Got a Drill Press, Where to Get Clamps?

[Daekar]

Recently got this drill press for my birthday - yes, I feel spoiled. :-)
https://www.harborfreight.com/power-tools/drills-drivers/drill-presses/16-speed-floor-drill-press-43389.html

Also got this vise:
https://www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-jaw-capacity-drill-press-vise-30999.html

So far I am pleased with it - everything seems to be square and sturdily assembled.

My problem is, I know I need to buy some hardware to hold workpieces in place, and to hold the vise, but I don't really know what those devices are called. The table has some slots on it that are visible in the picture, and those slots look like they're designed for some kind of large-headed threaded fastener or something to fit into the slot with the head down and threaded rod up - the slots are not drilled through the table, though. Can you guys help me figure out what kind of tie-downs (or whatever they're called...) to get for this thing?

[cwtebay]

I personally use carriage bolts and wing nuts to keep my vice in place using those slots you mention.
But I'll bet there's something more elegant!

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

[Nueces]

An image search for 'drill press clamp' will give you lots of ideas.

[farmbif]

its called t-slot , get a couple t-slot bolts or if you want to go all out they make a clamping set with different size clamps and different length threaded studs.
next thing you know you'll be shopping for a good used Bridgeport

[Ithaca Gunner]

I personally use carriage bolts and wing nuts to keep my vice in place using those slots you mention.
But I'll bet there's something more elegant!

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

They do make dovetail ''nuts''-clamps for the large 6'' machinist vices, you slide them into the slots and clamp down with a screw, but proper size carriage bolts with a 4'' vice works just as well.

[Mk42gunner]

As stated before, technically the correct bolt is a T-bolt; but I can count on one hand and have four fingers and a thumb left over the times I have actually seen them used in a home shop. Carriage bolts work well.

Harbor Freight also has some little half vice grip clamps for clamping directly to the table.

Good on you for actually planning to use a real work holding system, instead of trying to hand hold items to the table.

Robert

[BP Dave]

I second clamping or using a vise on your projects--I used to hold things by hand, but now that I don't heal so fast I clamp or use a vise.

--DJ

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I've always used the 11" Vice grip locking C-clamps.

[farmbif]

depends on what your doing. I have one of those vise grips, works real well for certain things but for other things a good vise it great. I happened upon a swivel tilting 4" palmgren that I would never give up.

[country gent]

At the least cut a length of steel pipe a carriage bolt ( one the square firs the slot better a t bolt) thru the pipe and and a hand nut. clamp this where the vise can be in contact with the side of the vise to keep it from spinning.

Better is a set of strap clamps. Around 70.00 from grizzly. There is a learning curve to using these but they can clamp almost anything to the table.

Best and easiest for set up is buy a 1/2" think aluminum the same size as the table. Drill and tap 3/8" holes on a one inch square pattern. bolt this to the table. This will allow bolts and washers to hold the vise. straps to be used or holes in parts. It will also provide a cushion for when someone forgets and goes thru the part keeping it out of the table. It will also protect the table from wear from sliding parts.

Decide on a spot where the chuck key lives, if its not in your hand its at home Period. The chuck is not the place to keep it.

[Daekar]

I figure there is no point in going halfway on things, so I ordered this from Harbor Freight:
https://www.harborfreight.com/58-piece-combination-step-block-and-clamp-set-3-8-eighth-inch-16-nc-studs-1-2-half-inch-clamps-5952.html

Hopefully the included T-bolts or nuts will fit! Thank you guys, I will report back with success or failure. :-)

[country gent]

I see the studs are 3/8 so the tip of the tee nuts are 1/2" measure the slots in your table and see how wide they are.

another consideration on your drill press would be a X y table for hole patterns. but these add a bit if weight to the table

[NyFirefighter357]

I'm making a clamping plate for one of mine. I have 2 Walker Turners a Delta Rockwell I just picked up & a Montgomery Ward DuoI got for the stand & tray.

https://i.imgur.com/rlcutnG.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/KEX2OT5.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/j0mXoLA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/29kUUnL.jpg

[rbuck351]

For the vice, I would use a couple of carriage bolts about 3/8" dia and a couple of inches long. Slip the bolt heads in the end of your table slot and put the vice over the bolts and add a washer and nut. The hold down clamp set you have ordered will work very well and very safe to hold down about anything but is more cumbersome to use on the vice than necessary.

[David2011]

I'm making a clamping plate for one of mine. I have 2 Walker Turners a Delta Rockwell I just picked up & a Montgomery Ward DuoI got for the stand & tray.



Awesome drill press! I love old American iron.

