Pillar Drills

[Diche]

I am thinking of going halves on a pillar drill with my Dad. It would make it easier making my vape stand, and it now looks like I have two because he has created a lovely rustic wooden block for me. He does quite a bit of interesting woodworking so it would be a useful addition to his workshop.

This obviously isn't a tool we would use every day or even every week so we are looking for a budget model and considering this:

Silverline 262212 Drill Press 250mm 350W: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

I have experience of silverline products and find they tend to be well designed, but made from very very cheap materials, but obviously I have never used this tool before. Has anyone used one and can express an opinion?

 

[BaDaBooM]

Record DP16B Bench Drill 1/2 Inch Chuck 240 Volt - £129.98 - Ray Grahams DIY Store

Much better build quality than silverline.

 

[Diche]

Record DP16B Bench Drill 1/2 Inch Chuck 240 Volt - £129.98 - Ray Grahams DIY Store

Much better build quality than silverline.

Yes undoubtedly lol, that would be why it is more than twice the price. The question is is the silverline so cheap its not up to the job of drilling wood and resin

 

[blademansw]

That will be absolutely fine for basic use.

Sneaks home to the shed to polish his own pillar drill... and you wont believe how much I paid for it...

 

[Diche]

Well unless you picked it up second hand for a song I will, I have been researching lol

 

[blademansw]

Well unless you picked it up second hand for a song I will, I have been researching lol

I paid £70 for it a couple of years ago - its an ex toolroom machine. Worth looking around on the maybe, eskip, gumtree etc.

 

[Jasen]

My concern of a drill press at that price is arbor run out. Even at 3-4 times the cost your have to look out for the chuck not spinning true on center.
It's had to drill a precise hole when the arbor, chuck and bit are wobbling all over the place.

 

[Diche]

My concern of a drill press at that price is arbor run out. Even at 3-4 times the cost your have to look out for the chuck not spinning true on center.
It's had to drill a precise hole when the arbor, chuck and bit are wobbling all over the place.

Having read quite a few reviews this can be an issue on some examples more than others, quality control in this area is cast into doubt, and if I was drilling metal this would turn me off instantly. I am not so sure how crucial this is on wood where graining can cause issues of its own. If it is more accurate than hand drilling it would initially be useful and if in the future it was paying its way in the workshop we would look to upgrade to something more substantial. The key thing at the moment is we are not sure if it is worth bothering with one at all, or whether a drill stand would serve the purpose, which is why I posted fishing for input and opinions.

 

[BaDaBooM]

Yes undoubtedly lol, that would be why it is more than twice the price. The question is is the silverline so cheap its not up to the job of drilling wood and resin

The one I linked is the cheapest "quality" hobby pillar drill. Silverline is cheap China crap and will just give a headache.

You get what you pay for.

 

[Diche]

I often find that once you own a tool you find a lot of uses for it, but £130 is a lot to drop on a tool that might not get much use. I think the eBay route might be the way to go if that's the benchmark for something new worth having :/