking now, so I'll get it reassembled this afternoon probably.

The big news is that the spindle is not bent. It's cracked. I've no idea what somebody did to it to crack it, but I'd guess it involved a hammer. I don't know if this is something that gets parted out occasionally, but I will probably check out prices of 1045 on McMaster and just machine a new spindle. That's not how I had hoped this would go, but in some ways, it is easier than straightening a bent shaft.

Dave

 

[FrankLee]

Got a little farther on my machine last night. Turned a fixture to press the bearings out into. That worked a treat. The quill is soaking now, so I'll get it reassembled this afternoon probably.

The big news is that the spindle is not bent. It's cracked. I've no idea what somebody did to it to crack it, but I'd guess it involved a hammer. I don't know if this is something that gets parted out occasionally, but I will probably check out prices of 1045 on McMaster and just machine a new spindle. That's not how I had hoped this would go, but in some ways, it is easier than straightening a bent shaft.

Dave

Wow, that's another first!

Can you weld, turn and adjust the taper?

 

[whateg01]

Wow, that's another first!

Can you weld, turn and adjust the taper?

Do we know what alloy the spindle would have been? If it's just mild steel, then yeah, maybe I could do that. I was surprised the splines were just cut with a square tool on probably a horizontal mill.

Dave