[Shopdog]

We use a BUNCH of T nuts....on several different machines/fixtures. Use them on the wood milling equipment as well. Most machines have their nuts in attendant tooling boxes/chests. The fixtures,either the nuts/bolts are parked in it,or go "borrow" some from one of the same size. We make a lot of them on the mm sizes.

Not sayin that's the only way to do it,whatever works for you. Cpl vises to look for are an XY like posted above. And a Heinrich "quick vise". That's what lives on our big W/T. A storage cabinet under the table is a great project. Make the height low enough to accommodate say 90% of your work height. On the occasional tall piece,which isn't very often,you can pull the little cabinet out. A small bttm chest,like a Craftsman can usually roll over the DP bttm. I used one like this for years. Keeps all the tooling close at hand.

[NyFirefighter357]

I'm making a clamping plate for one of mine. I have 2 Walker Turners a Delta Rockwell I just picked up & a Montgomery Ward DuoI got for the stand & tray.

https://i.imgur.com/rlcutnG.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/KEX2OT5.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/j0mXoLA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/29kUUnL.jpg

I have a bunch of different vices, none of the direclt bolt up, this is the reason I'm making a plate.

[country gent]

My drill press is an old Leelamd Gifford machine table is similar too the solid table in your pics with a coolant groove around it. Its a very heavy solid machine table and spindle are on dovetails for adjustment up and down. I have a xy table dedicated to it. between table casting and xy the table is over 100 lbs so mounted a camper hydraulic jack under it to raise ans lower it, works well and is easy for me from the wheel chair. There is no way I could manually raise and lower just the table otherwise.

[farmbif]

walker turner made some good machines, at one time I had a bandsaw w blade welder and a massive table saw made by them.

[garandsrus]

For most projects, the work held in the vice and the vice loose on the table will work great and is the way that vice is normally used. The problem with clamping the vice to the table is that you pretty much have no adjustments available so it is very hard to clamp the vice in the correct place, and even then, it will only be correct for one hole.

Something like this would probably make more sense if you are clamping it to the table: https://www.harborfreight.com/6-inch-cross-slide-vise-32997.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=12169518939&campaignid=12169518939&utm_content=114845719417&adsetid=114845719417&product=32997&store=407&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoofw1rv-8gIVlgytBh15JwJcEAQYASABEgLEPvD_BwE

Have fun!

[country gent]

This is why I suggested the bolt pipe and hand nut. It makes a stop that keeps the vise or part from spinning if it grabs. This wont prevent it jumping when the drill breaks thru. You need to be on your toes with machine tools they will injure you if given the chance. I believe the drill press is one of the most over looked as to safety, No gloves ( chips will grab them and suck you in), Wear a hat or keep hair tied back, ( the spinning spindle chuck will grab hair and scalp you), safety glasses, no loose clothing.

I have seen shops that up graded fro belt drive drill presses to bigger gear drive machines and due to the heavier machines lack of slip injuries resulted. Sen one guy hand holding a vise drilling when the drill grabbed spinning the vise into the column with his fingers hand between column and vise . He had broken fingers and the vise was destroyed.

Please be careful when using machines they will bite and arnt forgiving

[Daekar]

This is why I suggested the bolt pipe and hand nut. It makes a stop that keeps the vise or part from spinning if it grabs. This wont prevent it jumping when the drill breaks thru. You need to be on your toes with machine tools they will injure you if given the chance. I believe the drill press is one of the most over looked as to safety, No gloves ( chips will grab them and suck you in), Wear a hat or keep hair tied back, ( the spinning spindle chuck will grab hair and scalp you), safety glasses, no loose clothing.

I have seen shops that up graded fro belt drive drill presses to bigger gear drive machines and due to the heavier machines lack of slip injuries resulted. Sen one guy hand holding a vise drilling when the drill grabbed spinning the vise into the column with his fingers hand between column and vise . He had broken fingers and the vise was destroyed.

Please be careful when using machines they will bite and arnt forgiving

Wise words. I've heard enough horror stories in my day (and done enough stupid things which, by no virtue of mine other than luck, had no consequences) to take this stuff pretty seriously.

[Buck Shot]

I use one of these to immobilize my drill press vise. Even when I'm not using the drill press vise, and even when I don't actually clamp the workpiece down, I use the clamp as a "backstop," so to speak, positioning it such that the workpiece bears against it when torqued in a clockwise direction.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/4120S1RQxmL._SY300_QL70_.jpg

A drill press will hurt you bad if a workpiece gets away from you, and it happens in the blink of an eye. You also need to lookout for a workpiece to lift up off the table -- particularly when drilling something like a piece of thin metal. When you release or retract the handle to lift the quill, the workpiece can try to go with the drill bit, and when it does, it gets cocked, gets grabbed by the flutes on the drill bit and then starts thrashing.

