Taiwanese drill presses
- Thread starter PDXDave
- Start date
The 17" Taiwan machines are generally decent. They are also good value since there are a gazillion of them out there. I could be wrong but I suspect regardless of the brand name they came from the same factory. They usually have table lift, table tilt and table rotate, >1/2HP + TEFC motors, 3 pulley/wide speed range. As opposed the vintage USA machinist DP's, they are easy to find in the 100-200 price range and parts are also easy to find.
Vintage USA>Taiwan>new China
I've had a 17" 3/4 HP Taiwan made floor standing Delta since 2008. I only use it a few times a year, but it's well-built and I've had no issues with it. I checked the chuck runout when it was new and I can't remember the value, but it was around .001".
If you can find a very nice, needs nothing, floor standing one for $100-200 then that's a steal since they're >$1K new now; maybe in OR they're falling out of the trees. I paid >$600 for mine at that time.
If you can find a very nice, needs nothing, floor standing one for $100-200 then that's a steal since they're >$1K new now; maybe in OR they're falling out of the trees. I paid >$600 for mine at that time.
Firebrick43
Well-known member
Depends on age. Just like the Japanese tools were trash in the 50's and early 60's, the Taiwanese stuff was cheap **** in the 70's and some in the early 80's. By the late 80's and early 90's it was decent and most of it is excellent in the last 15-20 years.
rsanter
Well-known member
I have an old craftsman usa made one in CA I can sell
Dave455
Well-known member
Firebrick43 pretty much said it. Bang on with the dates.
The only thing I would say is that you cannot go by date alone, especially in regard to machines from the 80’s / 90’s.
I have a Taiwanese drill dating from the mid 1980’s and it’s quite decent, and lasted well. But… it was made to the specs of a British machine tool company, so everything is nicely cast and machined. Everything is square. Bearings are good, etc etc.
But you can buy a similar looking machine from the same period, probably from the same manufacturer, that is nowhere near so good. The machining isn’t so good, plastic parts proliferate, and the motor / switch gear will be awful.
What happened in that era, was that they would build a machine to a price. If you wanted decent, you got surprisingly decent. But if you wanted a drill for probably £50, you got it!
So the only way I have found to buy these Taiwanese machine tools is to go and look. You can not buy them from a picture, even if you think you can identify a model.
The only thing I would say is that you cannot go by date alone, especially in regard to machines from the 80’s / 90’s.
I have a Taiwanese drill dating from the mid 1980’s and it’s quite decent, and lasted well. But… it was made to the specs of a British machine tool company, so everything is nicely cast and machined. Everything is square. Bearings are good, etc etc.
But you can buy a similar looking machine from the same period, probably from the same manufacturer, that is nowhere near so good. The machining isn’t so good, plastic parts proliferate, and the motor / switch gear will be awful.
What happened in that era, was that they would build a machine to a price. If you wanted decent, you got surprisingly decent. But if you wanted a drill for probably £50, you got it!
So the only way I have found to buy these Taiwanese machine tools is to go and look. You can not buy them from a picture, even if you think you can identify a model.
Nutria
Well-known member
There are usually a decent number of Craftsman drill presses around. Keep an eye out for older Deltas as well, which are usually very good and plentiful. I'd go with one of those personally before a used Taiwan machine, but there are good ones out there as pointed out above. Maybe check runout regardless of what you're considering.
the run of the mill Taiwanese drill presses that were badged under literally hundreds of names get good press on here. I have one and for what I do, it does all I need . I've replaced the chuck & lamp holder and probably belts at some point .dicked around with the 3 handles so they don't go in as far and spin out of the threads and flop around .
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Taiwanese machines are actually very good for the most part, especially as @Firebrick43 mentioned, the last 20 years or so. That being said, there will be some exceptions, but as a general rule of thumb I'll take a Taiwanese machine over mainland China any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
I have an approx. 20-year-old Taiwanese Jet 20" drill press that is excellent as well as my 10-year-old 13x40 lathe and Bridgeport clone milling machine.
I have an approx. 20-year-old Taiwanese Jet 20" drill press that is excellent as well as my 10-year-old 13x40 lathe and Bridgeport clone milling machine.
Ok, so the obvious question is, who here has a POS made in Taiwan drill press? If so, what brand and when was it made? I'm sure it exists, but I've never heard of it - unless maybe you bought it from one of the traveling tool shows in the 70s for $29.99, along with the $4.99 ratchet and socket set made from zinc.
Taiwan leads the world, by far, in semiconductor manufacturing. They're not just making 21st century chips, it's 2025 technology; chips from the early 2000s are like the Wright brothers' plane and they're currently making the F35 of chips. This notion that they can't build a simple drill press, or electric motor, century old technology, that keeps getting repeated here, I'm sure mostly by the boomers that still think it's 1970, is ridiculous. Especially when all the Milwaukee fans here rave about how great all of their made in Vietnam cordless tools are. Well, Taiwan is 50 years ahead of Vietnam on manufacturing.
Taiwan leads the world, by far, in semiconductor manufacturing. They're not just making 21st century chips, it's 2025 technology; chips from the early 2000s are like the Wright brothers' plane and they're currently making the F35 of chips. This notion that they can't build a simple drill press, or electric motor, century old technology, that keeps getting repeated here, I'm sure mostly by the boomers that still think it's 1970, is ridiculous. Especially when all the Milwaukee fans here rave about how great all of their made in Vietnam cordless tools are. Well, Taiwan is 50 years ahead of Vietnam on manufacturing.
