# drill press depth stop



## sunnybob (Apr 3, 2015)

middle of last year I bought a bench top drill press. nothing too expensive, but it was time.
Then i realised that the depth stop rubbish. It was a one piece plastic unit incorporating a face shield, but any downward force on the handle meant that the stop bowed and dropped almost a 1/4" below what it was supposed to.

So i made a steel replacement.

Didnt want the plastic guard as its only me and I wear goggles if i'm drilling wood anyway.

trying to take the original off it snapped in half (picture 5)
I dipped the finished item in red hammerite to match the press.
Now its stronger than the rest of the press.


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## N'awlins77 (Feb 25, 2011)

Nice! Can't believe they would make that out of plastic!!


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## Knothead47 (Feb 10, 2010)

It's cheaper to mold a zillion plastic parts than make one out of metal. Example- I have an old Craftsman sander that has a zinc die cast body. I have a new belt sander that has a plastic body.


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## ggom (Apr 5, 2017)

bad plastic sh.t

How much did you pay that?

I'd like to see a pict from the right side of this drill, it's usually 
on the right side that they got a rotative depth scale , with a stop function.

Regards.
Gérard


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## ggom (Apr 5, 2017)

Ok!

Sorry, went to see some at harbor freight, those drills just got nothing on the right side .

I had never seen a drill press made like that. Ours always have a rotary dial on the right side

same axis as the rotary levers , and this carries a screw for depth- stop.

This allows for about 0.5mm repeatability depth - stop 

Regards.
Gérard


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## hawkeye10 (Jul 28, 2015)

Bob you must have a machine shop or have acess to one. It looks like it was made with a CNC. Great work on your part. I also made one but I made it out of white oak. It doesn't look to good but it works.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

John; to be fair a lot of the plastic casing used on modern tools is part of the 'double insulated' design function. Absolutely necessary in order to keep the operator isolated from the electrical components.
And honestly, it does make the tools lighter (in weight).


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

This seems to be another case of tool designers and engineers who don't use the power tools they design. Nice build.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

The depth stop should be standard equipment. I'm drilling cup holes for Euro style hinges right now in 5/8 melamine and a depth stop is an absolute necessity.There is so little material left below the cup before blowing out the other side that it leaves no room for error. Mine is a Delta floor model but the quill, depth stop, and pointer are so much like Gerard's that I'm betting they were made in the same factory under different names.


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## sunnybob (Apr 3, 2015)

The press was a cheap one. i knew that and was prepared (or so I thought) for it to be less than perfect.
Turned out to be considerably less. I had to do a lot of work to make it even function.
The NVR switch was wired backwards, the motor adjusting tension knob thread was stripped out. The bolts for fixing the column to the base were the wrong size. All of those should not have been there, but i fixed the problems quite easily, but the depth stop was just unusable.

Don, no machine shop. All hand cut and filed apart from the main hole which i cut on the drill press using a hole cutter.
i always enjoyed making stuff with metal.


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## hawkeye10 (Jul 28, 2015)

sunnybob said:


> The press was a cheap one. i knew that and was prepared (or so I thought) for it to be less than perfect.
> Turned out to be considerably less. I had to do a lot of work to make it even function.
> The NVR switch was wired backwards, the motor adjusting tension knob thread was stripped out. The bolts for fixing the column to the base were the wrong size. All of those should not have been there, but i fixed the problems quite easily, but the depth stop was just unusable.
> 
> ...


WOW!!! That took some time but it was worth it.


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## Knothead47 (Feb 10, 2010)

> > This seems to be another case of tool designers and engineers who don't use the power tools they design.


DRT, same with auto designers. I can't understand what they think when they design a car or truck. My sander has a two prong plug. Never had a problem with the electricity.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

sunnybob said:


> middle of last year I bought a bench top drill press. nothing too expensive, but it was time.
> Then i realised that the depth stop rubbish. It was a one piece plastic unit incorporating a face shield, but any downward force on the handle meant that the stop bowed and dropped almost a 1/4" below what it was supposed to.
> 
> So i made a steel replacement.
> ...



Thanks for posting this thread, Sunnybob. I too have a small HF drill press with a plastic depth gauge. I cuss that flimsy thing every time I use it, so you inspired me to solve the problem. I made min out of a piece of 1/4" thick aluminum. 
Herb


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

Next


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## Gaffboat (Mar 11, 2012)

@Herb Stoops

Great story-telling photos, Herb. Thanks.


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Not just a pretty face then, Herb? 
I know I've posted this link in the past, but in case anyone missed it (huge amount of drill press info here)...
Drill Presses & Chucks


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

DaninVan said:


> Not just a pretty face then, Herb?
> I know I've posted this link in the past, but in case anyone missed it (huge amount of drill press info here)...
> Drill Presses & Chucks


GREAT INFO, no I have not seen that, thanks for posting, got some new ideas already. HMMMM......too much information too little memory.

Herb


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

It's in my bookmarks; there when I need it!

The author keeps updating the site and adding new stuff. 
Betcha Oliver could find a use for that mini DP()?...
http://www.micro-machine-shop.com/drill_presses_chucks.htm#Miniature_Drill_Press


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