[Scrounge]

Recently got this drill press for my birthday - yes, I feel spoiled. :-)
https://www.harborfreight.com/power-tools/drills-drivers/drill-presses/16-speed-floor-drill-press-43389.html

Also got this vise:
https://www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-jaw-capacity-drill-press-vise-30999.html

So far I am pleased with it - everything seems to be square and sturdily assembled.

My problem is, I know I need to buy some hardware to hold workpieces in place, and to hold the vise, but I don't really know what those devices are called. The table has some slots on it that are visible in the picture, and those slots look like they're designed for some kind of large-headed threaded fastener or something to fit into the slot with the head down and threaded rod up - the slots are not drilled through the table, though. Can you guys help me figure out what kind of tie-downs (or whatever they're called...) to get for this thing?

https://www.harborfreight.com/9-inch-drill-press-locking-clamp-36221.html get two or three of these, or real Visegrip versions if you can find/afford them. Some blocks of metal and wood of various sizes, carriage bolts, wing nuts, fender washers in assorted sizes, and some chunks of allthread likewise. There are a LOT of ways to do it.

Start looking at homemadetools.net as well, for more ideas. And youtube.com.

Also visit your local library. One of my favorite books with info on how best to use a drill press, and many other tools, is Shop Savvy, by Roy Moungovan.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=shop+savvy+roy+moungovan&ref=nb_sb_noss paperback
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=shop+savvy+roy+moungovan&ref=nb_sb_noss hardback this is the one I have, which I bought after keeping my local library's copy checked most of a year!

Do not buy it new, though a copy should be in every workshop. ;) IMNSHO!

Bill

[ulav8r]

When bolting anything to the slots in the machine table do not tighten the bolts too much ifthere is open space between the table and what you are clamping. I saw the results of over torqueing on a large grinder. The edges of the slots were broken when the t-bolt was pulled up too hard. It is not a problem with a flat bottomed vise or workpiece.

[Daekar]

https://www.harborfreight.com/9-inch-drill-press-locking-clamp-36221.html get two or three of these, or real Visegrip versions if you can find/afford them. Some blocks of metal and wood of various sizes, carriage bolts, wing nuts, fender washers in assorted sizes, and some chunks of allthread likewise. There are a LOT of ways to do it.

Start looking at homemadetools.net as well, for more ideas. And youtube.com.

Also visit your local library. One of my favorite books with info on how best to use a drill press, and many other tools, is Shop Savvy, by Roy Moungovan.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=shop+savvy+roy+moungovan&ref=nb_sb_noss paperback
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=shop+savvy+roy+moungovan&ref=nb_sb_noss hardback this is the one I have, which I bought after keeping my local library's copy checked most of a year!

Do not buy it new, though a copy should be in every workshop. ;) IMNSHO!

Bill

I actually did buy three of those clamps, only to realize when the press was assembled that they won't work! The slots are not milled all the way through the plate, so there is no way to actually attach the clamps to anything. I think I can use them elsewhere, though.

I might have to pick up that book, it looks useful!

[georgerkahn]

Of all the tools in my shop, bion my 14" Rockwell Delta drill press gets used almost on a daily basis -- both my oft-most tool -- as well as the one I got "hurt" from most often! This before -- GREAT decision on your behalf to get clamps :) -- I wised up to not trying to hold work pieces with my hands!
Back at Harbor Freight they purvey what has become my 99% GREAT drill press vise, albeit they call it a welding clamp. I attached a photo, and its beauties as a drill press vise are many. To wit, it is long enough to secure pretty much anything you wish to bore; it is very quick acting -- just slide it up to work piece and tighten; and, most importantly: IT HOLDS!288739
Works super well for me.... I now have three of these.
BEST -- and congrats re your new "Press-Drill" (as some local farmer friends of mine refer to this tool :))
geo

[country gent]

Look at Tubalcain222s you tube on drill press vises. He shows very interesting one that looks like a pope clamp with a slide swivel that bolts down on a corner of the table, with the slide and swivel it holds work sliding to the punch mark on the table ( draw back here as thru holes will need a spacer under them or aligned over a slot) but its a very interesting design.

A drill press is a very versatile tool. I have done drilling reaming boring on the heavier ones. You can locate very accurately using the same basics as the mill. an indicator in the spindle or wiggler and tap part around to location.

