Thanks for putting this up! I just lugged this exact model home today---this video will be enormously helpful in getting it apart. I feel very lucky that it has a rack and pinion crank to raise and lower the table. As far as a ring of shame on the table, some gorilla carved out a 3.5 inch wide u-shaped hole. In spite of that, it's so hefty, I wouldn't be surprised if the table isn't still pretty flat and true. Did you do anything to align the post to the base, etc? I've never refurbished a drill press, but it looks as if there's plenty of places to put shims where the base meets the post collar, and other spots, and get everything square and true. Cheers!
Congrats on your acquisition! I did not have to do anything when mounting the post into the base. It was a tight fit passed the eye test for square. I don't foresee a time that I need to mount work on the base, but if I ever do I would tram it in at that time. For you table, if the damage is bad enough, you can get a steel plate that is ground. If there's an old school machine shop nearby you check with them. I"m sure they can help you out. Once you have the plate you can mount it to your damaged plate and carry on.
@@therestorationshop Thanks for the reply! Great idea, I'll probably do that, or see if someone can weld in a patch, whichever turns out to be cheaper. Now that I have a drill press, it'd be a cinch to drill and countersink some screws at the corners of the new plate, if I go that route.
Perhaps you can tell me how you removed the pulley bearings. I have a bench top model of this that I just purchased, the manual makes it sound easy to remove them but I'm not finding that to be the case. I may be looking at putting together some kind of special puller..... thanks
I don't quite remember how I did that. If you watch part 2 where I press the bearings back in it might help make more sense. It appears that I removed the spindle and then pressed the bearings out. To put them back in I was using a hole saw that was the right diameter to press on the outer edge of the bearing. My guess is that I took the head off the post, flipped it upside down and pressed the bearing out just like I pressed them in. Again... see Part 2. I vaguely remember that the top pulley bearing has to be pressed up as it sits on a shoulder.
Actually, that's helpful. I'm sure I can figure something out. Nice drill press, hopefully mine should turn out pretty nice as well. It was originally a bench mount, the complete head moves up and down on the column with a cranked reduction gear, it is pretty cool. Thanks!! @@therestorationshop
Thought I'd post in case someone is having similar difficulty getting the pulley bearings out. I ended up assembling an auto bearing removal cup on the top, used a piece of 5/8-18 x 12" threaded rod and some nuts to pull on the pulley shaft (brass washer on the bottom so as to not damage the pulley shaft). Socket wrench (15/16) on the bottom with an extension to reach the end of the threaded rod, a wrench on the top. The bearings and shaft were really stuck on there. I had to crank the heck out of the nuts, alternately hammered some from underneath using a brass rod. Took quite a while but eventually everything came apart. Putting it back together will be a piece of cake.
I am late to the party here, but you mentioned a table lift and I have a cost effective solution. My Buffalo 18 was also needing this as the table assembly weighs 56# if my memory is correct. I put a counter weight of approximately the same weight inside the column with a 1/8" cable over a pulley on top and down to the rear of the table. I can move it without straining and input only some scrap metal and time. The counter weight is 30" long. MrPete222 recently posted a video showing how its done. If you want PM me and I can send photos of mine.
I did see that and I was thinking about doing that. I ended up finding a wonderful old hydraulic jack that looks like it was made just to be a table lift.
Very nice video. I picked up the same drill press a few months ago and I'm still restoring it. Can you tell me where you got the spindle bearings from that you talked about?
I got these from eBay and yes, they are from China. The did seem to be of decent quality and my DP will see pretty minimum use. I did keep the old ones just in case! These bearings are for the drive top of the spindle, not the internal bearings on the spindle. www.ebay.com/itm/292005799699
Jeremy Ollerenshaw ... I restored mine a couple years ago and got the (American!) bearings from an awesome supplier called "Blair Bearing" in Miami,Fla
@@therestorationshop Hi. I am from South Africa and are restoring a Buffalo 18 DP. I am really struggling to get the drive top of the spindle out of the casing. Any suggestions? Are there anyting that fastens the pulley to the drive top shaft or must it just be pressed out?
You go to the trouble of tearing down this machine, yet you overlook a vital step, cleaning and repacking the bearings . Has no one told you that grease deteriorates over time and should be replaced with fresh clean grease? Dope-
