harbor freight drill press

[Marc Prudhomme]

Hi
I bought the 99 dollar 1/2 HP benchtop drill press at HF.I hope its not a pice of crap.Ill cross my fingers

[Tim Malyszko]

Hi
I bought the 99 dollar 1/2 HP benchtop drill press at HF.I hope its not a pice of crap.Ill cross my fingers

I'm interested in hearing your experience. I will probably buy a drill press in the next few months and this one was on my list.

Good Luck with it.

[Marc Prudhomme]

Tim
I always hear mixed reviews about HF on this site.I never know what to think

[Pete Brown]

The most important thing to test with an inexpensive drill press is the runout. Chuck some plain drill rod in there and look for wobble at the end.

[Larry Crim]

Marc
I bought the larger floor model 16 speed and It turned out to be a pretty good paid $149 for it a few years ago I did find that the chuck and taper were pretty much junk so after upgrading the taper and chuck I ended up with a fairly good drill press. I do not know if others have had the same experience with HF tools as me but I have had to replace all the switches on All my HF electric tools the rocker switch they use is pretty much junk I have three tools with the rocker switch DP, DC and grinder and have had to replace all the switches.
Larry

[Tyler Howell]

My first DP was HF. Would burn oval holes in in my stock.

[James Carmichael]

Save your receipt.

[Glen Simpson]

A friend and I both bought one, I am using the motors and pulleys from both for other projects. Broke the depth stop on the first one in about 2 hours. Never again...

Glen Simpson

[Marc Prudhomme]

Oh boy, I got a bad feeling.Well I could use it for about a year(if it makes it that long)then sell it on craigs list for 30 less than I paid for it.

[Jim W. White]

I'll dare to go against the flow here.

I have the floor model listed below and have been very happy with it. At first I was disappointed and was ready to bring it back when I remembered I had some extra link belt laying around. Replaced both the drive belts with link and cut the vibration down to nothing. It routinely goes on sale for $100 off the price currently listed which then puts it at the price point I beleive it should be at.

If your going to bring the one you bought back, I would encourage you to get a floor model as the footprint really is inconsequential when compared to dealing with a larger bench model which you will have to "place" in a semi-permanent place somewhere.

My 2 cents,

Jim in Idaho

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=43389

[Marc Prudhomme]

Hi,
Well I finaly got the drill press in the mail yesterday and I have to say I was very surprised.I have heard some real horror stories on this forum about HF and I was expecting the cheapest piece of junk on the market.Put it together in about 20 min,started it up and drilled a few 5/8 holes in some oak with no problem at all.No wobble at all,cast iron base and table,has some good weight to it,depth stop works great,switch is a little loose(I have heard of problems on forum about the switches)but if thats the only thing that goes,no big deal.For the money IMO I think I got a great deal.Thinking about trying the 12 in Thickness planer next but i will wait as little while.Still got some other projects to do to get my shop together.
Well just thought I would share my opinion.
See ya
Marc

[Dell Littlefield]

I have used mine for over 25 years with nary a problem.

[Dave Lehnert]

A few years back I purchased a no-name brand ,floor model drill press, from a discount store for $99. That drill press is the most accurate tool in my shop. You never know.

“You get what you pay for” but sometimes all you “get” is ripped off.

[Mark Densmore]

As far as the planer you might want to check out Grizzly 12 1/2" planer http://www.grizzly.com/products/G0505 I picked one of these up and absolutely love it has done real well for me I bought it @ $225 it's $239 now.

[David Wilson]

I've had mine for aboyt 3 years and have no complaints. Initially the press made a terible ratteling noise until I found the rubber bumpers for the pulley cover.