Drill Press - Bench Top vs. Floor Standing?

[evintho]

The serial # is on the tag on the base. That'll tell you exactly what it is.
Waiting for pics!

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Evintho - No wonder this press was cheaper than yours, it's FUGLY!

I almost changed my mind and didn't buy it. I think the only reason I did was to save it from the junk man because this owner was never going to even clean it, much less restore it. He was a total slob. His house showed it, his yard showed it and his truck showed it.

Note the added-by-an-idiot electrical box screwed into the side and ne of the handles missing and replaced with a length of allthread rod! Also the broken drill bit wedged into the chuck. The previous owner didn't have a 1/2" chuck key so I'll pick one up.

I wet the whole thing down with heavy duty degreaser, scrubbed with it a brush and hit it with my pressure washer - mistake - I messed up the Craftsman logo. I'm gonna have to find a way to repair it or replace it. I could just take it off but it kinda "makes" the Art Deco look.

I'm certain Sears no longer sells parts for these oldies, do they? Oh and the Model No. on the tag on the base plate is:103.24531. Anyone know where I can find a key to the number?

 

[NRChopshop]

i have the same one

 

[jmh21586]

http://www.owwm.com/MfgIndex/pubdetail.aspx?id=1519

 

[jmh21586]

Craftsman OEM manufacturers by prefix.
http://www.owwm.com/Craftsman/manufacturers.aspx?sort=1

 

[jmh21586]

As of 2008 Some parts are avalable from sears.

These manuals are a very close fit for this drill press.
Many of the parts are the same!

103.23130
103.24521 103.24531
103.24821

 

[jmh21586]

Restoration thread.

http://www.kudzupatch.com/woodshop/drillpress/

 

[crashbumper]

If that logo was painted on a piece of aluminum, you could make a vinyl sticker to cover it, then just trim around the edges.

If I had the piece here I could scan it and make a sticker.

That thing is so f'ing cool!

What taper is the chuck? I have the original Victor 1/2" I took off mine. I cleaned it up and it's still good. It's a JT33 taper, in case you need one to get the thing up and running.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Thanks everyone for the good words and the links. I found the Owner's Manual and Parts List/Exploded View already but that restoration thread is encouraging. The one being restored is a little different than mine but the one standing next to at the end is exactly like mine.

Crash - I have a friend who is a professional printer. He should be able to make a sticker; I hope! I'd have to carefully take the aluminum off, press it flat and then photograph it or scan it? What do I do to address the part I messed up? Use Photoshop to repair it graphically? Any advice about that appreciated.

Also, I know nothing about rivets except pop rivets. I assume I have to grind off the rivet head or drill them out? Where do I get a solid head rivet to replace them and how do I clinch the rivet when I try to replace the tags

P.S. What are your color opinions? My original color and Evintho's looks to be a light metallic beige or even a mild gold. I kinda like it. Crash's restoration had me rev'd up for red, but I think that may be out of character with the sort of 50's Rocket-ish theme design of it. I don't want machine gray either. Ideas?

 

[crashbumper]

Crash - I have a friend who is a professional printer. He should be able to make a sticker; I hope! I'd have to carefully take the aluminum off, press it flat and then photograph it or scan it? What do I do to address the part I messed up? Use Photoshop to repair it graphically? Any advice about that appreciated.

Also, I know nothing about rivets except pop rivets. I assume I have to grind off the rivet head or drill them out? Where do I get a solid head rivet to replace them and how do I clinch the rivet when I try to replace the tags?

I made custom graphics for my daughters barbie power wheel by placing the stickers on paper, then scanning it into the computer to make my own template. Similarly, you could use something like black construction paper or posterboard to make a template of that logo, then scan it to provide a template (or scan it in multiple pieces, then edit them together like a panoramic). From there it's a pretty basic design. Take a picture dead on from the front and sides, preferably having the camera on a tripod and back 5-10ft and zooming in (limits distortion). Measure out the stripe spacing and thickness. Couple of lines and the craftsman logo. Would be better suited for Illustrator than Photoshop. Illustrator (and similar drawing programs) are better suited to logo/design work of this nature.

The rivets on mine were easily removed by placing a putty knife under the nameplate and wiggling back and forth; they came right out. Not sure if this is indicative of most small rivets or because of the import nature of my model.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

i have the same one

So, let's see it!

Has it worked fine for you? What do you generally use it for?

 

[jmh21586]

P.S. What are your color opinions?

Teal or goldish brown.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Hmmm...teal, huh? I wonder if I could find a rattle can in a hammer tone teal to try it out and see if I like it? For that matter, I am wondering who has the best selection of spray paint for color shopping? I am thinking Home Depot. I've not seen any other store that has more!

