Powermatic PM2800 Drill Press

[bob cohen]

I know the general opinion has been that this drill press is overpriced, but now that the price has been dropped to $899 and with a looming 10% discount from my local woodcraft dealer, I'm thinking seriously of picking one up next weekend. Apart from its modest quill travel, it seems to have more good features (table and fence designed for woodworking, quill lock, variable speed, keyless chuck, and laser guides) than any other comparable unit. The table top on currently shipping units is milled smooth, which was not the case when the model was first released and was a source of customer complaint. What do you think? I would really appreciate hearing from owners.

[Jim Dunn]

I haven't got an opinion of the drill in general but I would shy away from a keyless chuck capable of large diameters. A few slips and your drills will never run correctly again.

[glenn bradley]

I would do a search here. Several folks got these and ended up returning them for poor quality issues. I have also seen some positive posts on this DP so maybe the problems were at the onset and have been resolved.

We have some owners and brief owners here I believe and I hope they will chime in. This DP has the promise of a lot of great features and I was sorely disappointed when the initial reviews were so poor.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?referrerid=5960&t=86460

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=47379

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=68281&highlight=2800

These examples seem a little one sided . . . I know some folks kept them and are happy with them. I didn't find any posts (quickly) with positive reviews but I know I have read them. Again, this may have been an initial QC problem that is fixed and I hope some current owners will chime in.

[Michael Peet]

I believe one of the other negatives is the relatively high lowest speed of 400 RPM.

Mike

[Leigh Betsch]

I had one, actually I had three. I went through a sorting process trying to find a good one because I like the features. In the end I returned all of them and bought something totally different. You can search for my review. Hopefully they have resolved the issue I was dealing with, it was a very simple machining error but I doubt anyone is left from the original Powermatic company that knows anything about machining. To me Powermatic is now just another importer, same as the rest. I don't know the current state of their quality, hopefully it is better that when the PM2800 first came out.

[Van Huskey]

Lets assume you get a good one at the onset, my real problem with this DP is the VS does not allow a slow enough speed for large forstner bits etc. I am looking for a new DP as well and that alone knocks it off my list. If I had to buy today it would be the Jet although it is not VS it does have a poly V belt for easier changes than a V belt, has the woodworking table and has a much slower bottom end speed. I have had such good luck with PM stuff that I would not hesitate to purchase the PM2800 IF it has a low speed around 200 rpm but with 400 rpm on the low end it will be a Jet or the Delta for me unless Grizzly comes out with a better product at a better price with the rumored woodworking DP.

[Eddie Darby]

There are a few new DP's in the works right now,so even if you decide to get the same DP, you may want to do it after seeing the new DP's.
Grizzly is one of them, and Delta may be another one, coming out with them in the Spring.

[Mike Heidrick]

Wow, I thought it was WAY overpriced at $899 originally :confused::confused: and I like tools to the extreme.

[Steven Satur]

I am still trying to figure out why do you need a drill press with a laser? I have been a carpenter/ woodworker for 30 years. If you can't place the bit where it has to go then...

[Van Huskey]

Wow, I thought it was WAY overpriced at $899 originally :confused::confused: and I like tools to the extreme.


I don't know about "WAY overpriced". It is priced 300 to 400 hundred dollars over the direct competition which at the price point is quite a bit. But consider what you get. Variable speed with DRO, full 1 hp motor (some have 3/4), keyless chuck, 18 in swing (most of the direct comp are 17), chuck to table 30" clearance, woodworking table that has extension wings that extend to 30", snap in inserts and a split fence with integrated dust collection. Is it expensive, yes, is it significantly more expensive than the direct competition, yes, but I think considering all it brings to the table which no other DP even at its price has (that I am aware of) I certainly would not say it is way overpriced, in fact the price seems reasonable considering all the extra features. Again for me it has one fatal flaw, the 400 rpm low end, if that was 250 or lower it would be a no brainer for me even at the price.

[Van Huskey]

I am still trying to figure out why do you need a drill press with a laser? I have been a carpenter/ woodworker for 30 years. If you can't place the bit where it has to go then...


Not unlike miter saw lasers. The real advantage is speed, if a laser is properly aligned you can bang out holes MUCH faster if you have a lot to bore, particularly on the same piece. Same with a miter saw, if the lasers are dead nuts on it saves time.

