Help

[pixy]

One of the machines I use a lot for my segmentation has just fell apart, it is a draper drill press my son bought for me two Christmases ago. I use it for sanding ,are there any machanicly minded guys out there. The motor is running perfectly, can I take the motor out , it runs pulleys can I make a double sanding machine out of it like the ones on the usa websites . How would I do it and would it be worth the expense,
Mal

 

[jonbikebod]

Hi Mal,
All things are possible and I have in the past used motors to drive all sorts of home made machines.
Even though I have the facilities to do this, it just isn’t worth it these days. Even making your motor into a single sanding machine needs the manufacture of adjustable rest, guarding of moving parts and dust extraction. A double sander would need an additional shaft, bearings, bearing mounts and pulleys.
With inexpensive dedicated machines now available with it all built in it just isn’t worth it. If you are using bobbins, you will find the machines that oscillate the bobbin up and down are far more effective than a drum in a drill press. You might also consider how long you expect you electric motor to last if the rest of the drill press has fallen apart?
Jon.

 

[Gill]

When you say the press 'fell apart', what exactly went wrong and why do you believe it to be unrepairable? Two years is not a terribly long time to have a drill press and I would have expected it to last longer, especially if it was one of Draper's more expensive machines. Have you tried contacting Draper to see if they have any spare parts or can advise you about having the machine repaired? Even if you do cannibalise the machine, you're still going to need something for shaping your segmentation.

Gill

 

[jonbikebod]

Excellent point Gill.
Mal, the chuck of a drill press is usually held in place by one and often two tapers. These get tighter the more downward pressure there is (such as drilling). Sideways force (drum sanding) will tend to ‘break’ the tapers grip. One taper is into the back of the chuck and on larger machines there is also a taper on the other end that fits into the mandrel of the drill. In either case, clean the taper and then tap it back together.
Jon.

 

[Anonymous]

One of the machines I use a lot for my segmentation has just fell apart
Mal

It sounds drastic to say it fell apart but I'm guessing the component/s that fell apart are easily repairable. This is based on pillar drill presses being pretty heavy duty made and not prone to falling apart !
There are a few components that could work loose like pulleys or the chuck and these are easily fixed.

Please give more details so we can give better detailed help if possible.