EASY Drill Press Mod I Should Have Done Years Ago 

Short, precise, and NO unwanted yapping video. Two thumbs up. Oh, I forgot to mention NO ANNOYING background music. Great work. Many thanks. I use a magnet ring to catch metal shavings.

Hey Tim - excellent work. (Mechanical engineer from Australia here.) The chips you noticed are also emblematic of the material being ductile iron, as opposed to the (cheaper and more brittle) gray iron. Ductile iron also raises a burr around the centre punch mark, whereas gray iron does not. (Both good methods of determining which kind of iron you're machining, if the material type is unknown.)

The basic safety step you took by rotating the part against the column before drilling would be worth highlighting to beginners.

I've seen people mention it, but just the way your come off is so pleasant, and just seem like a really genuine nice person. Thank you for all the videos, they give me motivation to learn new things

I really appreciate that you provide a source for all your tools and accessories, no matter how briefly they appear in the show. Thanks!

Thank you for a great idea! As I watched you hold the vise with one hand and advance the drill with the other I thought to myself. This man is doing what I have done a million times. I am going to drill out my press table like this and add a clamp to the vise itself. Totally would have not thought of this had it not been for your video! Many thanks Brother!

Good solution for that drill bed. I have a larger square drill bed with T slots and have a piece of angle steel bolted down that I turn my vice to rest up against. So the angle is preventing the spin. It’s quick to adjust and can be used as a datum for drilling holes at a set distance into a length of steel.

I’ve been fighting my drill press for years. I will definitely be trying this on mine. Thank you.

Excellent idea, thanks! I've so many times been unable to clamp where I want to due to those ribs underneath.

Wow what a great idea it's so simple I can't believe it took me this long to realize, I have already installed 3ph motor with inverter on my drill press and set hz to 45 to 80cps which has almost eliminated the need to change speed with belt/pulley changeovers, and I got reverse as a new added feature. I like your videos. Ray Stormont

That’s such a neat idea, I’m so going to be modifying my drill press at the weekend, thanks Tim

Honestly one of the best suggested mods I've seen! When I start back in the shop I'll be doing this ASAP! Thanks for sharing!!! I have a tiny shop in barely the "half" of a 1&1/2 car garage; but I AM sporting a full-sized standing drill press. It certainly makes a presence there, but I had NO drill press; and it was free from an old employer clearing out. It's an old beast and still works a treat! For anyone still interested - the two major mods so far have been: 1) Installing casters [locking fronts on a ~26" crossbar for stability]; because in a small shop having as much as you can mobile helps you to make the room you need for a project as you need it. 2) A "POWERED" warning light on the top so I will always know if it's plugged in regardless of where it's in the shop. It's an ornate hollow black skull cast in resin about the size of a golf ball with a diamond pattern carved in to the cranium. I cleared & widened the openings I could and inserted a red C7 bulb fixture tied directly to it's power input before the switches. 2a) Also added a small OSH!T sticker above the control switches that warns "Not to be operated by F@#$wits".

I wish all videos of this type. Straight to the point and very helpful.

Your idea is great 👍 Small tip: Your drill press will feel a lot sturdier when you weigh it down to the ground. Don't be shy to put a 60lb or maybe even a 100lb concrete block into the machine stand. For mechanical machines, weight is good.

Great idea. I have the exact same Shop Fox drill press I purchased through Grizzly over 10 years ago and this will work wonders. I've been using C-clamps to hold my pieces and def need to pick up some of those vice grip clamps. Additionally having a better set of HSS drill bits makes a world of difference. Thanks.

Nicely done! Thanks for sharing!

Great idea. I use the same vise, bolted down, and have to spin it to center. This is way more better!

Cool; I have some of these 5/8 inch clamps already for welding and will look forward to using them on my drill press!

I have very large gearhead pedestal drills. I recently rescued a drill stand identical to yours. Once I had sorted out the switch, the seized chuck etc it hums along. I use it almost daily. Thanks for an excellent idea. I will certainly copy that as holding fiddly pieces on a drill stand of this size can see you with damaged fingers.

A very useful mod. I see this happening in my workshop very soon. I too got very frustrated with having to constantly change belts on the drill press and so I did the treadmill motor swap. This is working very well for me. I liked it so much I also did the same mod on my lathe and my drill press. An added bonus - I picked up all three treadmills for free.

Yes, I have found that clamping or holding is the biggest problem in metal or wood work. How well the target is held can make a big difference in smoothness of cut, drill, whatever process you're doing on it.

Upon watching this vid, I went right out to my shop and did the same to my drill press. Don't know why I never thought of this before. Thanks.

Great idea!!! I'm literally about to fab up a small table top to mount my drill press using 1/2" plate steel. I have a mag-drill and plan to use annular bits for my holes. And thanks to YOUR video you have given me another idea on how to make it more useful. Thank you sir!

