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View Full Version : Drill press crank table retrofit



Matt Drage
01-26-2010, 12:23 PM
I have an old Craftsman drill press that performs fine until I need to raise the table. It doesn't have a geared crank and it is a nightmare to raise. Lowering is no problem...just loosen and stand back.

Is it possible and cost effective to replace my table with a crank type table and add the verticle toothed piece to the column?

glenn bradley
01-26-2010, 12:38 PM
Easy Riser (if they are still around . . . .) http://www.onlinetoolreviews.com/reviews/easyriser.htm

Danny Burns
01-26-2010, 12:39 PM
It is all up to finding a similar column diameter in a fairly cheap machine.

CL might be the route to go.

Matt Meiser
01-26-2010, 1:18 PM
Some have put a heavy weight down the column, a pulley at the top and a wire to connect to the table, creating a counterweight system that makes moving the table easier.

Ben Martin
01-26-2010, 1:19 PM
I cannot claim credit for this, but when I saw that HF had it on sale for 50% off ($15 total) I couldn't resist. Once I put my drill press table on, the thing was a bear to adjust up. That is no longer a problem.

It sure isn't about looks, but it definitely functions VERY well!!

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp325/martbj/General%20Workshop%20Pictures/IMG_2580.jpg

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp325/martbj/General%20Workshop%20Pictures/IMG_2579.jpg

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp325/martbj/General%20Workshop%20Pictures/IMG_2578.jpg

Cliff Holmes
01-26-2010, 1:22 PM
I have an electric one of those from an old camper I've thought about adapting. Whenever I actually find a new DP to buy I might do it!

Matt Drage
01-26-2010, 2:02 PM
That looks like it would do the trick. I did a quick search and found a distributer in Australia here: http://www.timbecon.com.au/details/easy-riser-kit-13394.aspx (http://www.timbecon.com.au/details/easy-riser-kit-13394.aspx) but it looks like they don't ship to the US. I can't find a domestic supplier. I guess I could try cobbling together something similar using pieces and parts laying around. Or, break open the piggy bank and get that cool Jet DP I've drooling over.

Curt Harms
01-27-2010, 10:20 AM
A $10 bottle jack works just fine. I have a discontinued Delta radial arm drill press. The table was okay to move 'til I put a table on it. Then it was impossible. A bottle jack works fine. This wouldn't work on a floor standing DP of course. The trailer jack is a clever idea.

Bill Huber
01-27-2010, 11:10 AM
Here is what I did with the old Craftsman drill press.

It has been working and doing just fine for a long time now and I did not have to do anything but put the jack under it.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=99522&highlight=drill+press

139940

(http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=104122&d=1229812495)

Noah Katz
01-27-2010, 5:05 PM
The counterweight-in-column idea is pretty slick.

Simpler/cheaper (than storebought) would be a gas strut; Mcmaster has them.

James Divilbiss
12-16-2014, 6:30 PM
Have a Sears floor mount drill press, 2 3/4 inch column. Need to lift the table with a crank type system. IHas anyone since 2010 come up with another solution?

Lornie McCullough
12-18-2014, 9:42 PM
This is low tech, cheap, and certainly not an original idea. But it works very well.... a simple pulley attached to drill press, and then a counter-weight to balance the table.

302302

The white plastic tube is the column in which the counterweight rides. It was easier than trying to fit it within the drill column. The weight is a large tin can filled with bolts and lead

Lornie

Rick Potter
12-19-2014, 3:45 AM
Ben's setup. My buddy has a setup like it. A simple Harbor freight trailer tongue jack on sale.

His works great.