I had an earlier post regarding a “Drill Press Problem”. The solution to that problem was a loose pulley set screw, and has been fixed. I’m now looking for advice on replacing a broken return coil-spring. The first replacement part was poorly tempered, and bent as I tried to install it. I now have a new replacement spring. It is compressed and is held that way with a wire. I see no way to replace the spring without first removing the retaining wire. This will, of course, allow the spring to ‘unwind’ and expand to a size larger than it’s housing. I can handle that, but working with ‘sprung’ springs is a pain in the neck as I can attest from my experience with the first replacement spring. Am I missing something that would make replacement more simple? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Below is a picture of the ‘little devil’. Thanks – Dave
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Hi Dave... You haven't
Hi Dave... You haven't mentioned what brand of DP you've got. you could always check with an 'official repair place' for info. I assume you're describing a flat spring wound into a coil. On the two drill presses (both Delta's) I've repaired, the spring goes into a cup assembly. before you take the old spring out of the cup, check which direction it is wound up. You don't want to put it in backwards. Put the spring into the cup and then cut or remove the wire holding it in a 'loaded' position. Be sure the outside hook is set into the groove for it. The 'inside' hook usually goes into a slot in a shaft. You may need a needle-nose pliers to coax the inner hook onto the shaft. Wind it up and see if it works. you may have to wind it a bit more to get the tension you need to return the quill all the way up. I've never greased (or de-greased) these springs. I use them with the factory supplied protective grease and they have always worked fine.
SawdustSteve Long Island, NY (E of NYC)
and slowly digging out from this last snow
Sorry I failed to identify my drill press. It's a Delta Model 17-990X, variable speed. I like the idea of putting the spring into the cup before cutting the wire retainer. The next response seems to indicate letting the spring unwind, first, but perhaps I misunderstood. I'll check that out.
Thanks!
Dave,
First, let the spring unwind, being careful not to let it bite you.
Then catch the outer end of the spring in the notch made for it in the edge of the spring cover and then fit the spring into the cover by rotating the cover as you press and feed the spring into it. The whole process only takes a minute or two.
Once the spring is in the housing, mount it on the press with the innermost end of the spring catching in the slot on the press's cross shaft. On most drill presses you can next tighten the bolts that hold the spring cover in place so that the cover won't pop off while leaving it loose enough that you can rotate the housing to tension the spring properly.
Thanks for the response, John. Sounds pretty simple, but I'd like to know what you think of SawdustSteve's idea of clipping the restraining wire after putting the restrained spring in the cup.
Thanks for responding so quickly.
If the wound up spring will fit into the cup you can certainly try it.
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