Rigid Drill Press worth it?

[Brian Kent]

If I was saving for the ideal drill press it would be a Steel City for $500 + shipping (and maybe tax). That won't be for quite awhile.

Meanwhile there is a 6 month old Rigid DP1550 Drill Press on Craig's List for $120. Is it worth it? It would meet my needs for what I need right now.

Brian

[steve reeves]

If I was saving for the ideal drill press it would be a Steel City for $500 + shipping (and maybe tax). That won't be for quite awhile.

Meanwhile there is a 6 month old Rigid DP1550 Drill Press on Craig's List for $120. Is it worth it? It would meet my needs for what I need right now.

Brian

Check it for runout... if it runs reasonably true then it'll do what you need.

The price is decent.... sure beats $500+

You can get by for a long time with a smallish drill press... I know guys that are using presses that cost under $100 brand new for several years now and have never needed anything bigger.

[Glenn Howard]

It depends. If you truly had your heart set on the Steel City, then anything less would be settling, and eventually, you'd find yourself wishing you had been patient. I have one, and I love it. I nearly settled for the Ridgid and I'm glad I didn't.

On the other had, the Ridgid is a decent drill press, even for the $300 it costs new. If the used one you're looking at is in good condition, then it's almost certainly worth $120.

Depending on your needs, it may get you by for a good long time. If nothing else, buy the Ridgid, use it long enough until you can save up for the Steel City, and you will most likely be able to resell the Ridgid for what you bought it for, if not a little more.

[Norman Pyles]

I wouldn't wait too long, that Ridged drill press probably won't last long at that price.

[Brian Kent]

I doubt it is still available, because there has been no return e-mail yet. I'll still wait and see.

Questions about the Steel City:

What is a split head casting design?

What is a #2 Morse Taper Spindle?

Did I read somewhere that they are coming out with a dial-speed rather than belt changes?

[Glenn Howard]

The split head design will allow you to adjust the head as the drill press ages to compensate for any "slop" that develops. It's definitely a feature worth having.

The #2 Morse taper is the type of spindle taper used in this particular drill press. It's fairly standard and is used in many drill press models.

If it isn't already obvious, the 6" travel is unheard of in a drill press in this price range...very nice feature.

I did hear that they are releasing a "variable speed" model, which always makes me laugh a bit. Most drill presses are variable speed, they're adjusted by moving the belts. For some reason, the industry chooses to use the misleading marketing phrase "variable speed" to denote a drill press for which the speed is changed via a knob or other such method. Sure it's more convenient, and you have more variation than a "step method" of moving belts, but it makes it seem that drill presses without this feature have no speed variation, which isn't true. Personally, I wouldn't pay more for variable speed.

I haven't heard anything as far as what the price point will be for the variable speed Steel City, but I'd have to assume it will be more than the current model, which I've also heard is due for a price hike in the very near future.