I have been looking at purchasing a drill press and saw in a catalog that Shop Fox has a benchtop model that also oscillates so it can be used as an oscillating sander. Does anyone own one of these or heard/seen any reviews on them? The curiosity of having two machines in one has piqued my interest yet I want to be sure that it is money well spent. If the machine is not worth the money, then I’d go with a dedicated drill press and worry about the sander later. Thanks.
-Mike
Replies
mike
I looked at it about a year ago. I personally thought it would sacrifice good results with either sanding or drilling because of the way it had to be engineered to do both. That is my opinion only. I'm tough on design.
Suggest you look at one in person b-4 ordering and make your own asssessment of the how well designed the machine is. I have the SF morticer. It's a bear. But I felt the DP you referred to was SF "miss". All tool companies have misses, no matter what great machines they do have..
sarge..jt
I have had that drill press (the 13-inch) for almost a year. I got it because I don't have enough room for both a drill press and an oscillating spindle sander. It has worked fine for me, drilling and sanding. The depth-stop bracket is a little flimsy, but that can be fixed easily. Just make sure everything is adjusted and tightened properly, just like any other tool you have. The suggestion about looking it over first is a good idea, since we all have our individual preferences and ways of woirking.
joe
Well said. Judging a tool from what you see on the show-room floor and how it actually preforms are apples and ornages. You have to make assumptions when just viewing. Those assumptions are either erased or confirmed when you actually put it into action.
I have a lot of locals ask about the SF. We have a dealer here in Atlanta. I have looked, but have not used as I don't know anyone that has one. I will pass your "in-action" report on it to them if asked in th future.
A good example is the new DW 13" planer. It has everyone excited. It looks good on paper and in person. So far everyone is just looking and no-one has it that I have noticed in the post here. My theory is the "jury is still out". Think I'll wait about 6 months after it gets field tested by every-day usage before I decide if I am really interested. ha..ha..
Regards...
sarge..jt
I've had the shop fox H0626 for over a year now and it works fine as a drill press and sander. I like the built in dust collection, it works surprisingly well.
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