Most drill presses are set up to run to fast for metal work. My next drill press will be a gear head forward and reverse ( allows power tapping and left hand tools) power feed and if Im lucky power up and down on the table. You would be surprised how much work gets done on a radial arm drill press in a shop

[bosterr]

I use one of these to immobilize my drill press vise. Even when I'm not using the drill press vise, and even when I don't actually clamp the workpiece down, I use the clamp as a "backstop," so to speak, positioning it such that the workpiece bears against it when torqued in a clockwise direction.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/4120S1RQxmL._SY300_QL70_.jpg

A drill press will hurt you bad if a workpiece gets away from you, and it happens in the blink of an eye. You also need to lookout for a workpiece to lift up off the table -- particularly when drilling something like a piece of thin metal. When you release or retract the handle to lift the quill, the workpiece can try to go with the drill bit, and when it does, it gets cocked, gets grabbed by the flutes on the drill bit and then starts thrashing.

Hey Buck Shot, I need to get a couple of these. What are they called specifically and where do you buy them? I couldn't make out a name in your pic.

[bosterr]

Hey Buck Shot, I need to get a couple of these. What are they called specifically and where do you buy them? I couldn't make out a name in your pic.

Never mind, I found it.

[Daekar]

Decide on a spot where the chuck key lives, if its not in your hand its at home Period. The chuck is not the place to keep it.
I was just going over this thread again and noticed this sentence. This is a great nugget of wisdom, I had an old supervisor who had an operator fling a chuck key across the room when he started his machine. The thing embedded itself in the concrete and stuck there. He walked over to the circuit breaker, killed the power to the whole shop, and they had a safety meeting right that second.

I am thinking I will 3D print something to hold the key, but maybe a simpler solution will suggest itself.

[bangerjim]

I figure there is no point in going halfway on things, so I ordered this from Harbor Freight:
https://www.harborfreight.com/58-piece-combination-step-block-and-clamp-set-3-8-eighth-inch-16-nc-studs-1-2-half-inch-clamps-5952.html

Hopefully the included T-bolts or nuts will fit! Thank you guys, I will report back with success or failure. :-)

That is for a milling machine. I hope it fits your drill press table slots.

[bangerjim]

The most useful tool I ever made for my big drill press is a table with an adjustable fence. The table and fence have em embedded aluminum T-rails. You can use standard toilet bolts that have 1/4x20 threads.

It allows you an unlimited clamping venue....everything you can imagine! All made out of either MDF or Baltic birch, the table and fence brings tons of usage to a standard drill press table. Just bolt it on. Mine never comes off!

Also consider a sacrificial throat plate made of 1/4" Masonite so you can drill thru and have it replaceable once it gets too holey!

Now get yourself a high-quality AMERICAN=MADE set of HSS twist drills (fractional/letter/number). Don't mess with HF drills.....they are not HSS and are total garbage.You will spend a few hundred dollars for a good drill set, but you will not be sorry!


bangerjim - master craftsman

[Buck Shot]

Decide on a spot where the chuck key lives, if its not in your hand its at home Period. The chuck is not the place to keep it.

The key on my Jet drill press has a spring-loaded plunger on it that pushes itself out of the hole in the chuck. The only way you can crank on the chuck is by pushing in against the spring-loaded plunger. If you forget, the spring will pop it out of the chuck as soon as you let go of it. I thought that was pretty clever.

I crimped my chuck key onto a piece of SS braided wire, and attached it to the post of the drill press...this prevents it from "running away from home" like my hand drill chuck keys.

[Rfeustel]

The most useful tool I ever made for my big drill press is a table with an adjustable fence. The table and fence have em embedded aluminum T-rails. You can use standard toilet bolts that have 1/4x20 threads.

It allows you an unlimited clamping venue....everything you can imagine! All made out of either MDF or Baltic birch, the table and fence brings tons of usage to a standard drill press table. Just bolt it on. Mine never comes off!

Also consider a sacrificial throat plate made of 1/4" Masonite so you can drill thru and have it replaceable once it gets too holey!

Now get yourself a high-quality AMERICAN=MADE set of HSS twist drills (fractional/letter/number). Don't mess with HF drills.....they are not HSS and are total garbage.You will spend a few hundred dollars for a good drill set, but you will not be sorry!


bangerjim - master craftsman

BangerJim - like these?
https://www.victornet.com/detail/DSUS-115.html

[bangerjim]

BangerJim - like these?
https://www.victornet.com/detail/DSUS-115.html

Yes those appear to be of the similar quality of the ones I have been using for over 20 years (no resharpening needed yet!). You can almost cut yourself on the ground flutes! Avoid the TiN plated ones (HF and others). That gold -colored plating is molecules thick and the 1st catch, scratch or resharpening, all the (so-called) protection is gone. Just an advertising gimmick.

