Lidl Drill Press.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Notice they have this on sale tomorrow for 50 quid. My existing one is a B&Q cheapy which has done well, but is a bit lacking in power with a 250 watt induction motor. The Lidl one states 500 watts. There are also a few other niggles with the old B&Q one. But I can't find details of the Lidl one dimensions - like distance between chuck and bed, and max distance between chuck and table. It looks to be greater than the B&Q one which would sell it to me. Perhaps I'll just have to buy it and return it if it's no greater.

[Scott M]

I bought a Parkside one from Lidl a couple of years ago which is basically similar to the on they're showing on the site at the mo and, for the money, it's been excellent. It's not scalpel perfect but it's had very good use and lasted well. The only 'problem' I've had with mine is that the 50mm travel is sometimes not enough.

I didn't bother with the swivelly table-bed thing for long but bought one of those X-Y travel cross-vices from Machine Mart which works really well and saves hours of mucking about trying to bolt the ordinary vice down in the right place. It's mounted on the foot on top of a bit of

18mm chipboard (at about 45degrees to avoid fouling the pillar) so that big things can be held and used with big (ergo long) drill bits. For small work (or short bits) I've mounted the Parkside vice on another lump of chipboard so I can hold that in the cross-vice to give me the height.

Between the two I don't think I've struggled to get anything held at the right height or in the right place. Using the little table was teeth-spittingly tedious and irritating!

[Scott M]

... with the table at its lowest position it's got about 190mm between it and the point of a chuck when it's fully closed (ie if it were holding a 1mm bit.)

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Thanks for that - it's about 30mm more than my present one so I might just go for it.

[Harry Bloomfield]

Dave Plowman (News) was thinking very hard :

I did find the table seems to flex when pressure is applied. I put a scissor jack between it and the base, to give it a bit more support.

[fred]

In article , Dave Plowman (News) writes

Just got the machine vice which seems butch enough for moderate duty work. Just plastic jaws but certainly worth the 6.99 I paid for it even if I just use it to hold stuff on the workmate for cutting. It comes with a bench clamp too.

[fred]

In article , fred writes

Actually smooth steel with single grip grooves vert & horiz for round items and soft jaws over the top. Handy quick release on the thread too.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I bought one - perhaps just similar - from Lidl some time ago, and it's useful. Sadly, the fixing slots don't line up with the ones on my B&Q drill press. Notice the Lidl DP has slots at 45 degrees so should accept near anything.

Mine has steel jaws with rubber covers, and a quick release for the screw. Not as 'butch' as my Record one but a decent alternative to it.

[A.Clews]

Thus spake "Dave Plowman (News)" ( [e-mail]) unto the assembled multitudes:

I bought one yesterday. It's reassuringly heavy (the box + contents weighed

53 pounds on my bathroom scale)!

[Bob Minchin]

multitudes:

Yebbut that is the way to measure scrap as well lol

Bob

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I've bought one too - but haven't assembled it. It's actually lighter than the B&Q 'NuTool' (cost 40 quid many years ago) it will replace. The main tube is of lighter gauge too.

[Toby]

I bought one too :-)

Put it on the checkout belt and the checkout girl typed the number in, then looked at me as if to say, "well I am not bloody moving it!" which is fair enough, it is heavy!

Assembled it, seems to work - first one I have ever had, so I am no expert on them.

Destructions say to run it for 15 minutes on slow speed when new, so I did - seemed quieter than I expected, and after 15 minutes, the motor was pretty damn hot!

It is back in the box until I sort the garage out though...

Toby...

[A.Clews]

Thus spake Toby ([e-mail]) unto the assembled multitudes:

There was a guy at my checkout, and he looked well capable of lifting the thing with one hand. He saw me lift it onto the conveyor belt and said I needn't have bothered because he could have scanned it (or read the product number) in the trolley.

Mine is still in the box until I sort out *my* garage too. It seems to me that most garages are in permanent need of sorting out. My GF's doing hers as I speak. :-)

[Dave Plowman (News)]

That wasn't the Clapham Junction branch, was it? I had a similarly big bloke on the checkout. But I left it in the trolley, and he just typed in the number.

First impressions are it's ok but noisier and more vibration than the old Nu-Tool. But *a lot* more powerful than 500 versus 250 watts suggests.

Anyone want a Nu-Tool drill press cheap?

[Harry Bloomfield]

fred submitted this idea :

Seems reasonable quality, especially for the price, but I don't quite see how the bench clamp is supposed to work.

The round horizontal posts are not long enough for the clamp to properly get a grip of them if you fit it the way it shows on the box. Turn the clamp 180 degree on the posts and it fits perfectly -except you cannot then clamp it on the edge of a bench.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Can't help as I've never used that bit. Only ever used it on the drill press. The fixing centres are too wide for the old drill, so with only one bolt.

[Phil Young]

than the old

suggests.

Does yours have much play in the quill when it's extended, I've not measured but my impression is that mine seems to wobble about a bit. Still, it's going to be 100 times better than a hand held power drill.

Cheers,

Phil Young

[Dave Plowman (News)]

There is an adjustment on the side to help take up play - look for a grub screw with a lock nut. My last drill was the same, but the groove this fits in not well machined. I managed to improve it with a bit of hand grinding using a Dremel type thingie.

[Phil Young]

Well spotted, thanks, I hadn't noticed that.

According to this (Post 31 has pictures)

improved a similar cheap drill by sawing a slit at the front of the main casting and fitting a clamp to tighten up slightly around the moving section. I don't know how you'd go about creating the cut though...

Cheers,

Phil Young

[Frank Erskine]

Angle grinder, of course.