Shop Tested Drill Presses Tool Review

Like a great character actor, this machine doesn't enjoy the glamour or glory of a tablesaw or router, but still play a critical-and often under-appreciated role-in building projects. That's especially true when it comes to drilling precisely angle holes or multiple holes to the same depth. For most routine drill duties, a benchtop model packs sufficient capacity and power See our benchtop drill-press review for more information on these. But for the most demanding tasks, such as boring deep mortises, plowing a 3" Forstner bit into hardwood, or drilling into the end of long workpiece (think lamps), you'll want to step-up to a floor-standing drill press. To help you get the most for your money, we shop-tested nine models in the 17" class. (The 17" refers to the "swing" capacity-the maximum width of the workpiece into which you can drill to the center-measured by doubling the distance from the front of the support column to the center of the chuck.


Featured in the September 2010 issue of WOOD.



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