[Mike Heidrick]

I don't know about "WAY overpriced". It is priced 300 to 400 hundred dollars over the direct competition which at the price point is quite a bit. But consider what you get. Variable speed with DRO, full 1 hp motor (some have 3/4), keyless chuck, 18 in swing (most of the direct comp are 17), chuck to table 30" clearance, woodworking table that has extension wings that extend to 30", snap in inserts and a split fence with integrated dust collection. Is it expensive, yes, is it significantly more expensive than the direct competition, yes, but I think considering all it brings to the table which no other DP even at its price has (that I am aware of) I certainly would not say it is way overpriced, in fact the price seems reasonable considering all the extra features. Again for me it has one fatal flaw, the 400 rpm low end, if that was 250 or lower it would be a no brainer for me even at the price.

Would not trade a Steel city manual speed change DP for it and surely would not trade two+ as they were $375 at one time. I do not need a DRO as I set the speed. I do not need to adjust speeds that quickly while working. I will keep my 6" swing over the 4 3/8 and I will keep my speed range (however I do not think only going to 400rpm is a flaw I would be worried about). Table and fence on PM2800 are super sweet but you could beuild a dream table for that scratch difference.

With Steel City's management change out and Delta not being able to deliver on their new drill presses maybe the PM2800 will be the one to own. I really should look for an old industrial 3phase model and add a VFD for my ultimate design. My manual speed Steel City suites me just fine though.

[John Trax]

I bought a PM2800 just before Christmas last year to replace a 20 year old generic drill press. This was a big step up for me and absolutely no comparison to what I had been using. This was the only DP on the market that fit my requirements. I was totally burned out on changing belts and refused to even look at another belt change model. I am very well pleased with a few exceptions.

The switch burned out in January, turns out the neutral wire had not been tightened on the switch and it was arcing inside. Eventually heated up and burned out the switch. Replacement parts sent very quickly.

The table lift is a little stiffer than I like but then the table is lot bigger and heavier than my old one so maybe I'm just used to the old one.

The LED lights are nice but are not really bright enough.

I thought the lasers would be just a gimmick but now I love them. Would not be without them.

I do not like the depth lock mechanism used, I think the one on Delta's is better but that just might be me.

Variable speed change is smooth, DP is fairly quiet and runs true.

I hesitated over the keyless chuck but decided if it was really bad I'd replace it with a good Jacobs. So far it has performed flawlessly without a single slip. Used it on everything from drilling pen blanks to 2" forstner bits with never a slip.

There are not a lot of choices out there with this set of features which is why the price may be a little higher than it could be but I am very happy with mine. The only things I would change are add brighter lights and a different depth lock.

YMMV

[Van Huskey]

Would not trade a Steel city manual speed change DP for it and surely would not trade two+ as they were $375 at one time. I do not need a DRO as I set the speed. I do not need to adjust speeds that quickly while working. I will keep my 6" swing over the 4 3/8 and I will keep my speed range (however I do not think only going to 400rpm is a flaw I would be worried about). Table and fence on PM2800 are super sweet but you could beuild a dream table for that scratch difference.

With Steel City's management change out and Delta not being able to deliver on their new drill presses maybe the PM2800 will be the one to own. I really should look for an old industrial 3phase model and add a VFD for my ultimate design. My manual speed Steel City suites me just fine though.


The Steel City is a nice DP but lately I have seen it over $600, quill travel is its strong point.

I suppose the PM is overpriced for you but everyone distills value differently and the PM offers a LOT that other DPs do not, if you don't want a car with A/C or navigation a car only available with those will likely not be a value to you but if you desire those features and only one car has them despite a higher price it may well be the best value.

[michael case]

Check how much slop there is in the quill. Lower it down and check the play. The PM floor models I have handles had an outrageous amount of slop.

[Leigh Betsch]

Another thing to watch out for is how solid the depth stop is. Most home shop drill presses are not very good. You should be able to put a significant amount of force on the stop and not see movement. Most home drill presses I see deflect and move, making it hard to hold a flat bottom hole depth very acurate. I can't rember how the 3 PM2800's I had were.

[Paul Ryan]

Check how much slop there is in the quill. Lower it down and check the play. The PM floor models I have handles had an outrageous amount of slop.


That is the case for every import drill press I have tested in the past 6 months. Some are tight and some are real loose. I have a jet that is sloppy as can be, and it is annoying. I still haven't gotten around to taking out the quill and trying a fix. Or maybe calling jet and complaining again. But it is not just Jet, Delta, Ridgid, Powermatic, Grizzly, and every other NEW drill press I have seen has slop in the quill. The only tight ones are the old machines. I suggest buying old and refurbishing.

A laser on a machine that was built with it is very usefull. I have use machines with the add on lasers and they are gimics. But the laser on the jet comes in handy very often. It was dead on out of the box. The 2 cross hairs show exactly where the bit is going to drill no matter where the table is, the table has nothing to do with the cross hairs it is a real nice feature.