 

[jmh21586]

Yep, IMO nothing says art deco more than teal.

 

[Todd.Brock]

There is a Rust Oleum Hammer tone that is similar to Wilton Blue'ish green ish. Its called Verde Green. I intend to bring a Wilton back to life with it sometime soon. check out their website.

 

[evintho]

Nice score Dan! Yeah, it's kinda grundgy but so's mine! The big question is...........how does it work?! Does it run smoothly? Any wobble in the quill? Bearing noise? Everything that's cosmetically wrong with your unit can be fixed. Remember, it's a tool to be used. It doesn't have to look perfect! The Craftsman logo on my face plate is somewhat faded. I'd like to see how you're going to handle yours then maybe I can copy it! I also want to incorporate a speed reducing pulley into mine. I've got some ideas and will post them when it's done.

I began working on it last night. I decided to attack the main post first. It was very rusty. I initially was going to use a plastic rain gutter, capped on both ends, fill it with Evapo-Rust and submerge the post in it. I found out it would take at least 2 gallons to fill it up and I didn't want to spend $40 on Evapo-Rust! What I wound up doing was sanding all the rust off. I clamped it to a 2x4 and hit it with 150 grit on my DA sander. Followed that up with 240 grit to remove any scratches and then covered the whole thing with a light coat of oil to prevent rust. Came out great!

Here it is mostly sanded.............

Here it is finished.................

Next, I started on the crossvise that came with it. Disassembled and degreased. Sand blasting is next.

 

[crashbumper]

If one of y'alls gets me some pictures of the logo and some dimensions I can make a file which you can take to any sign shop to have printed.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Evintho,
Nice, nice work so far. But I'm jealous, here's why:

I began working on mine today. One thing led to another and I polished the chuck with emery cloth in 50, 80 and 150 grit. With such dramatic results I decided to try out the new polish I had just bought. It made the chuck look almost better than new. I cleaned up the cast portion of the table with a wire wheel, and then decided to go ahead and take it all apart.

That's when I found THE CRACK Its bad enough that I didn't want to try to remove the post from the base for fear I'd break the thing completely. I know its possible to weld cast iron but I'm not sure its worth the cost. I've also decided to let go of the idea of powder coating- not sure it's worth it now. I'm going to rattle can it and see how it looks.

I think I just got so excited about finding such a good deal on a cool drill press and I was paying attention to it spinning smoothly, noticing the missing handle and the lame electric box, that I didn't check the rest of it out well enough.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

P.S. to Evintho - How the heck do you remove the post from the base anyway? I took the small squarehead bolt out of the base and tried to twist it off - no friggin' way! Next I thought about beating on it some with a rubber mallet...that's when I stopped.

If I COULD get it off without breaking the casting I might have a contact who knows an especially good structural welder. But cast iron? I don't know.

 

[evintho]

P.S. to Evintho - How the heck do you remove the post from the base anyway? I took the small squarehead bolt out of the base and tried to twist it off - no friggin' way! Next I thought about beating on it some with a rubber mallet...that's when I stopped.

If I COULD get it off without breaking the casting I might have a contact who knows an especially good structural welder. But cast iron? I don't know.

Mine was a bear to remove also! The head came off fairly easily. The tray and base were another matter all together! I basically soaked it with PB Blaster, pounded on it with a deadblow hammer, soaked it again and let it sit overnight. Came back the next day, soaked and pounded on it again. It finally came off, albeit slowly!

 

[Stargeezer]

You can weld cast iron using a brazing rod. I had it done recently on a part for a big industrial bench grinder that had broken slotted arm. I talked to two welders and each said no worries. Just bring the part in and I'll braze it. It is no big deal really-and it was done quicly at no prmium cost or anything. Should not cost very much to braze it and then you can file it to contour yourself and then paint it.

 

[crashbumper]

If I COULD get it off without breaking the casting I might have a contact who knows an especially good structural welder. But cast iron? I don't know.

The guys at work have told me they just heat up the part, weld it and keep it insulated in an old c-man toolbox to let it cool slowly. No cracks, no problem.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Evintho,
A dead blow hammer?! If I did that I'd have 3 or 4 pieces!

So I was right?...there are no fasteners other than that one squarehead? Mostly its just the weight, gravity (& rust) that hold the pole into the base? I wasn't sure. Same with the head unit. I can see how to remove the motor, but not the head assembly - any hints appreciated. Good idea to soak everything down with PB. I'll go outside and give it a good soak tonight.