Love it !! Definitely going to do this. It can be quite dicey when you're drilling with a large drill or holesaw and it grabs and rips things out of your hand !!

That's a great idea! Thanks for sharing.

Great job, I’m make two changes now on my press, this one and adding a keyless chuck. Thanks for the advice 😊

If you do go the inverter route for speed control is worth spending a little time seeing it up properly; you need to look into the torque boost option for the lower speeds and I also set up two, switched, pre-set speeds (same speed but one forward and one reverse) that I use for starting taps. I also use the DC injection option to give a proper emergency stop. If you work the drill hard at low speeds, as I do, then it's also worth fitting an auxilary fan to the motor as the motor's own fan is designed to cool the motor at synchronous speed and will not stuff enough air through the motor at lower speeds.

Great idea Tim!!! Going to do this on the old drill press I'm reconditioning.

Nice one. My best drill press mod was putting a 0.1mm stainless steel shim in the quill. It basically removed all the play from the cheap thing, and now it's spot on.

This press has worked like a charm for my projects ru-vid.comUgkxajoEbapTfqWaadnqb04h6U576yxXp-FE . I didn't even secure it to my table top, mainly due to the fact that I was using a 15 lbs drill vise. It's not flimsy at all as to what others have claimed it to be. Make sure the locking nuts and levers are secured and there won't be any issues with light pressure and patience. I was able to drill through aluminum, plastic, and steel (steel took a while) with no problems at all. Yeah it took a little longer than a regular drill press, but I don't have the space OR the money for one.The instruction manual was worthless, but luckily assembling the press was intuitive. However, the manual would be good for ordering replacement parts if needed. There is a nice breakdown of the parts that are included in the kit. Before ordering, make sure it is compatible with your unit, it is clearly stated what models the press is compatible with.This was an excellent purchase for $40!!

Thanks for the tip about chip curling, hadn't heard that before.

Hey Tim nice idea, just a tip the first drill ie pilot drill, it should only be no bigger than the point landing of your second drill, that will allow it to drill with out vibrating.

Brilliant! I've been trying to solve that problem ever since I bought my drill press. It was certainly one of those "why didn't I think of that?" moments when I saw your vid. Thanks!

Excellent idea! Thank you for posting it.

Great idea, I’ll be doing this to my drill press this week

I love those vise grip style clamps!! Use them on my welding bench too!

Such a basic, yet highly effective mod. Thanks for sharing.

Binford Brand drill press in the thumbnail! Awesome call back to Home Improvement! Great video!

By far the best mod I've made to my small floor standing press is an adjustable jack stand supporting the table. It is made from 18" of 2" sq steel perforated tube, 18" of 1.875" round steel pipe machined to fit inside the 2' tube, and 18" of 7/8" threaded rod topped with a 2" ball from a trailer hitch. It has 24" range of adjustability and is bolted to the T slots in the base plate. With the jack stand I can easily square the table to the column. The table can now support a huge amount of weight and will not deflect downward no matter how much down force I use. I drill mostly steel and aluminum.

Brilliant idea! Gonna have to add this to my drill press table!

Its a great Idea. I'll be doing this to mine. What is also amazing is you managed to stretch this out to almost 5 minutes.

What a great simple Idea! Thanks for the friendly and informative video.

Good fix for an old problem when using a drill press. BTW nice extension on the end of your vise grips. Very helpful!!

solid video, great practical use of a table clamp for a drill press.

Great video. I have a vice just like yours. I bolt it to the work base and have never had to unbolt it. I just swivel or twist the base to line up my drill.

We did this mod to both of our presses last night. Thanks!

Great information I’ll be doing this to my own drill press thank you for posting 👍

Brilliant idea. Gonna do that to my drill press too. Thanks for sharing sir.👍😊

Shop is looking nice! I would like to hear about your mill and how it works for your needs, pro’s and con’s. Drill press mod should speed up things quite a bit.

Holy smokes, I'll be doing this to my drill press this weekend. Thanks!

Great tip! I may use it on my own drill press should the need arise.

Great idea, I'm going to copy. Thanks

Tim, I have watched many of your videos about welding and they are great! The drill press table modification is certainly a time saver and added safety feature. I want to mention that when drilling and machining cast iron coolant is not necessary and makes clean up a lot easier too.

I use that type of clamp in my drill press, except mine had a threaded stud. It simply bolts through the existing slots. I use it to hold both discrete pieces, but also to hold my drilling vice in place.

Great mod for the drill press. I'm looking at doing that now as well.

Excellent idea and presentation. Good job.

I have the exact drill press and going to do this same mod, thx for sharing! Would also love to see your future video on installing a variable speed controller as I too hate changing the belts and would PAY to have my unit upgraded for easy speed changeablility. Appreciate your advice. Thanks again

Excellent stuff. Makes me wonder why clamping holes are not included in all drill press platforms. Thanks for the great idea.

Nice simple idea Tim 👍👍.