I used to live in Farmington, MI and I think I have been to their place to buy tooling. Lots of tool mongers in and around Motown!

Always make sure your chuck is tightened down TIGHT on the drill shank. I have never had a drill slip and create gouge marks and wipe out the ID info on the shank. Pretty much junk pile fodder after that..............to me. Hand power drills are notorious at that.

[Rfeustel]

Yes those appear to be of the similar quality of the ones I have been using for over 20 years (no resharpening needed yet!). You can almost cut yourself on the ground flutes! Avoid the TiN plated ones (HF and others). That gold -colored plating is molecules thick and the 1st catch, scratch or resharpening, all the (so-called) protection is gone. Just an advertising gimmick.

I used to live in Farmington, MI and I think I have been to their place to buy tooling. Lots of tool mongers in and around Motown!

Always make sure your chuck is tightened down TIGHT on the drill shank. I have never had a drill slip and create gouge marks and wipe out the ID info on the shank. Pretty much junk pile fodder after that..............to me. Hand power drills are notorious at that.

Thank you, Sir.

[Scrounge]

I actually did buy three of those clamps, only to realize when the press was assembled that they won't work! The slots are not milled all the way through the plate, so there is no way to actually attach the clamps to anything. I think I can use them elsewhere, though.

I might have to pick up that book, it looks useful!

That table has t-slots, and you can use T-nuts on the clamps. With a drill press, and a hacksaw and files, you can make your own T-nuts, too. Check the threads on the clamps, and see if they match the clampdown set you bought. If not, make a few T-nuts, or cut down a couple of connector nuts (those are the long ones) so they can fit in the T-slot. I've got 4 drill presses, now, if you count the 3-in-1 lathe/mill/drill. 8" Harbor Freight table top, 15" 1950's Craftsman that desperately needs some restoration, that lathe, and a 900# monster that was originally line-shaft driven. That one has a Morse taper 2 socket in the spindle, and could be used for light milling, too.

For light work, you can use a drill press as a lathe, too.

https://makezine.com/projects/drillpresslathe//

https://www.instructables.com/Drill-Press-As-Wood-Lathe/

It's not the optimum way to do things, but beats heck out of a spring-pole lathe. It's an easy way to make custom tool handles, if you need them, for instance.

Your drill press almost certainly doesn't have bearings that will allow you do serious milling or lathing, but you can do both if you stick to light work.

And Yes, that book has lot of great shop info and discussion in it. You could probably find a copy through inter-library loan, but you can buy a used copy for under $10 including shipping from Amazon. Saw one for $1.99+$3.99 shipping in the links. I think I paid $25 for my copy.

Take care, be safe, and have a whole lot of fun!

Bill

[Mal Paso]

Also visit your local library. One of my favorite books with info on how best to use a drill press, and many other tools, is Shop Savvy, by Roy Moungovan.
[url]https://www.amazon.com/s?k=shop+savvy+roy+moungovan&ref=nb_sb_noss paperback
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=shop+savvy+roy+moungovan&ref=nb_sb_noss hardback this is the one I have, which I bought after keeping my local library's copy checked most of a year!

Do not buy it new, though a copy should be in every workshop. ;) IMNSHO!

Bill

Thanks! I got a VG $6 one on the way.

[ulav8r]

On my small drill press, the chuck key is attached to a spring return key holder. Got a package of 3 from Dollar Tree. They had belt clips on the back of the housing that slid onto the edge of the belt guard. The key hangs down next to the column, where it is easy to pullout and use and then goes back when you let go of it. My other two drill presses(actually one is my wife's) will get the other two key holders.

[Scrounge]

Thanks! I got a VG $6 one on the way.

De Nada! Lots of good info in there. As you'll see! Especially good at provoking you to take a new look at stuff you probably already have.

Bill

[Scrounge]

I was just going over this thread again and noticed this sentence. This is a great nugget of wisdom, I had an old supervisor who had an operator fling a chuck key across the room when he started his machine. The thing embedded itself in the concrete and stuck there. He walked over to the circuit breaker, killed the power to the whole shop, and they had a safety meeting right that second.

I am thinking I will 3D print something to hold the key, but maybe a simpler solution will suggest itself.

A magnet from an old hard drive can provide such a place, too. Combine that with a piece of 1/16" aircraft cable to prevent it growing legs and wandering off.

Bill

[rbuck351]

Stick the handle of the chuck key in the chuck and hand tighten it enough to keep it from falling out.