Stargeezer,
I seem to remember hearing that to actually WELD (not braze) cast iron you have to heat up the whole casting...not sure to what temp?...I wanna say about 400 degrees? Did the guy that brazed yours, preheat it? I'm gonna make some calls about it tomorrow.

Crashburn - Logo: the rivets are NOT coming off with prying. I also tried drilling them out...no way. They're hard as rock. I thought about grinding the heads off but that still leaves me with the rivet in the hole. Another (cheap) idea after removing the original is to strip/polish the parent aluminum from the original tag, use white/black pinstripe tape to duplicate the horizontal stripes & lines around the Craftsman name. Then go over to Sears and nose around to see if there is a good label on a cheap tool I can cannibalize from.

 

[Stargeezer]

Stargeezer,
I seem to remember hearing that to actually WELD (not braze) cast iron you have to heat up the whole casting...not sure to what temp?...I wanna say about 400 degrees? Did the guy that brazed yours, preheat it? I'm gonna make some calls about it tomorrow.

Dan, both of my welders wanted to use a special Silver Solder braze rod which had the flux right in the rod. Heat it up with a torch and solder/braze/weld (whatever you want to call it) the repair. In my case, the welder did the operation twice-once from each side. This way the silver made its way into the center of the joint. remember-my cast iron part was broken in two. Noah (my welder) said it was stronger than new at the joint. He may have stuck the repaird arm in an oven for a heat treat afterwards. Not sure. After some filing, and fresh paint-you can not tell it was repaired.

I found something on the method here using SSF-6 Silver Solder . Check it out:
Cast Iron Repair using torch and Silver Solder

Hope this helps................
Update:
Just found this two-and helps explain the differences in the repair methods:



Cast Iron Repair Welding Techniques - Cast-Iron Repairs
Before considering a weld method, understand that there are also other means for repairing iron. In some cases, a fuming bronze (brazing) technique will bring a broken casting back into shape without the extreme heat of welding. This method is common in field repairs of crude iron pipe and fittings like those used in low-pressure agricultural irrigation. Bronze filler, used in an oxyacetylene brazing process, is available to higher-tensile strengths. This will work for iron repairs on parts not subject to high load stresses.

A technique often overlooked is the use of silver brazing. This is sometimes called "silver soldering"; however, the material and heat involved is truly brazing. High-tensile-strength silver brazing rod and thorough fluxing can produce excellent results on a cast-iron repair. Especially in the case of a properly cleaned and fluxed fissure crack, silver brazing may be just the right fix. Silver brazing is commonly used to join high-pressure steel and brass fittings.

Lastly, there is the technique of metal spray or powder welding. Here, a special oxyacetylene torch has a hopper onboard. The hopper carries a formulated metal powder. When the iron reaches the correct temperature, the welder injects powder into the mixing chamber of the torch. At the iron surface, a bond similar to brazing or surface alloying takes place. The filler material has characteristics like the base iron. Powder bonds and builds up like the casting itself--without risk of sloughing or separating at the joining point. Masters of this technique can build new ears on broken transmission or engine block flanges. The technique has gained popularity as a sensible repair for cracked cylinder heads. After machining, a powder metal spray repair is often untraceable.

The repair at hand is a power steering gear casting with hairline fatigue cracks. Welding will require careful preparation and the correct filler rod. The welding method is TIG (GTAW), and the welder of choice is an air-cooled machine, such as a Miller or HTP. Note the steps carefully, and decide whether your projects can benefit from cast-iron restoration!

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Thank you, it helps a lot.
I appreciate all the good advice. Under the base there are webs integral to the casting. Two of these are cracked too which tells me the crack is severe.

If I get it welded/brazed, I'll post pictures.

 

[D.J.]

Daninpasadenia: Could you not put in water to raise the level of the parts cleaner fluid to the proper level so that it ***** the cleaner off the top and then have a dip tube design that drains down low into the water to let the contaminates filter thru the water? This is how the parts cleaner in our shop at work was with the last supplier. Can't remember who the servicer was! This will only work with non water soluable solvents. this would cut down on the cost of using your parts washer! Just my $.02 D.J.
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Gnosticism dicussion

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

DJ,
We've been talking about drill presses so long I forgot we wee ever talking about a parts washer!

Are you saying add water to a parts washer so the solvent sits on top of the water...to minimize the amount of solvent I'd need? If so, that sounds kinda odd.

I had never intended to use solvent anyway - mostly due to the fire danger and because I don't work on anything TOO heavily encrusted anyway. I'm still thinking of Zeb, Purple Power or Heavy Duty Simple Green for most of what I need cleaned.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Evintho,
Ok, I spoke to the best welder we have on the project and he told me to drop it off with him and he'd take care of it - excellent.

