My new tool shop project
 

First of all, I love shop tools. And for many years I wanted a drill press for the occasional project that needs one. Anyway, I bought this from a guy while I was in Atlanta and paid about $50 for it. It's a full size fairly old model Delta one and in need of a little work. I've been brushing off the rust and applying some much needed oil. The motor may need new capacitors as it just sits and hums when you turn it on until you grab the pulley and give it a spin (kind of unnerving as you imagine your fingers getting sucked into the v-belt). It ani't fancy and has no laser guided lights or anything so sissified and it is heavy as hell. But I like it.

If you need help with it, try posting here, you don't need to register. I know it's technically a paintball forum, but it's mostly tech junkies of all kinds, especially old machine tools, the guy who owns it rebuilds them for his shop since he's in Alaska and parts are rare.

Don't need lasers, bells and whistles. A drill press is a very simple idea, that opens a world of neat tricks you can perform. That old Delta will do the job quite nicely. :thumbsup:

When in doubt, clamp what you're drilling... seriously, when the work starts spinning along with the drill bit, it hurts.
I've seen a bunch of drill presses with the switch on the right side of the machine. Make sure you can reach the OFF switch with your left hand, because when something goes wrong, you don't want to let go of the handle with your right hand, while the spindle's still spinning. :headshake

where's the motor? Sitting on a bench somewhere? Or is it a direct drive, and the motor is sitting behind that bulbous looking thing? You mentioned belts.

It's pretty cool. I love old tools, and old power tools are built like tanks.

The motor is here:
http://www.qualityelectrichouston.com/index.php

I figure since they have been in buisness since 1959, they can probably tell me what is wrong. The motor mounts behind the main support and the belt runs from there to the top of the drill head behind the bulbous looking piece of cast iron.

Good tool! I have a mostly Delta shop myself. They make nice tools. Enjoy it for the rest of your life!

Listen to Bruce.

Old tools like that (I mean the drill, not Bruce :lol: ) can be solid and reliable, but the safety features may be below par. No on second thoughts that could apply to Bruce as well ;) .

I'd bet that CIH won't have a problem. The most important safety feature is the one between your ears.

I sometimes wonder how we survived as a species before there were detailed instructions and liability attorneys.

Aw come on, Wolfie -- haven't you read enough Niven & Pournelle to say Think of it as evolution in action?*

*Oath of Fealty if you're interested. Wow -- it's been a very long time.

Just make sure that you change the electrical cord out for a grounded one. That is one of the biggest safety improvements many old electrical tools lacked. Looks like a big project.

Well, I finally finished my restoration and it works great! I spent about $15 on a new switch and grounded cord and a new light fixture, $5 for a new chuck key and $102 for the motor repair. They said the internals switch needed replacing and they cleaned and checked out the bearings. I had to get the chuck key at WW Grainger. It's a cool national chain that sells just about everything. Every Jacobs Chuck has a few letters and numbers as a code and that was all I needed to get the correct key. I was at a wood working store and picked up a neat clamp for holding things tightly to the table. There are 4 speed settings by changing the belt to a different pulley but I left it on the fairly fast (maybe 1200-1500 rpm) setting. I'd mainly slow it down for drilling big holes, especially in metal.

Oh I forgot, the last picture (above) shows the 2 new handles I had to add as the drill press only came with one. I used some aluminum bar stock I had laying around, threaded it and then added a ball to the end from my woodworking supplies, I think they are made from birch. Here is the clamp and light in action

Aw, sweet memories of dad coming in from the garage with metal shavings everywhere, and blackened thumbnails from the blacksmithing hammer........beautiful piece of machinery Chris. Thanks for the memories.

nice job with the replacement handles! Those wooden balls look like they are the perfect size. Sweet machine. Is it smooth in action?