Once Upon a Time: Wen I Rebuilt My Drill Press

Great job. From the beginning, I kept asking yself when is he going to do something about that table. I imagine it is smoother then it looks, and even if one could feel the groves, it would not matter, But it looks sooooo much better smoothed out.
 
That came out spiffy. Wen you did the porting, what mmHg/in depression were you using on the flow bench? That would make a difference in evaluating the improvement, or lack thereof :)
 
Superburban said:
Great job. From the beginning, I kept asking yself when is he going to do something about that table. I imagine it is smoother then it looks, and even if one could feel the groves, it would not matter, But it looks sooooo much better smoothed out.
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Thank you!

You know, I pondered about resurfacing the table for a while. It was only about 5 thou out in some areas, was hard to measure cause the grooves were so rough. Didn't feel like digging out the button indicator attachment, wasn't that important. Normally I don't mind the blanchard grinding as it provides some "tooth", another reason I was worried about resurfacing it smooth.

But yes the grooves were pretty rough/deep. And there were some dings & other marks that weren't noticeable in the pics that kept bothering me after seeing the DP coming together. This morning I woke up & said to myself, "today's the day". Resurfacing the table was the final thing I did & I'm so glad I decided to do it. It made the DP look complete & so much better IMO.

I've always wondered why DP tables are blanchard ground. I would have thought it would cost more to do? Or maybe it's actually cheaper & quicker to do? Seems like mostly only Asian import DP tables are blanchard ground. I think I have only noticed old American DPs all having smooth tables.
 
Aukai said:
That came out spiffy. Wen you did the porting, what mmHg/in depression were you using on the flow bench? That would make a difference in evaluating the improvement, or lack thereof :)
Click to expand...

Haha, thanks!

In my younger days I was just a grass roots street racer. We didn't have lots of money or access to stuff like that. And my obseravtions on the table porting was mostly just going by the butt dyno. ;)
 
Great job Will, I think the only thing that's going to improve your 60 ft times is a good three angle valve job. Not crucial but wen you have time I think it'd make the difference that will leave your Craftsman in the dust. :D
 
Haha, thanks!

The little CM is gone, it lives in NorCal now with my youngest brother. I bet he hasn't even used it yet. Lol.

One thing I did not account for is the weight of this "new to me" DP. It's heavy & not nearly as easy to move around. I'm kind of missing the little CM now.
 
Will, do you like the spring loaded thingy for tapping, which I have, but was considering a piloted tap.
 
You mean this thing? If yes, yes I like it a lot. Seems like most people prefer the piloted tap wrench though. I like the tap followers cause I use it on the lathe, mill, & drill press with both my T-wrenches & tap handles. I also use it with my EBI (eye ball indicator) for rough alignments for things like picking up a center punch when not critical.

If you do get one, get the Brown & Sharpe. (Edit: oh you do have one) I had an import one & while it was actually hardened too it wasn't ground very well, it had a lot of slop. I have 2 of them, the other I keep the stylus or whatever it's called flipped. One end is pointed, the other end is cone shaped (center drilled).

I also have one of those home made style project ones that is thicker & has a milled flat captured with a set screw. Mine is from Enco & made in the USA but that thing has even more slop. Junk.

20190205_193213.jpg
 
That's the one....Thank you
I checked my history, I have the B & S :encourage:
 
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