I want to remove the head off the press; just give him the base & pole. Is there any trick to removing the head assembly? I didn't see any fasteners that i recognized as holding it on - but there must be something! PLEASE post a picture that shows what I need to remove.

I've already soaked the base plate/pole connection point, but now I'm thinking I may just leave it in place and mask/paint instead of taking a chance on cracking it further by trying to remove it. Opinion?

 

[NRChopshop]

So, let's see it!

Has it worked fine for you? What do you generally use it for?

Ill have to find a photo of it. It works great. It actually came out of the Sign shop i work for. We used it for Aluminum 90% of the time. Some steel and some wood. I use it for just about everything. It was there for 22 years before i got it. We had to do a big Stainless Steel job that required a bigger machine....so they decided to toss the craftsman and get a much larger unit. they were going to trash it! I said screw that im taking it.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

...they were going to trash it! I said screw that I'm taking it.

Good for you. Throwing away a perfectly serviceable power tool makes no sense at all. I'd like to see yours. What color is it, or WAS it originally? Can you still tell?

Evintho,
I came home tonight and got the motor, head unit and table off it. All that is left assembled is the pole and base. I tried giving it a few raps with a claw hammer but that was like hitting it with a flyswatter. I watched the crack closely but couldn't tell if it was flexing or not. I soaked it with "Screwloose" penetrant by CRC. We'll see if it comes loose more easily tomorrow.

 

[evintho]

I was in the garage taking the pic when you posted last. Oh well, here's the pic anyway!

Good for you! You got it off! Maybe the 'Screwloose' will work on the base. I for one, along with most everyone here, swear by PB Blaster. Although a lot of guys say Kroil is the best. Either way you're gonna have pound on it with a BFH. A deadblow has always worked for me.

Just 2 days ago I was perusing my local craigslist in the 'tools' section and I happened upon a guy selling a stand-up drill press base! Just the base! I glanced at it but didn't pay too much attention 'cause I didn't need one and I didn't know about your dilema at the time. Don't know if it was Craftsman or not but it looked just like ours and accepted a 3" tube. I searched again but can't find it. It may have expired. I'll try again. Shipping may be cost prohibitive but I'll check anyway.

 

[D.J.]

Yes that is how one of the chemical companies did it at our shop. I don't want to guess which one it was but they had a yellow truck and stopped by about once every three months or so. Still can't remember the brand name!
Thanks and keep up the good work, Also I vote for Kroil out of Nashvill TN as the best penetrant.
O by the way the solvent floated on top of the water and the drain tube went down into the water almost to the bottom of the like 120 pound gear lube barrel and they even lined the barrel with a clear plastic bag.
D.J.
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Granny ***

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Thanks for the head's up on the base. Hopefully, mine will weld up and I won't need it but if you find the link, let me know. I've got a relative that is going up to Visalia for Christmas. I have no idea how far apart Santa Rosa and Visalia are, but if it's doable I know he'd pick it up for me if I wanted it.

Crash has got my expectations WAY up for the finish for my pole. His came out so damned nice! FULLY polished out with the rack and pinion - wish ours had that, oh well. I plan on hitting mine with my wire wheel, sanding w/ emery cloth 50, 80 & 150 grit like my chuck, then metal polishing it. How's yours coming? What color are you going for? I found this Duplicolor, Desert Sand Mica that seems to match the original color very closely - I thought you might want to know.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Oh and P.S. I've used PB Blaster, I just ran out and picked up some ScrewLoose at work. It seems to work well. I've never even seen Kroil, though I've heard of it. Where are you guys buying it?

 

[D.J.]

You can order it direct from manufacturer!
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Mercedes-benz w114 history

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

I just thought I'd update this thread.

I've been looking around for parts for my drill press - a base and one of the handles is missing (though its highly unlikely I'd find what I'm looking for)

Today, I found this: http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sgv/tls/1521141251.html

So if anyone in the L.A. area was looking for a drill press like mine and Evintho's, here it is in bench top size. The asking price is more than for my floor model but clearly it appears to be in better shape than mine.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Oops, here's the picture from that ad as it may expire and then no one could see it later.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Hey, here's ANOTHER one!

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sgv/tls/1521859139.html

They must have sold a lot of these back in the day for there to be so many around still. This one is (unfortunately) cheaper AND better than mine - DOH!

 

[p1mlb03]

I just picked up 1970 Rockwell floor press. The guy I bought it from restores old machines as a hobby. It has new bearings, new chuck, blasted castings and tins and new paint, looks good to me and works perfect.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Very nice looking unit P1.