Mortiser attachment for drill press?

[NoNameAtAll]

Making tenons isn't such a big deal with a drill press or router, but I don't know how I'd make mortises without an actual mortiser except by drilling a series of holes and then chiseling them out (which is no fun at all and not very precise). I've seen several mortiser attachments for drill presses, including one made by Delta that I spotted at Home Depot today. Are these things any good? A mortiser essentially looks like a small drill press anyway, so I guess I don't see what makes it such a special machine. Then again, I have no idea what I'm talking about, so perhaps I should just shut up and let someone shed some light on this.

[Anonymoose]

[e-mail] (NoNameAtAll) wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I bought the delta mortiser attachment, then after I saw what a pain it was to install, I returned it and bought a standalone mortiser. It was worth the additional bucks to not have to break that attachment down every time I want to use my drill press.

And, it didn't fit my dp anyway.

[Nick Bozovich]

Echo Moose's experience - true I have a cheapo table top DP, but the Delta attachment did fit it. However, it didn't work very well. I couldn't seem to get enough downward force onto the chisel with the DP handles.

I returned it, and bought Delta's dedicated mortiser, MM300. Got it at Woodcraft for $180 with a coupon.. It came with 4 chisels, but I'd bought some chisels for the attachment. I use those because they're far superior to the ones that came with the MM300. The 14-651 had just come out, and was about $240. I passed on it because of the price difference. The MM300 has been great, but I think the 14-651 would have been worth the price difference. I see where Tool Crib has it for $229 on sale. That would be my recommendation, FWIW.

Nick B

[Edwin Pawlowski]

If you search the Goodgle Groups you will see a couple of recent threads about this. Consensus is the DP attachment is OK, can be a PITA to set up when needed. The stand alone machines do a better job with less hassle. --

I bought the Delta machine recently and have only done 32 mortises so far (plus a few test holes), but feel it is a good tool. You can also do them be using a router. Lok at

for more information. Ed [e-mail]

[ClemsonDave]

I have one for the Delta 10" drill press. It works fine.

Honestly, though, it is not much faster than drilling holes with forstner bit and chiseling the rest.

I plan on buying a floor drill press and make the smaller one a dedicated mortising machine.

Dave

[Jim K]

I did buy the Delta mortising attachment for my Delta drill press. I think it's pretty good, but I don't do a lot of hardwood mortising. I'm making a toy chest right now and used it to mortise some standard

2x4s. It took a little time to figure out the set up, but then it worked f>Making tenons isn't such a big deal with a drill press or router, but I don't

[acronym]

I went straight for the Jet mortiser right before building a a/c bed. 15 verticle slats -> 64 mortises later I'm damn glad I did. The price difference between a dedicated benchtop mortiser and drill press is a bit over $100 and worth every penny. I've also heard people commenting on the included chisels in the sub $200 units, they really aren't THAT bad - I haven't gone out and spent another $70 on a chisel set, and the 3/8" bit is still working fine (after quite a few sharpenings) even after that oak bed.

[Robert Bonomi]

I've got the Delta kit. With a table-top drillpress.

It _is_ a hassle setting up and tearing down.

I *don't* have the space for both a drill-press and a dedicated mortiser, so I willingly live with the hassles.

That said, _within_its_limitations_, it does quite a good job.

For what I use it for, it works fine -- I work mostly in mahogany, which is relatively soft, and I don't experience any major problems. I wouldn't want to try going through 75+-year-old 2" thick white birch with it, that's for sure. Last time I was dealing _that_ kind of material, I nearly blunted the laser. That stuff gets _hard_ with age!

[lopez]

I've had a mortising attachment for my 17 inch floor model drill press for many years. Set up is not really a problem. The problem was that the chisels and bits that came with the attachment were not the best. The bit did not hold its edge and the chisels were not smooth on the outside. I honed the chisels and bought better bits. Now it works like it should!

Len

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N> Making tenons isn't such a big deal with a drill press or router, but I don't