Grizzly Drill Press

[Dick Fitzwell]

I am in the market for a new floor drill press. I was looking at the Delta

17-965 16-Speed 16-1/2" Floor Drill Press for $399 delivered. I then saw the GRIZZLY MODEL G7944 12 SPEED DRILL PRESS for $239 delivered. I am an intermediate woodworker with a small shop. Is the Delta saw trice as good as the Grizzly?

Thanks, Dick Fitzwell

[Mike in Mystic]

I don't know anything about the Grizzly, but I have the Delta and it is awesome. I got mine for $375, but picked it up myself so no delivery charge. Did have to pay tax, though.

I use it all the time and have never had a problem.

Mike

[Ksu93dlv]

I have the Grizzly G7944 and it's great. No complaints at all. It's hard to imagine that the Delta is actually worth so much more money, though I have no personal experience with it.

[AL]

The spindle on the Grizzly, Harbor Freight, etc. drill presses can travel around 3.25". The spindle on the Jet and Delta can travel around 4.875". If you have an application that needs this extra travel, then you may want to get a Jet or Delta.

[Phisherman]

I have three pieces of heavy Delta machinery and I like my Delta drill press the least of the three. Best is the Delta bandsaw, and I have no complaints about my DJ-20. I thought the drill press was a bit top-heavy and the table too small. Plus, I get too much vibration from it at times.

[Mark]

[Scott Lincoln]

I have the Delta and it's been nothing but problems.

Scott

[Just Dave]

I have the G7944 and love it. It's never been a problem at all.

[Just Dave]

I own that Grizzly and love it!

[Tim Carver]

You aren't comparing appropriate machines. The Grizzly model that lines up closest to the Delta 17-965 is the G7947. It is a 17" press with a 4 3/4" stroke. It is more or less equivalent to the Delta, except that it has fewer speedsl. The machine you are looking at is a

14" press, with only a 3.25" quill stroke.

I have the Delta, and I've looked at the Grizzly machines in the showroom in Bellingham.

The Delta is made in China (as in mainland China, NOT Taiwan) and the thing vibrates a lot. Plus,the arbor on the Delta isn't removable, while it is on the Grizzly. This is only a big deal if you ever want to use Morse taper bits, or if you want to change out your chuck taper for something else.

If I had it to do again, I'd pick the Grizzly G7947. At $375.00 plus shipping, it's more money than the Delta but I think it is a better machine. Plus, Delta basically tolde me to get lost when I complained about the vibration; they said that it's "performance is appropriate for the price point".

Tim Carver [e-mail]