[diskostu]

I've been looking at drills for case work. I'm debating between a drill press press and a cordless drill for case work? Which one is better overall?

I know the drill press with give me better accuracy, round holes and I can keep everything squared. I want to know from other people's experiences, does the versatility and portablity of a cordless drill out weigh the benefits of a drill press? Cost wise a good drill press is cheaper than a good cordless drill.

 

[max-9]

Buy a portable drill
Then buy a drill stand , This turns your drill into a drill press , got mine years ago from Sears.

 

[DaKi][er]

You can’t rely on just a drill press, and I wouldn’t have it as the only drill you have

And I would probably go a corded drill before a cordless as well, when doing casework you'll always be near a power point and you don’t need the portability of a cordless for that, just much more added cost to the thing

I got access to just about any drill I’ll need and if I can’t put it on the drill press I’ll go the corded after that

 

[Francis_Vaughan]

Of course the right answer is to get both.

But - the question is for casework. I just never use a handheld drill for casework. There is never the need for it. Everything is always done on the drill press. The drill press can get you much lower and controlled speeds than a hand held drill, and the mechanical integrity is much better than a hand held in a stand.

Drill press and then a Dremel.

This isn't to say that a hand held drill isn't an astoundingly useful device. But if you want one I would get a mains powered one with hammer capability. Then you can drill holes in almost anything

But you won't ever use it for case work. (Also great for driving and removing screws.)

 

[diskostu]

All good points. I already have Dremel. My mentality towards tools is they're an investment. When I buy a tool I assume I'll use for other things and in most case I'll eventually end up getting both of whatever tool. I think for case work a small drill press would be best because the nature of cases and panels are squared/perpendicular. So a drill press would give me round holes and more accurately placed holes.

 

[afxdave]

A solid drill press gives you maximum control and removes a great deal of potential error. Old Rockwell presses are one of the best values around today. They're pretty easy to find and will last forever.

 

[Jam_Master_J]

Our garage is being worked on right now but when it was operational I really liked the drill press. It removes alot of the required skill in getting good results. Cordless drills are nice too though, more convenience of course.

 

[Wodgy]

If you're planning on doing any steel casework, a drill press is almost essential, unless you want to invest in a set of steel punches.

 

[Pars]

As many have noted, both are nice. Having had just a cordless Bosch, and now having a drill press...

Drill press... Lowes.... Delta... $100. Nuff said.

(of course the used Rockwell presses would be pretty dam good also)

 

[Icy006]

I've done some casework up until now with a hand drill, and dremel. It worked.

But I finally cracked and ordered a drill press

I really miss having access to one...if you have the space, it's worth it (there was no way I was going to squeeze one into my college dorm

).

 

[motherone]

Not to threadjack, but anyone have suggestions for Drill Presses (inexpensive and/or not humongous) and Punches? I've been doing all my casework with a hand drill and believe me, it gets frustrating when you can't line things up perfectly.

I've been curious where to buy punches and what kind.. Especially now that I'm starting to work on tube gear.

 

[Pars]

Quote:

Originally Posted by motherone Not to threadjack, but anyone have suggestions for Drill Presses (inexpensive and/or not humongous) and Punches? I've been doing all my casework with a hand drill and believe me, it gets frustrating when you can't line things up perfectly. I've been curious where to buy punches and what kind.. Especially now that I'm starting to work on tube gear.

Well, for drill presses if you have a Lowes around, they have a Delta benchtop drill press which is quite nice for $99, I think its a 9". BG4553 (#?? correct) also has one and seems to be pleased with his as well. Runout at least on mine is quite good as I drill #70 numbered holes routinely with it and I can't detect appreciable runout.

For punches I think that Greenlee is the standard. You can actually get these at Home Depot, etc. but they are rather pricey and only seem to do one hole size each. You might check around on some of the more tube related online sites such as Antique Electric Supply, Angela and Handmade and see what they might have also. Rickcr42 here on head-fi seems to have done quite a bit of tube work and also might weigh in with some recommendations. Chassis nibblers can also be quite effective depending upon material and thickness so I would not discount those either.

 

[Wodgy]

If you have a drill press, I'd start out with a Unibit rather than a set of round steel punches.

 

[The Monkey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wodgy If you have a drill press, I'd start out with a Unibit rather than a set of round steel punches.

Yeah, regardless of what drill setup you choose, a Unibit is a marvelous thing.

 

[grasshpr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pars For punches I think that Greenlee is the standard. You can actually get these at Home Depot, etc. but they are rather pricey and only seem to do one hole size each. You might check around on some of the more tube related online sites such as Antique Electric Supply, Angela and Handmade and see what they might have also. Rickcr42 here on head-fi seems to have done quite a bit of tube work and also might weigh in with some recommendations. Chassis nibblers can also be quite effective depending upon material and thickness so I would not discount those either.

Greenlees are usually much cheaper on ebay. Gotta look out for the honest sellers selling their old punch dies/kits. You can easily get a kit for about 100 dollars or so at any given week.

I've got a set and its a breeze to punch large holes.