Hi all. Looks like we got a new drill press in the shop at some point last week. It looks like a beast, but I wasn’t able to use it on account of a missing chuck key. Did it grow legs, or was it kept away on purpose because the press is still being set up?
It grew legs, apparently. Didn’t take long either.
The chuck key was in the facilities cabinet with the rest of the manual and parts. I didnt leave it with the machine, because I wasnt sure if we had put it in service yet. They key is now on the magnet in the side of the machine.
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Does it make sense to attached the key to a retractable cable?
The magnet’s simple and effective; let’s give it a try. If we still can’t keep track of the key, something like a retractable keyring would be my next vote.
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Awesome – thank you all!
I had taken the chuck key and magnet off the old drill press and left it on the new one when I left last night (at around 6 pm). It was a bit small but sufficient. James, did you put that chuck key back with the old machine?
I’d been planning to post about the new drill press anyway, so I’ll tag along here: there had been a plastic insert in the center that obviously had to be removed to use it. I loosened a bunch of screws and popped it out with a bit of pressure. But it turned out I just loosened the leveling adjustment screws and missed two screws holding it in place, and “popping it out” was actually breaking the two posts where those screws attached. <facepalm> (In my defense, it took surprisingly little force to break them.) I think / hope it doesn’t matter much; this was possibly just a shipping widget.
Charlie and I had talked briefly Wednesday that we would certainly need to make a bunch of inserts for where that piece went anyway, so as penance I went ahead and made a batch. As luck would have it, I had a bunch of pieces almost the perfect size on hand. (Very dumb luck — they were miscuts from redesigns and miscalculations.) I put one in the table — attached with two screws! — and put a 3/4” hole in it. The others are nearby and can have different holes put in them as needed. And I still have lots of that miscut scrap if we need more. (Note: the inserts look square at first glance but are in fact not.)
Two questions after actually using it a bit: 1) What are appropriate speed settings to use? 2) Does this have a depth stop? I see the depth gauge but not a stop.
One note: the sliding stop on the fence is a bit fiddly, and I had to use an allen wrench (metric) to fix it. I think the nylon nut it uses is rotating when it shouldn’t.
“something like a retractable keyring would be my next vote”.
These can actually be dangerous if you put it on something durable like a cable or chain. If you turn on the spindle with it in, it can rip it out and whip it around. Also potentially entrap your hand inside as it winds up, although hard to see how, I tend to err on the side of safety. Something weak enough to be breakaway to reduce that risk will probably break frequently.
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Chuck key discipline is also important. You never leave the chuck key in the chuck
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Well, yeah, but we’ve all done it at some point, and probably will again. Sent the chuck key flying across the room.
The chuck key with the Powermatic is self-ejecting. It has a spring loaded tip so it will push itself out if you’re not holding it.
I think there’s two separate probs here- losing the chuck key (or mixing up with another) and leaving the key in the chuck and having it fly across the room when you turn on the spindle.
The old chuck key is with the old drill press.
The new chuck key has a spring loaded end to prevent accidentally leaving it in. Is that full proof, probably not, but better than one without.
For what its worth, I believe that plastic insert was meant to be left in place and drilled out. Would it probably get damaged quickly, yes. So having multiple inserts is a good thing.
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I tell safety class students that if the chuck key is not in your hand, it must be on the magnet. Never set it down anywhere other than the magnet or it will instantly disappear.
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I’ll bump this because I had the same question – this is the first drill press I’ve used without an obvious depth stop capability. Is there a trick or does it require an add-on?
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The press does have a depth stop. Its built into the right side rotating knob. I cant explain it on here, but maybe a youtube search?
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Is it like shown here?
It’s in the ballpark. Drill press manual is on the wiki; depth stop is on page 14
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Perfect – thanks!