Small Drill Press Recommendation for Handle Making

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tostadas

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What is the smallest size drill press that you guys can recommend for making wa-handles? I'm getting tired of using the hand drill, but also don't have a ton of space for a dedicated workshop. So ideally something that I can just put on a bench or tabletop. Thanks!
 
I bought a cheap drill press from harbor freight. Table top model, stands 23 inches tall. Works pretty well. Biggest complaint is getting the chuck onto the shaft perfectly in line. There's a bit of wobble when the drill (or sanding) bit rotates.
Before that I had a press that mounted my powered hand drill on to it. That got a lot of use until I burned out the motor in my drill.
I'll take pictures if you want to see.
 
Do you have a Dremel tool? They make one that holds a Dremel.

Whatever you get, make sure it has enough clearance to clear the longest handle you might make, and the drill bit.
 
I have been considering a 12” Wen 4214T tabletop drill press on amazon. It has 3-1/8” travel to cut holes. I don’t think one with less than 3” travel makes sense for handles so one smaller than 12” sounds like a bad idea.
 
I have a WEN 8" and I can get the job done but it takes creativity and I don't recommend it. I would go at least 10" and will probably upgrade sometime in the future. Although it's a jump in price, I think the 12" @Justinv mentions would be the safe bet.

EDITED AFTER YOU READ IT @tostadas : But, if space is truly a high premium, you can do it with an 8" and a variety of clamps, you'll just cuss each time.

Get a drill press/machinist's vice.
 
HumbleHomeCook said:
I have a WEN 8" and I can get the job done but it takes creativity and I don't recommend it. I would go at least 10" and will probably upgrade sometime in the future. Although it's a jump in price, I think the 12" @Justinv mentions would be the safe bet.
Click to expand...
Do you basically drill a shallow hole, adjust the platform then go again?
 
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tostadas said:
What is the smallest size drill press that you guys can recommend for making wa-handles? I'm getting tired of using the hand drill, but also don't have a ton of space for a dedicated workshop. So ideally something that I can just put on a bench or tabletop. Thanks!
Click to expand...
If you're limited to a bench top, I'd second the recommendation for a press that just fits a Dremel (or equivalent) rotary tool. All of the standard large box hardware store benchtop models won't be robust enough (IMO) to justify the price bump over clamping a hand drill, or whatever you're doing currently for more precision than free hand.
 
tostadas said:
Do you basically drill a shallow hole, adjust the platform then go again?
Click to expand...

Sorta. For the ferrule and spacers it isn't a big deal but for the main handle, it gets trickier.

I bought a set of these to help keep things lined up and get things started:
https://www.amazon.com/COMOWARE-Poi...oint+drill+bit+set&qid=1668357167&sr=8-5&th=1
For the handle, with the stubby bits, I can have the press table up and get started with the shallow hole. But then I have to swing the table out of the way and put my vice with a board under it directly on the press stand and then creatively clamp/hold it. This is to get enough height to get the depth but still clear the longer bit.

EDIT: I just did a mock up and I was wrong on saying I use a board under the vice. I place the vice directly on the press base and then can only get about half the depth of the hole. From there I finish the other half by hand.

That said, on the last one, I just got everything going with the stubby bits and then drilled the 1/2" hole with my hand drill. The 3/8" hole had me pretty well lined up so the larger bit didn't try to wander.

Still experimenting. The press, even with it's short comings is still better than just the hand drill IMO but it is frustrating. For just a handle here and there, I'm not complaining much but if I was thinking about doing more than that I'd skip the headaches and go bigger if possible.

What I need to find is a stubby, Brad point bit but haven't yet.
 
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If you go with the hand drill stand, be conscious that many of them are designed for corded drills. The heads are different on them. My only corded drill is a monster so I would've had to buy one of those along with the stand so I just went with the WEN 8".

Also be aware that nearly all of the budget models from Grizzly to WEN to whatever are essentially identical. I think the Grizzly (Harbor Frieght) ones are a little rougher but from there on they appear to be the same. Plenty of YT videos out there on it, same with the sanders. The $200 Ryobi 4" belt sander at Home Depot is basically the same as the $125 WEN sander on Amazon. I watched a video of a guy taking them apart and measuring everything.
 
Here's my work space @tostadas:

hTjVh4Cl.jpg


Like you, space is a premium for me but I still think I could get the 10" and maybe the 12" press in over there.
 
I picked one of these up off craigslist a few years ago. It was all messed up. The pole was welded badly to a wheel. It was rusty and the wiring was shot. I refurbished it. I found a base on eBay. The picture is my shop after the fix up. I think I paid $75 plus all the fix ups. I have seen table top models. It spins almost perfect. It had a runout of .001. It is an old USA made Atlas drill press.
PS
I just looked on eBay and these things have gotten pricey if you need parts. You might check out Woodcraft as they are always running sales.

IMG_3634.JPG
 
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Delta makes good tools. I have a few.

The nice thing about a floor press is you can make the drill press table the same height as your workbench which works great for holding long boards or steel. I know handles are small, but all kinds of things will come up once you have a drill press.
 
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Adding to the WEN party! I love mine. Powerful enough, compact, cheap.
 
I got the Harbor Freight one and it's.. acceptable at best. I wish I just went for a better one off the bat. But I've been learning my lesson on buying cheap instead of buying quality. I will say it's fine for doing holes in scales for western handles but struggles with the deep holes needed for wa handles. I'm not sure where you're located, but I found a maker's space for $50 a month that has amazing drill presses/woodworking equipment.
 
@tostadas I hope this helps some...

The block in the picture is a touch over 90mm tall so a little shorter than a lot of main handle (meant to go with a ferrule) pieces and the bit is a standard one. The blue tape on the bit is marked at 80mm.

1) These pictures show the table all the way down with the block atop it and the bit in the full upright position. So you can see, that won't work:
lSQ1pokl.jpg


n4etke1l.jpg



2) This picture shows the block directly on the press base and the bit all the way down. So there's room to fit the block under the bit but still a no-go as you don't have enough travel:
kpUOew3l.jpg



3) You have to hold the block tight, especially for the 1/2" bit and you have to get it up high enough to get some semblance of a hole, so here you see my vice on the press base:
awzgWvjl.jpg


4) And here with the bit fully extended down, so about a third to half the end-hole depth:
Ton4Ah1l.jpg


Sorry for my confusing posts earlier. I've tried so many different combinations trying to find what works that they all sort of blended together so I figured I'd try to do it right and let the pictures do the bulk of the explaining.

Again, with the stubby bits I can get full-bit depth with the table but that only gets ya started and I need a 1/2in stubby. I think with that I'll be good to go by then using the hand drill to finish the depth.

If you have any questions, want measurements, etc. please ask and I'll do my best to answer.
 
Last edited:
I have the 4214. The 12". Definitely not their smallest, but it's a nice size for my single garage shop!
 
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