Drill Press

[Tim Bearden]

I am in the market for a floor model drill press. I am looking at the Rigid brand and looking for some feedback. I am also open to any suggestions.

Thanks
Tim

[Allen Bookout]

Welcome Tim,

Last year I bought a Delta 17-965 and really like it. It had more features for the money in this price range than any that I could find at the time. Have not checked prices lately. Several members here recommended this model and I sure have not been disappointed.

Allen

PS I just checked the price at Amazon where I bought mine and it is $385 minus $50 with the SAVEMORE code for a total of $335. The kicker is there is a $99 shiping charge it looks like. You might be able to do better somewhere else but even at $434 I think that it is worth the money.

http://www.amazon.com/Delta-17-965-Horsepower-2-Inch-Press/dp/B00002266L/ref=sr_11_1/002-0713801-4557621

[Jim O'Dell]

I'll second the Delta 17-965. It is more money than the Ridgid, and I own several Ridgid tools and like them very well, so I'm not against the Rigid unit. I got mine at the Woodworker's show almost 3 years ago. Paid 379.00 plus tax then, so 434.00 shipped is not bad. Look to see if Delta still has the free mortise attachment for it, didn't when I bought mine. I liked the longer quill travel the Delta had, and didn't want to purchase one of these guys again. Jim.

[Alex Berkovsky]

I read in the current issue of Popular Woodworking (page 65) that Delta came out with drill presses for woodworkers this summer - models 17-959L, 20-950, and, 20-959LX. They did not list any prices though. I tried to find them on Delta's web site but they are not listing them yet.

[Dave Richards]

I would third the Delta 17-965. One of the features that I find important is the quill lock. It's on both my 1932 Walker-Turner Driver Line DP and the 1943 Craftsman/Atlas floor standing DP. I used the lock frequently on those machines and knew I'd miss it on the new DP. It was a challenge finding the lock feature as it seems to be mostly forgotten.

The 17-965 is smooth, quiet and well built and I doubt you'd have any regrets if you buy one.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

I read in the current issue of Popular Woodworking (page 65) that Delta came out with drill presses for woodworkers this summer - models 17-959L, 20-950, and, 20-959LX. They did not list any prices though. I tried to find them on Delta's web site but they are not listing them yet.

FWW states :

20-950 will sell for $749;
20-959LX will sell for $949.

I don't know if those are street prices or suggested retail.

This seems like a good deal and includes free shipping from Amazon :

http://www.amazon.com/Delta-17-968-Horsepower-2-Inch-Variable/dp/B0000CCXTF/sr=1-1/qid=1162079934/ref=sr_1_1/102-3088922-7372963?ie=UTF8&s=hi

[Tim Bearden]

Thanks for all the input. I am going to look into the Delta drill press, as it seems to be a popular choice.

Tim