Firebrick43
Well-known member
Do you have one from the late 70’s or early 80’s that was actually good? You don’t have to own something to have seen and used it in other shops to access is quality. In fact most of us here are of the skill to access the quality of tools and avoid them without having to personally learn by example every time. My wilton 17" press is a late 90's drill press and its ok and completely usable, but it doesn't hold a candle to my mid 50's Delta 14" in quality or attention to detail. On the flip side I own a Laguna 14BX band saw and a Precision Matthews bench mill that are less than 5 years old and are at the top of their segment in quality and features.
Buffalo and early Grizzly drill presses and mill/drills were POS from that time period that I have used and worked on. Some early jet stuff was iffy as well and poorly supported to boot.
I am not sure what you are trying to prove? Parallel to the drill presses Taiwan didn’t make semi conductors before 76 that I found and it was RCA, an American company showing them how it was done at first. It took decades of improvements to exceed other countries and be as good as they are now.
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strength_and_power
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2015
- Messages
- 1,393
I bought a used Grizzly 3/4hp bench top drill press around 2006 and it made me a good bit of money. What little parts I did need, Grizzly had them. I’d still have it if a building fire didn’t take it out. I’d buy another with no hesitation.
orangeblood
Well-known member
my experience with a early 1980s Dayton from Taiwan has been very good. it wont be confused with a commercial DP in a machine shop, but for 99% of my home game / hobby car stuff its more than enough
ez-duzit
Well-known member
Two of my drill presses were made in Taiwan. One of them is branded "Delta." I hold them in much higher regard than any Craftsman DP.
BombShelter
Well-known member
I think the big JETs are made in Taiwan, I see one on our local CL for cheap, it's a full size floor-stander and has some weight to it and it's priced to sell. I can't remember how it worked in the 90's, something like Powermatic was made in USA, and mid-level, lower cost JET was made in Taiwan? I personally own several JET Tools and never had an issue with them. I've got a cheap bench press that works great on small stuff like mortices but it will stall with too much force.
I can understand the allure of the old Craftsmen Art Deco Style, they just look cool even when not in use.
I can understand the allure of the old Craftsmen Art Deco Style, they just look cool even when not in use.
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Good point, I've seen them both ways. My 20" Jet that is around 18 or so years old is Taiwanese made, but my previous 15" of about the same vintage plus maybe 2-3 years that I sold to my friend was made in China. Although it wasn't a bad drill press, it isn't anything like my 20" Taiwanese Jet drill press.
It was similar with my Jet horizontal bandsaw. I had one that was made in Taiwan that I bought used about 15 years ago. I think it was around the late 80's/early 90's as the manufactured date. It was a pretty good horizontal saw and only needed a little TLC when I purchased it, which was solely due to neglect and some abuse from the previous owner. Parts were actually still available as well. A friend bought a new Jet of the same size and model about 7 or 8 years ago and his is made in China.
Well, just my total chance this guy showed up at my work...
The customer sold it to us for scrap and I bought it for the current shred (dirty steel) value, which is .05 cents a pound, which worked out to three dollars and eighty five cents.
Sometimes I feel guilty but most of the time, I'm pretty happy to be saving stuff like this from destruction.
Now, to figure out the age of it and order some spare belts.
The customer sold it to us for scrap and I bought it for the current shred (dirty steel) value, which is .05 cents a pound, which worked out to three dollars and eighty five cents.
Sometimes I feel guilty but most of the time, I'm pretty happy to be saving stuff like this from destruction.
Now, to figure out the age of it and order some spare belts.
Attachments
dutchgray
Well-known member
Nice save, that is way too nice to scrap
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Nice. That should work for ya. 
kaymccampbell
Well-known member
That's a You ****.
mreisner
Well-known member
Biggest thing with the import drill presses nowadays as most of them are pretty good is the truck. The Chinese Jacob charts are absolute ****, if you can find a nice drill press with a good Chuck you should be doing good with any brand now from Taiwan.
woody 73
Well-known member
long story short version, I worked hard to save my money and bought a new Powermatic DP, everything on it broke...(This was the very last end of made in the USA). Now it is sourced from Taiwan, somehow, I wonder if I should have waited and bought it from Taiwan, but I will never no.
meistermash
Member
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2015
- Messages
- 10
I just purchased an early version of this press.
$200 and it has been used very little.
I figure after the first belt gave up, that was about it.
It did have a vehicle ac belt sort of cobbled in to demonstrate that it worked.
Where is a place for the belts?
I blew everything that can be blown out, oiled some stuff and cleaned a bit of rust.
My Taiwan tools go back to '81 for my drill press (power feed, 3/4" x 17") and a bit earlier for my Cheng Xi Bridgeport clone. I have also worked with some Taiwanese companies going back to '90s and on. I have profound respect for their industry - especially machine tools and injection molding equipment. Agreed that their first forays into consumer **** in the late '70s was...uh...not up to their industrial standards. You need to go there and work with them to realize that they don't stand still either ideologically or physically.