[bangerjim]

Here are some ideas I used when building my press table/fence assembly

https://www.familyhandyman.com/project/how-to-build-a-drill-press-table/

https://www.wwgoa.com/article/shop-made-drill-press-table-plans/#

https://www.theaveragecraftsman.com/projects/how-to-build-a-simple-drill-press-table/

It is very versatile for both metal and wood working needs. No press should be without one!

[bangerjim]

For chuck key dangers, that is between you and your brain! Concentration should be 100% when operating ANY power tool no matter how simple.

I have my chuck key attached to one of those auto spring-loaded roll-up things guys use that clip on their belts for car keys. Keeps the key handy but always out of the way...........and it never gets lost.

There is not guaranteed way of preventing a key being left in the chuck! I hate those spring-loaded things that make drill press operation clumsy and frustrating.

I guess if someone is in the habit of turning on the press while the key is in the chuck..............well........some people were never meant to operate power tools, I guess! :bigsmyl2:


If you want to eliminate the key all together do what I did on a couple of my presses......install a 1/2" ball bearing chuck with carbide jaws. They are not cheap! You can hand tighten the things extremely tight (if you get a quality brand!) and never use a key again. I still use keys on my 3/4" chucks on the mills and big floor drill presses.

[country gent]

After the years of hand fitting and working those plungers in chuck keys really bother my wrists. ( and my pride LOL).

The first shop I hired in to (at 15) had almost ll flat belt machines running open. You were expected to work accordingly.

I still remember the day He shut us down 1/2 hour early called us all back (all 3 of us) and handed out beers and gave me my first white apron. I took it home and Showed Dad even.

[Scrounge]

For chuck key dangers, that is between you and your brain! Concentration should be 100% when operating ANY power tool no matter how simple.

I have my chuck key attached to one of those auto spring-loaded roll-up things guys use that clip on their belts for car keys. Keeps the key handy but always out of the way...........and it never gets lost.

There is not guaranteed way of preventing a key being left in the chuck! I hate those spring-loaded things that make drill press operation clumsy and frustrating.

I guess if someone is in the habit of turning on the press while the key is in the chuck..............well........some people were never meant to operate power tools, I guess! :bigsmyl2:


If you want to eliminate the key all together do what I did on a couple of my presses......install a 1/2" ball bearing chuck with carbide jaws. They are not cheap! You can hand tighten the things extremely tight (if you get a quality brand!) and never use a key again. I still use keys on my 3/4" chucks on the mills and big floor drill presses.

I'm too cheap to buy a chuck that's that expensive, and if you don't tighten it properly, it will spin and destroy your drill bits. I have a couple of Jacobs key-type chucks that are at least 50 years old, and in way better condition than I am. I'll just keep using them. And it's easy to find replacement keys for them if I lose one. Naturally, YMMV.

Bill

[bangerjim]

I'm too cheap to buy a chuck that's that expensive, and if you don't tighten it properly, it will spin and destroy your drill bits. I have a couple of Jacobs key-type chucks that are at least 50 years old, and in way better condition than I am. I'll just keep using them. And it's easy to find replacement keys for them if I lose one. Naturally, YMMV.

Bill

I have 3 German-made ratcheting type ball bearing chucks that have NEVER spun with just hand tightening on 1/2" shanks! But they are very expensive. Quality ball bearing ratcheting-type chucks will NOT loose grip. Hardened/diamond coated jaws never loose alignment or shape OR grip. Best chucks I have ever owned.

I have a drawer full of Jacobs and other key-operated chucks. I still pref fer the key-less ball bearing style ones. Please do not compare these wish the garbage you get on hand drills!

Albrecht is one quality brand I have several of:

https://www.mscdirect.com/product/details/08055287

[country gent]

When I bought out a friends shop I got 8-9 albrieght key less chucks in various sizes and shanks. Im slowly beginning to like them a lot more. One thing I have noticed with them is the range isnt as good as the keyed chucks.

A drill chuck can last a long time if cared for properly. with the better chucks it is buy once and when it gets loose a rebuild kit and a little time at the bench.

[country gent]

Another really nice addition is a small chuck (0-1/4 or 0-3/8 P on a straight shank to fit the machines drill press. A po;pt drill and the small chuck are about the same length as the big drill so it saves cranking table up and down. We had the, with 1/4" 3/8" 1/2" and 3/4" shanks, these worked in drill press but also saved collet changes on the mills.

