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Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Fri Sep 22, 2017 8:40 pm
by Grand_Wag_85
Looking to get a good quality drill press and band saw which will be used for cutting and drilling metal, mostly aluminum.

Currently using a Ryobi drill press and a Craftsman bandsaw. The Ryobi drill press does the job but it VERY much a cheap toy.

What are you guys using?

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Fri Sep 22, 2017 11:34 pm
by tedlovesjeeps71
Some will scoff but one of the bigger harbor freight drill presses has been good to me. My dad bought one in the early 80s which I foolishly let go when I got tired of moving it due to Army life. It did everything we asked of it. My current one is an old Craftsman I scored off of Craigslist in VA for basically the same reason. If I hadn't of found such a deal on it I would have bought another HF one in a heartbeat.
As for a band saw, HF sells basically two for metal work. I had the smaller one and it was crap. Most guys I know who do lots of metal splurge and buy a Jet brand.


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Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 8:05 am
by eggman918
I found a 1950's walker/turner locally on C/L after about 6 months searching for $90.00 but i would have drove a good distance if needed to get one like it, The larger your search radius the better your chances to find what you are looking for.
The biggest issue when shopping for drill presses that you will use for metal is finding one that has spindle speeds slow enough,usually will require either a two speed motor or a jackshaft between the motor shaft and the spindle shaft..................$.02

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 8:24 am
by REDONE
Craigslist is the way to go. Stuff like that is only worth buying new if you use it to make money.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 8:37 am
by eggman918
My whole machine shop is tooled with machine tools from the '40's-'60's that I got virtually by the pound by waiting for good deals and being willing to drive for the things that i needed. The older equipment has little appeal to business yet is well constructed without skimping on the iron and is easily overhauled when and if needed. I basically paid $.25 on the dollar or less for what I have and today could turn a profit IF I were to sell it, not that I ever would ;)

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Sun Nov 05, 2017 9:28 pm
by Grand_Wag_85
I've been keeping an eye on CL. Seeing a ton of old HF stuff...didn't realize they've been around that long!

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2017 6:17 am
by merrill77
I have equipped most of my woodworking shop with used, high-quality, tools from CL or other local forums.

For a tool I plan to use frequently, I would hesitate to buy HF power tools used. Honestly, I'd hesitate to buy them new, too. For precision work, I wouldn't buy them at any price. But back to used...unless they're nearly giving it away, the 30% you save could easily equate to 70% of their already short lifespan. Admittedly. there are a bunch of HF gems out there. Like the HF SDS rotary hammer...not a precision tool, though, by any stretch. Just be sure to research whatever you plan to buy.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2017 9:23 am
by SJTD
Cut a new door into an outside wall so I had to drill the slab to anchor the sill. Choices were rent a real rotary hammer, borrow a Bosch from a friend I haven't talked to in years or buy a $22 hammer drill from HF.

Bought the cheapo drill. Took a while and it got too hot to hold without gloves but I got the two holes drilled and it still works.

The other two choices would have had the holes done in less than a minute each but now I have another tool!

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2018 1:50 pm
by tgreese
I too have the cheap HF hammer drill and it worked fine for me. Drilled a bunch of 3/16" holes for tapcons, and drilled a couple of 1/2" holes for anchors - also a sill repair.

Not sure I'd go with HF for a drill press though. This Jet https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002Q9T5PE/?c ... _lig_dp_it has been on my shopping list for a while. Craig's list might be ok if you can find a used Delta or such without a lot of runout.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2020 9:50 am
by threepiece
When making purchases time is a valuable resource. The best time to buy equipment is when you don’t need it.

Look for old used equipment and check out scrap yards if they allow public scavengers like myself. Most reading this would not believe the amount of tools, equipment, building materials and whatnots I have bought by the pound over the years. As an example Three years ago I purchased the machines from a burned down woodworking shop. This included an Oliver pattern lathe, 16” Powermatic planer, Powermatic drill press, 6” Delta jointer and a 4” Craftsman jointer all for a bit over $400

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2020 10:39 am
by bigun
There is a guy in Germany on youtube calls himself "The Post Apocalyptic Inventor" it is amazing the stuff he finds in the scrap yard, that only needs a little clean up to put back to rights.
I bought one of the HF hammer drills carried it in the truck just in case I need it, if I knew I was going to use it I put the big Makita in the truck.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2020 10:18 pm
by SJTD
Put in another door and had to drill two more holes. HF drill still holding up. Surprised me that sharpening the bit made a big difference. I figured that it was just banging away so it wouldn't matter but I learned different. I was abusing my poor $20 drill for no reason.

But you need the right wheel to sharpen carbide.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 6:37 am
by threepiece
threepiece wrote: Mon Apr 20, 2020 9:50 am As an example Three years ago I purchased the machines from a burned down woodworking shop. This included an Oliver pattern lathe, 16” Powermatic planer, Powermatic drill press, 6” Delta jointer and a 4” Craftsman jointer all for a bit over $400
I failed to mention that these machines had no more than light smoke damage. There was also a 12” American jointer in the group but it was too big and heavy for me to handle. I tried to find a buyer but it ended up being processed.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2020 6:47 am
by threepiece
bigun wrote: Mon Apr 20, 2020 10:39 am There is a guy in Germany on youtube calls himself "The Post Apocalyptic Inventor" it is amazing the stuff he finds in the scrap yard, that only needs a little clean up to put back to rights.
That is surprising. I expect Europeans (and everyone else on earth) to be more conservative and resourceful than Americans. I should check him out so I can gauge any difference in his findings and mine.

Re: Drill press and bandsaw for metal work

Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2020 5:49 pm
by bigun
threepiece wrote: Tue Apr 21, 2020 6:47 am
bigun wrote: Mon Apr 20, 2020 10:39 am There is a guy in Germany on youtube calls himself "The Post Apocalyptic Inventor" it is amazing the stuff he finds in the scrap yard, that only needs a little clean up to put back to rights.
That is surprising. I expect Europeans (and everyone else on earth) to be more conservative and resourceful than Americans. I should check him out so I can gauge any difference in his findings and mine.
What is really interesting is he trys to get the history of stuff that was made in Germany, some of the wrenches and other hand tools manufactures have been in business for centuries