Nova Voyager DVR Drillpress
Nova rolls out a smart drill press
Nova Woodworking, best known for its lathes and turning accessories, has introduced an advanced drill press loaded with handy digital features that make it stand out from other drill presses commonly used by woodworkers. Nova’s Voyager drill press has no belts or pulleys. Instead, the speed of the direct-drive motor is controlled electronically, which allows for infinite variability in speed between 50 rpm and 5,500 rpm. Because there are no belts and pulleys, the drill press is very smooth and quiet.
The Voyager features a small control screen on the front of the machine that lights up when you turn it on. Enter the type of material you are drilling (hardwood or softwood), the type and size of bit you are using, and the drill press sets the speed automatically. You also can adjust the speed manually, and store this setting as a favorite that is easy to access.
There are a few more cool features. You can set up the drill press to spin the bit only when the quill is being lowered and raised. As you pull the handle the bit starts, and it stops as soon as the quill returns to rest. This is nice when you need to reposition the workpiece between drilling holes, because you won’t accidently hit a spinning bit.
Another helpful feature is that the bit can be zeroed on any surface, even ones that aren’t flat, by simply touching it to the surface and then pushing a button. Then all you have to do is enter the cut depth on the digital screen, and the bit stops spinning and cutting as soon as it reaches that depth. The digital readout also shows the depth of the hole as it’s being bored. I used the press to bore some 13⁄8-in. holes 3⁄4 in. deep in an irregular surface. I simply zeroed the bit at each location, drilled a hole, and the bit stopped spinning at exactly 3⁄4 in. deep. If you don’t want to program the depth, you can zero the bit and watch the digital readout. Pretty nifty. The depth can also be set the old-fashioned way with locking nuts on an indexed, threaded rod.
There is also a quill lock for holding the quill at a set height. Quill travel is 6 in. and it takes only two revolutions of the handle to travel the full distance. The keyed chuck has a 5⁄8-in. capacity. Overall, this is a great drill press, one I’d be happy to have in my shop. —Roland Johnson is a contributing editor.
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Digital depth stop. There is an oldfashioned stop, but you don’t need it. Just tell the drill how deep to bore, and it stops the bit when it reaches that depth.
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Zero out the bit. Once you lower the bit to the surface of the workpiece and press a button, the drill knows where to begin measuring when determining the drilling depth.
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Computer-assisted drilling. After you’ve told the drill press a few things about what you’re drilling and the bit you’re using, its onboard computer determines how fast to spin the bit.
Comments
Nova make a good product, but you are in trouble when the electronics have a problem. I have used the DVR lathe for about 10 years but am having a problem with the electronics. It is no longer possible to buy a new controller so my only option is to buy a whole new lathe (since they don't seem to sell just the drive head). At least with a belt driven motor, you can always buy a new motor.
Does anyone know if this unit is actually available? Seems like it's taken a long time to come out. It looks like it's orderable but I can't tell if it's actually shipping yet.
BlueRiverMike,
Doesn't look like its' shipping yet. Rockler says Dec 12th, AcmeTools says warehouse acquiring product, Woodcraft doesn't list it yet on their website. So, I'd say it's not shipping quite yet but doesn't sound like it's far away.
I ordered mine directly from Nova (727-954-3433 ) last week. The sales people at Nova are very helpful and eager to assist you, real old fashion service! The salesman I spoke with said, they had finished fine tweaking the final production model (firmware updates, making it 4" taller etc.) and started fulfilling orders. He said that each drill press spends three weeks in quality control, being tested and put through its paces to insure they all meet Nova's specs, which adds to their lead-time. Seems that Nova is going to great lengths to guarantee that this addition to their product line is a great success. And that's comforting to know.
Personally, I would rather wait a few extra weeks and know nothing was left to chance than to have Nova rush them out the door, fingers crossed, hoping they work right, in an effort to meet demand.
The salesman said he would call me when my drill press is ready to be shipped (Can you believe that? Like I said, real old fashion service). I expect to get mine sometime in December. A wait I anticipate will be well worth it.
Looks like the review was either subsidised or incomplete.
1. There is a 4 second delay between "auto-start" and motor engagement. This allows for a substantial quill travel.
2. When a
"auto-start" is active and the set depth stop is electronically set, unless the quill is returned to the zero position it will auto start again. While it stops after about 1 second, this unexpected start is dangerous especially when you reach to change the drill bit.
3. For keyless chucks there is no motor resistance so even to snug up a drill bit is impossible with one hand.
After the 1st firmware upgrade.
1. Auto depth stop was unpredictable. Sometimes the drill stopped and at other times continued well after a further 20mm downward movement.
2. Even if auto stop works, the quill was not locked. If the 'stop & reverse" feature is selected, with pressure on the quill you can drill a significant further (in reverse for 2 seconds).
3. If "Brake lock" and "stop & reverse" are selected, upon completion of the "cycle" the drill will automatically be put into reverse mode and has to be physically reset to Forward for the next operation.
I do not recommend this drill to anyone at the moment and as NOVA are talking about free firmware upgrades "this time" I would wait at least 6 months before some of the safety bugs are ironed out.
In all fairness to the NOVA, I should apologise for potentially misleading anyone reading my review.
While the comments are actual they are presented in a misinterpreted fashion (by me).
1. There is a 4 second delay with the "auto-start" alarm set. However, if the "auto-start" alarm is turned OFF, the drill starts immediately after the "auto-start" depth (approx. 8mm) quill travel is reached.
2. I thought that the quill travel was halted when the set depth was reached, however, this was not happening after the firmware update. I was incorrect here as the quill was never locked in any firmware version. It was my drill handling that gave me the false impression.
I do apologise if I may have given reads of my review a wrong impression. I still feel that there are a few issue that need to be ironed out to justify the cost (compared to other "non-milling" machines), however, it does have a lot of redeeming features that I would have trouble doing without.
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