[Scrounge]

I have 3 German-made ratcheting type ball bearing chucks that have NEVER spun with just hand tightening on 1/2" shanks! But they are very expensive. Quality ball bearing ratcheting-type chucks will NOT loose grip. Hardened/diamond coated jaws never loose alignment or shape OR grip. Best chucks I have ever owned.

I have a drawer full of Jacobs and other key-operated chucks. I still pref fer the key-less ball bearing style ones. Please do not compare these wish the garbage you get on hand drills!

Albrecht is one quality brand I have several of:

https://www.mscdirect.com/product/details/08055287

I tend to replace the chucks on powered drill motors with decent brands. Though I rarely buy them new. If I ever win the lottery (hard to do when you don't buy tickets) I will build and equip a shop with new or professionally rebuilt tools and tooling. So far, I've done OK with DIY refurbs, though. This is another thing where YMMV. Your addictions are not mine, and vis versa, so you may have more or less money to spend on the goodies than I do. I did quit smoking many years ago when I found that I could get 5 used paperback books for the cost of the 3 packs of cigarettes I was smoking each day. Back when cigarettes were $0.35/pack. Lots of books around here, these days. ;)

Oh, gotta say that the chucks on Ryobi cordless drills are pretty good for a cheap power tool. I like them much better than the Dewalt stuff my work was using.

[tdoor4570]

Was wandering around a yard sale and picked up some welding clamps made by vice grip, both long and short they work just fine to hold down what I'm working on.

[Mal Paso]

Was wandering around a yard sale and picked up some welding clamps made by vice grip, both long and short they work just fine to hold down what I'm working on.

They can be set one handed while you're using the other to align the work. I use the welding ones too.

[jonp]

I figure there is no point in going halfway on things, so I ordered this from Harbor Freight:
https://www.harborfreight.com/58-piece-combination-step-block-and-clamp-set-3-8-eighth-inch-16-nc-studs-1-2-half-inch-clamps-5952.html

Hopefully the included T-bolts or nuts will fit! Thank you guys, I will report back with success or failure. :-)

I didn't know they sold a set like that. I've been using my HB press with an XY Vice and small clamps https://www.lowes.com/pd/IRWIN-QUICK-GRIP-4-Pack-Assorted-Mini-One-Handed-Bar-Clamp/1003172496

[jonp]

I have 3 German-made ratcheting type ball bearing chucks that have NEVER spun with just hand tightening on 1/2" shanks! But they are very expensive. Quality ball bearing ratcheting-type chucks will NOT loose grip. Hardened/diamond coated jaws never loose alignment or shape OR grip. Best chucks I have ever owned.

I have a drawer full of Jacobs and other key-operated chucks. I still pref fer the key-less ball bearing style ones. Please do not compare these wish the garbage you get on hand drills!

Albrecht is one quality brand I have several of:

https://www.mscdirect.com/product/details/08055287

Looks like a quality product but at $548 each I'm not sure someone with a HB Press for use as a home hobbiest is going to get the value out of several of them.

[Daekar]

I didn't know they sold a set like that. I've been using my HB press with an XY Vice and small clamps https://www.lowes.com/pd/IRWIN-QUICK-GRIP-4-Pack-Assorted-Mini-One-Handed-Bar-Clamp/1003172496

Those are great! I have two small ones and two large ones, and I use them for all kinds of things. If my drill press table were smaller, I would be tempted to just use them and dispense with the other clamps, but mine don't reach far enough.:(

[Mal Paso]

I didn't know they sold a set like that. I've been using my HB press with an XY Vice and small clamps https://www.lowes.com/pd/IRWIN-QUICK-GRIP-4-Pack-Assorted-Mini-One-Handed-Bar-Clamp/1003172496

They work great until the frictions wear out, then they are junk. I've switched back to all metal bar clamps.

[Daekar]

I am happy to report that the clamp set I bought works great and fits the channels on the press no problem. Thank you guys for all the advice!

[country gent]

Glad to hear that they work Now your looking for some holes to drill.

Now a good sharp scribe, lay out ink, center punches, and a small precision hammer

[Scrounge]

Glad to hear that they work Now your looking for some holes to drill.

Now a good sharp scribe, lay out ink, center punches, and a small precision hammer

I've grown fond of the automatic center punch, too. You don't have to worry that the punch will slip before you strike it with the hammer. It's also easy to drift an off-the-mark punch to the correct location with an automatic center punch, as well. Let it reset with out lifting the point, angle it in the direction you want it to move, and punch it again and again until it's where you want it, just like doing it with an ordinary center punch and hammer. It's easy to deepen a properly located punch, as well. Just keep hammering it without angling the punch.

They aren't the best thing for every situation, but they are handy. You should have both automatic and standard center punches and a proper hammer.

