John Ziebron
05-23-2017, 10:25 PM
I've had my Nova drill press for a few months now and I love it. It replaced my one year old PM2800B.
The Nova has a larger base so it is more stable. It is a little odd looking because the head is much smaller compared to a standard DP head. But I think it weighs as much or more. I use my DP probably as much for drilling metal and some plastic as wood so the fact that you can easily and quickly change speeds by turning a small knob is great. I like how you can quickly go through the menu to select the type of bit, drill size and type of material and let the machine set the correct speed (of course, you can always override and change the speed). The noise level is very low, just a slight whine of the motor. And vibration is almost non existent, especially at lower speeds.
Other features I've used are programming the drilling depth and have the DP indicate when you are getting close and then automatically stop. And you can set the DP to start and stop when the quill is raised and lowered. A nice feature when drilling multiple holes. There are other features, like 4 programmable buttons, which I haven't used yet.
I do a fair amount of metal fabrication and sometimes have to drill large diameter holes like 1 inch. Many DPs, either belt or variable speed, do not have a low enough speed, like the PM2800B, for these size bits. The Nova will go down to 50 RPM. And because of the variable reluctance control it will maintain the set speed regardless of load. The 50 RPM speed allows for easy tapping in metal, something I couldn't do before (I would just use the DP to get the tap started straight by turning by hand).
But there were some things I didn't like about the Nova. It came with a keyed chuck which I quickly replaced with a keyless model. It does not have a built in light. I solved that problem as you will read further down. And it does not have a built in laser, but I never used the one in the PM2800B anyway.
Like other DPs I've had you need a larger table with T slots for woodworking. So I made this one from 2 pieces of 3/4 inch MDF glued together and formica'd on both sides. I used a replaceable MDF square off center for the sacrificial insert. The basic table is 33 inches wide by 20 inches deep. And there are two 3 inch wide extensions on each side which slide out on 1 inch square aluminum stock. The actual table width with both sides fully extended is 84 inches.
I also wanted some storage close at hand. So I built another base under the MDF table that has 5 drawers, each 18 inches deep. I didn't want any handles or knobs to bump into or catch clothing on so I used press to release full extension slides. I will have to give credit to someone else via internet pictures that gave me the ideas for the table extensions and the drawers. I merely adapted them a little differently.
In the past I've drilled metal on this type table, but if I ever want to take it off and use the 16 1/2 inch cast table that all of this sits on I can easily do it by removing 4 knobs. This allows the top and drawer section to be removed separately because of the weight involved.
As you can see in one of the pictures below, the table elevation crank handle is designed to just clear the cast table. So the first thing I did was to make an extension for it to allow for the wider table. This was done by making an intermediate shaft and a support for it. I drilled and tapped two 5/16" holes in the elevation mechanism casting to hold the shaft support in place yet make it easily removable if one ever wants to go back to original configuration.
The lighting issue was solved with 2 LED ring lights. They are glued to a plastic "ring" which is then secured by 2 screws on the quill casting that is used for the mechanical depth stop. The rings are powered by a 12 volt DC converter that I had on hand. But instead of having the converter plugged into the wall (drawing power all the time) I mounted the guts of it in a small plastic box and added a switch to actually switch the 110 volt AC line. The box is held in place on the side of the head by a couple of small magnets. A section of coiled microphone cable is used to maintain power to the rings through the 6 inch quill travel.
I believe this will be the last drill press I own.
The Nova has a larger base so it is more stable. It is a little odd looking because the head is much smaller compared to a standard DP head. But I think it weighs as much or more. I use my DP probably as much for drilling metal and some plastic as wood so the fact that you can easily and quickly change speeds by turning a small knob is great. I like how you can quickly go through the menu to select the type of bit, drill size and type of material and let the machine set the correct speed (of course, you can always override and change the speed). The noise level is very low, just a slight whine of the motor. And vibration is almost non existent, especially at lower speeds.
Other features I've used are programming the drilling depth and have the DP indicate when you are getting close and then automatically stop. And you can set the DP to start and stop when the quill is raised and lowered. A nice feature when drilling multiple holes. There are other features, like 4 programmable buttons, which I haven't used yet.
I do a fair amount of metal fabrication and sometimes have to drill large diameter holes like 1 inch. Many DPs, either belt or variable speed, do not have a low enough speed, like the PM2800B, for these size bits. The Nova will go down to 50 RPM. And because of the variable reluctance control it will maintain the set speed regardless of load. The 50 RPM speed allows for easy tapping in metal, something I couldn't do before (I would just use the DP to get the tap started straight by turning by hand).
But there were some things I didn't like about the Nova. It came with a keyed chuck which I quickly replaced with a keyless model. It does not have a built in light. I solved that problem as you will read further down. And it does not have a built in laser, but I never used the one in the PM2800B anyway.
Like other DPs I've had you need a larger table with T slots for woodworking. So I made this one from 2 pieces of 3/4 inch MDF glued together and formica'd on both sides. I used a replaceable MDF square off center for the sacrificial insert. The basic table is 33 inches wide by 20 inches deep. And there are two 3 inch wide extensions on each side which slide out on 1 inch square aluminum stock. The actual table width with both sides fully extended is 84 inches.
I also wanted some storage close at hand. So I built another base under the MDF table that has 5 drawers, each 18 inches deep. I didn't want any handles or knobs to bump into or catch clothing on so I used press to release full extension slides. I will have to give credit to someone else via internet pictures that gave me the ideas for the table extensions and the drawers. I merely adapted them a little differently.
In the past I've drilled metal on this type table, but if I ever want to take it off and use the 16 1/2 inch cast table that all of this sits on I can easily do it by removing 4 knobs. This allows the top and drawer section to be removed separately because of the weight involved.
As you can see in one of the pictures below, the table elevation crank handle is designed to just clear the cast table. So the first thing I did was to make an extension for it to allow for the wider table. This was done by making an intermediate shaft and a support for it. I drilled and tapped two 5/16" holes in the elevation mechanism casting to hold the shaft support in place yet make it easily removable if one ever wants to go back to original configuration.
The lighting issue was solved with 2 LED ring lights. They are glued to a plastic "ring" which is then secured by 2 screws on the quill casting that is used for the mechanical depth stop. The rings are powered by a 12 volt DC converter that I had on hand. But instead of having the converter plugged into the wall (drawing power all the time) I mounted the guts of it in a small plastic box and added a switch to actually switch the 110 volt AC line. The box is held in place on the side of the head by a couple of small magnets. A section of coiled microphone cable is used to maintain power to the rings through the 6 inch quill travel.
I believe this will be the last drill press I own.