What Power Tool/Machine Add-ons Are Actually Worth Having?

[Matthew Hutchinson477]

I recently got ahold of an old Atlas drill press (see my other recent thread for a picture) that I am pretty excited about. In the spirit of excitement I was thinking last night about the different attachments I could get and all the things I could make this thing do besides drilling holes. In the old catalogs Atlas used to advertise mortising attachments, shaping/sanding drums, etc. But reading about the problems with a drill press lathe kit on forums last night brought me back to the reality that these additional add-on doohickey's are often pretty crappy.

Given my limited space, tight budget, and desire not to accumulate more clutter than I already have, I am always trying to figure out how to do more with less when it comes to power tools. In hindsight, almost none of these contraptions end up working as well as a tool or machine that is dedicated specifically to whatever I am trying to do. Sometimes they work well enough, though, for a guy who isn't gonna use the thing too often. Like my handheld beltsander clamped upside down to a workbench instead of a real stationary sanding machine.

I know I am not alone in this desire to minimize the number of machines I need and to make my tools do more so I thought this could be a helpful discussion topic. What do you guys do with your tools that is outside of that tools specifically intended function? What function-transforming attachments have you used that are actually effective? And just for fun, what ideas or attachments are completely stupid in your opinion?
Hammer_and_nail_Justinbaeder_Flickr.jpg

For me the bench grinder has been useful for wire-wheeling and buffing as much as for grinding, the drill press has been great for light sanding either using drums or chucking round parts in the press, and my 1/2" corded drill has been used for more things than I can think of. On the other hand, the planer really only planes to thickness (ya, I know, some people use them to joint by making sleds but I'll stick with my hand planes) and the circular saw only cuts big things down to rough size.

[Jim Allen]

MY radial arm saw has seem stellar duty through the past 35 years, horizontal drilling, drum sanding molding attachment, just to name a few. It's all I had when I built a bookcase in our dining, built in entertainment center in our living room and a wall unit in our bedroom. Now I have a table saw and it gets used a lot, after I got it I almost sold my RAS and am so glad I didn't.

[Rick Potter]

If you are asking about accessories for that drill press, I would only recommend two.

First, make a nice table top for it with replaceable inserts and T-tracks for a simple fence. A hold down would be nice too.

Second, make a removable table about 4" thick to use as a base for sanding spindles. The thickness is so you can move the sanding spindle up or down to use it all. Put a shop vac size hole in the side of it for DC.

Both these will be very handy, and cost you next to nothing.

[John K Jordan]

Knowing what kinds of things you like to make might provide more useful suggestions.

A woodcarver might get by without a sliding table saw. Those who make kitchen cabinets and those who make chairs might have different needs.

I personally would hate to have a shop without a good lathe, bandsaw, bench grinders, drum sander, disk/belt sander, and few others.

[Matthew Hutchinson477]

Knowing what kinds of things you like to make might provide more useful suggestions.

Eh, I'm not so much looking for specific suggestions at the moment. Just thought it would be a good discussion topic. Whatever direction the conversation goes, I figured there would be some insight involved. Maybe some "why didn't I think of that?" clever solutions to problems.