Bill

[country gent]

Ive got a little 4 ounce ball peen I use for lay out work makes a nice light prick punch mark. But it still hurts when you get a finger. Very few know how to use a height gage, dividers or trammels any more

Learning from a couple old tradesman. They would do a bolt hole circle with dividers and a scale and drill press. punch center lay out circle and a starting spot then set dividers to evenly space the number of holes.

I have several auto center punches and a set of transfer punches made up for the one starrett. those see a lot of use.

[remy3424]

Good links Jim, I will have to build one this winter, once we are into January and things slow down.

[Scrounge]

Ive got a little 4 ounce ball peen I use for lay out work makes a nice light prick punch mark. But it still hurts when you get a finger. Very few know how to use a height gage, dividers or trammels any more

Learning from a couple old tradesman. They would do a bolt hole circle with dividers and a scale and drill press. punch center lay out circle and a starting spot then set dividers to evenly space the number of holes.

I have several auto center punches and a set of transfer punches made up for the one starrett. those see a lot of use.

There are a series of books, the Workshop Practice series, from the UK, with several books on layout, marking metals, and benchwork, and operating various machine tools, plus making your own tooling that are very worth having.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Workshop+Practice+Series&ref=nb_sb_noss_2 will help you find them on Amazon, but you can order them from a couple of publishers in the UK for cheaper than Amazon sometimes.

In Nevil Shute's book, Trustee from the Toolroom, the protagonist is based loosely on a model engineer who used Tubal Cain as a pen name writing in the Model Engineer, a UK magazine for model railroad enthusiast and machinists. He's also the author of several of the books in the Workshop Practice series. Written The Queens English, the idiom is a bit different. They call set screws "grub screws" for example. But you can usually figure things out.

[Shopdog]

YouTube;

Don Bailey,owner of Suburban machine has a series that I've been enjoying. More towards higher end grinding and metrology but it will answer questions about uber precision to any level. Just a nice gentleman sharing a lifelong passion. He grew up in a grinding shop.

[country gent]

There is also a tubalcain ( Mrpete222) on you tube that does videos on home machining and techniques. an old shop teacher.

[Rfeustel]

Yes those appear to be of the similar quality of the ones I have been using for over 20 years (no resharpening needed yet!). You can almost cut yourself on the ground flutes! Avoid the TiN plated ones (HF and others). That gold -colored plating is molecules thick and the 1st catch, scratch or resharpening, all the (so-called) protection is gone. Just an advertising gimmick.

I used to live in Farmington, MI and I think I have been to their place to buy tooling. Lots of tool mongers in and around Motown!

Always make sure your chuck is tightened down TIGHT on the drill shank. I have never had a drill slip and create gouge marks and wipe out the ID info on the shank. Pretty much junk pile fodder after that..............to me. Hand power drills are notorious at that.

Wow. I received the bits. It’s like I’ve never seen a real drill bit before. What a difference. Thanks!!

[Scrounge]

There is also a tubalcain ( Mrpete222) on you tube that does videos on home machining and techniques. an old shop teacher.

Yep. He's a bit young to be the Tubal Cain I was talking about, but he is a fine shop teacher, and does some really interesting and useful videos. The name is biblical, so it's not surprising that some folks borrow it now and then.

apropos the subject of this thread: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Mr.+Pete222+drill+press

Enjoy!

Bill

[bangerjim]

Wow. I received the bits. It’s like I’ve never seen a real drill bit before. What a difference. Thanks!!

Glad you are happy. :bigsmyl2:

Treat them like any other fine precision tool! Never use them in a hand drill unless you REALLY crank the chuck down extra tight to prevent spinning ( and destruction) of the shank. I have two sets of those cheap-o soft steel HF gold drills around for general field drilling and cobbling.

If you treat them right, they will last a lifetime and probably will never need sharpening.

[rbuck351]

The HF cobalt drills are not bad, much better than the tin coated HF drills. They are about $115 for the 115 pc drill set.

[bangerjim]

The HF cobalt drills are not bad, much better than the tin coated HF drills. They are about $115 for the 115 pc drill set.

Yes they are OK......but they do not have micro ground precision flutes like the good American-made drills do! I can cut my fingers on the flutes of my drill set. And the "business end" maintains a diamond ground and sharpened edge for many years, even under hard but caring usage. Very precision ground and sharpened for years of quality cutting.

That is why I have a couple HF cheap sets for general drilling. If one breaks, I throw it way, If one is dull, I sharpen it on my DAREX sharpener. Never any need to use the DAREX on the quality set.