Replies

1. 
   hammer1 | Dec 03, 2007 05:01am | #1

   Don't most drill presses have a quill lock? I can't think of any I've used that don't. They require a wrench and are right up front.

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

1. 
   mike4244 | Dec 04, 2007 01:20am | #6

   Most drill presses do not have a  good quill lock, the bolt in front is not a quill lock. The quill lock is usually a lever on the side opposite the handles.Some Deltas can lock the quill by turning the depth knob to its furthest point and then tightening the small lever. The depth stop on a real drill press is a threaded rod. The knob types are crap.

   It is impossible to set the quill to an exact height with anything but the threaded rod height adjustment and separate quill lock.

   mike

1. 
   hammer1 | Dec 04, 2007 07:13am | #7

   Thanks for the info. I thought the lower bolt, often handled, that clamped the split housing and prevented the quill from moving, was the quill lock. I could always partially tighten it and fine tune the depth either with the lever or by turning one of the double locking hand nuts on the depth stop. Of course, I can't think of anything, that I do, that requires precise depth setting when locked. I only lock the quill when using a spindle sander.Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

1. 
   daverichards | Dec 04, 2007 03:08pm | #8

   If I need a precise hole location I'll bring the point of the bit down to the mark with the DP turned off. I'll lock the quill down to use it to hold the work while I get it clamped down.

   When I was a kid, my grandfather would use the Craftsman/Atlas I mentioned previously as an overhead router when he'd make the wooden trains, trucks and cars for the "brats at the daycare center". The quill lock came in handy for that. Makes certain orfices clench shut just to think of that now.

2. 
   sidecutter | Dec 03, 2007 05:54am | #2

   Sanderdude

                                              I have the delta 965.   It has  a has a very practical quill lock,  just turn a little handle,  about  1"long  and the quill  won't move.    Very nicedrill press.  Its better than the delta they sell @  HD..

3. 
   questtools | Dec 03, 2007 10:29am | #3

   Robert,

   Try the newer Steel City 17" drill press if you want a quill lock.

   Bob in Calgary

1. 
   sanderdude | Dec 03, 2007 04:44pm | #4

   A big thank you for your help. I will check out the steel city and the delta. I have used lots of drill presses and own 2 and have only seen one with a quill lock, an older rockwell that I use at a luthiers shop which is why I now want one of my own. Once I saw some uses for the lock I wondered how I lived without one. Kind of like me doing without an air compressor for 20 or so years before getting smart eneough to buy one.

1. 
   daverichards | Dec 04, 2007 01:11am | #5

   I have a 1932 Walker-Turner benchtop DP and a 1943 Craftsman/Atlas floor stander both of which have quill locks. It's a feature I use all the time. I decided that it's time to restore both of them but I didn't want to be without a DP in the meantime. I ended up with the Delta 965 because it was the only floor stander that I could find in a reasonable price range that has a quill lock. I can't imagine having a DP in my shop without it.

   I like the 965.

    

   BTW, I don't think the bolt on the front of most drill presses was intended to be used as a quill lock. 

   Edited 12/3/2007 5:12 pm ET by DaveRichards