Ultimate Drill Press Platform
The third version of my Drill Press is worth being called the "Ultimate Drill Press table."
Different in many ways compared to what we regularly see. And all for the better!
My Drill Press was definitely not the first tool I needed, and I even considered a long time if I actually needed one.
Some alternatives can help you to drill accurate holes. But as soon as I got a stable Drill Press, there was no turning back. My Drill Press is the Jet JDP-17, and I can still recommend this Drill Press to anyone searching for a good, stable, and affordable Drill Press.
The most important property of a column drill is stability. The Jet DJP-17 is designed for woodworking. But what this basically means is it has a more oversized table. And although stability is a feature the Drill Press itself should own, a perfect table or platform you can create yourself.
My Drill Press is different in many ways, and it is the only approach when you want an accurate Drill Press Table. In my video, I tell you all about its unique features, and I also made a video about how you can build this "ultimate Drill press table."
What makes my Drill Press Table the most accurate Drill Press Table?
All the typical Drill Press tables have a fence you can secure in two-miter tracks. The thinking behind this is that a drill bit is round, so no matter what angle you place your Fence, the distance to the drill bit would always be equal. This is true!
But when you want a second series of holes in the same line as the first series, you only get this 100% accuracy when the Fence is at the same angle as with the first series and the movement to the second row of holes is in the exact same line as the first. (I explain this better in the video of how to build my ultimate Drill Press Table!)
Moving and securing the Fence at a second position with two Miter tracks at the top will need to be more accurate for this.
My Drill Press Table secures the Fence to the side of the Drill Press table. This way, my Fence will always be at the exact same angle perpendicular to the side of the Drill Press Table, and the same counts for the movement.
Videos and Downloads
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Round insert!
We need a zero clearance insert at the underside to get a clean drill hole, and we do this typically to insert a square piece of scrap wood.
This way, we can turn our wood piece four times to create a clean underside. There are more effective ways than this, by making this insert round. Now, we only have to turn this insert a little bit to create a clean underside for a perfect clean drill hole. I made these round inserts with a laser template. Without this, this process will be more complicated and not as accurate and nicely fitted.
If you want a template to do this yourself, you can order them "HERE."
Dust extraction!
In general, dust extraction is a critical topic for your health when working in your workshop. And I believe a relatively dust-free workshop is possible. But only when you keep dust extraction in mind with every tool you use in your workshop.
Although drilling a hole leaves relatively big wood chips, it makes a mess quickly. Especially when working with a Forstner bit, you create a lot of dust and wood chips. Most dust extraction solutions we can find in the Drill Press Fence. But this only works when you drill a hole close to this dust extraction. The best solution is dust extraction near the drill bit, which can move up and down depending on the thickness of the wood.
The last thing we must remember is that you can slide flip stops accessible around your Fence, and my dust extraction solution covers all these items. With this solution and a suitable dust extractor, you can use your Drill Press practically dust free, and it is an easy-to-do-yourself upgrade.