Certainly useful my drill press doesn't have the big round table but could see where it can be useful, instead of the vice, thank you for the video, all the best to you and your loved ones

Thanks for making this video! Great video btw! Professional! This gave me ideas for other things for my drillpress.

Simple and really cool, thanks for sharing!

Very nice. I am saving to buy the Fein magnetic vise for my drill press but your tip is a nice addition.

Wow a simple, but effective modication 👍

Your video was excellent. You are a credit to the DIY race. Those multiple holes mean that you can use more than one clamp.

Love it! I’m going to implement this on my press.

Lubricant is used to allow the chips to travel up the drill bit flutes. I has no effect on the drilling face of the drill bit where friction is need to cut the material. Cast Iron has plenty of graphite so lubricant is not usually needed. Thanks for the idea !

A simple and very useful mod. One that I'll try myself, thank you.

simple great idea, I'm going to do that this weekend

Excited to see your belt grinder build. I built a revolution with an auction Baldor 3 phase about 6 months ago. Great tool to have for all sorts of metalworking

Hello Brother Man👍👍👍👍👍 I really do like this idea. I have several bigger presses that are hard to get a grip on the bigger tables. One needs a new table because it swivels , and it has about been sawed in half from being drilled into before I even got it. Way back yander when I was doing my apprenticeship, we were taught to only drill a pilot hole the size of the webb of the bigger size drill. Reason being the bigger drill will chatter and walk in the pilot hole until the outer flutes engage. It'll also dull the bigger drill faster in the middle of the cutting face because of the chatter.

Thanks! I’m going to do that to mine! Great job!

Excellent love the pen, chuck and drill, rake angle

Good idea, obvious when you see it but I never thought of it so kudos to you.

Nice work...Cast iron is self lubricating - sharp drill alone/proper feed and speed/or air fixture to blow chips from the workpiece. Hope that helps.

I have an old big bolt that is bolted to one of the work plate holes that I lean parts on to stop them from turning.

Excellent mod, I'm going to do this as well!

When possible have the handle of the vice or for longer material, the job itself, resting against the drill pillar. Saves it grabbing and whanging around.

Great idea, thanks Tim!

I saw one the other day doing the same thing with the VG; however, his table already had holes like your mod. He may have a custom table, though I'm not sure. Anyway, I'm going to do what you did. Mine is an old Porter cable that is, uh.... an odd shape. The slots are an upside-down t-shape, so I took some bolts and welded a washer to the head and ground them flat on two sides so that they could slide in the slot and I could tighten them from the top this is to hold the vice. It works ok, but it can be a PITA sometimes. I'm going to use your idea for drilling flat stuff more easily. Thanks for making a nice, clear, and concise video for us.

Good idea ! Just inherited one of those clamps ! 👍👍👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Great idea, Tim!!! Clever, and so useful.

Great idea, Tim! Understandably you would want to avoid the ribs. Although, if you had not avoided the thicker sections in line with the slotted holes and drilled your holes through them, your clamp would have had better leverage and would not tilt back as much when tightening. Perhaps drill one or two through those sections, test the difference and let us know.

Great Job, what a great idea. THANK YOU.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Never seen these clamps before, great idea.

You can quickly loosen the motor to adjust your belts. If you look closely at the rigging up there, it slides back and forth. This also lets you tighten the tension if you notice some slack in your v-belts. Thank you for this. I've have the exact same problem nagging me in the back of my mind for years.

Brilliant idea! 👍 For a big drillbit like 5/8 I would have run that drill press on its lowest speed. Most people use too much speed drilling steel, although that cast iron is a bit more forgiving than mild steel.

Tim, Cool tips. I have an anvil clamp I made for the anvil and I drilled 1/2 holes on my weld table and it works pretty well. I think I might see if it would work on the drill press. I drill a lot of pipe and have a block of wood with a vee cut in it and can really center a hole in pipe fast and its pretty secure. For drill lubricant in the 70s I had a spring shop make a new leaf spring and the old timer used water. He said there is no better drilling lubricant. It stays on the bit and hole longer. Cuts nicer chips and is easier to clean. I use water to this day and like the results.

just rewatched, and thought, wow, I need to do this....thanks so much Tim, Paul in Florida

A brilliant idea thanks I love it

great ingenuity. I love the marker in the chuck.

That was pretty slick using the chuck and a sharpie to draw circle!!

Simple is always best. Nice one 👍

Nice one Tim. Simple and effective. Thanks for putting it out there. So much to learn from your videos.....

Hi Tim, if you have a wide high jaw locking pliers, you can practically lock the item to be drilled without making any holes, just the bottom jaw will be below the support plate, n the top jaw will be on the workpiece. Dinesh from Fiji

Using two of these clamps to clamp down a straight piece of steel makes very nice makeshift fence which can keep up with surprisingly large drill bits.

That was a really good tip thank you .

Thanks, you gave me some ideas.

Now this is a keeper!

Definitely doing this, great idea