Anyone automate their Drill Press Table?

[charlessenf]

I've got some salvaged DC motors and an interest in automating my drill press table but no experience in sourcing necessary gears and such and finding supplier's descriptions a bit Greek.

Thought to ask here for a mentor.

I've watched some youtube videos (where I got the image) but the links to parts lose me rapidly.

Charles

 

[JNCarr]

Jim Creasman, I think. Search for his posts

 

[charlessenf]

Oops! We ran into some problems. The following members could not be found: Jim Creasman

Found a Jimmy B48 but no Jimmy C?????? at all.
Thanks for the tip, regardless. (I learned a bit more about the SEARCH feature here!)

 

[creasman]

@charlessenf I did the mods to mine shown in this post. Sourcing the gears proved to be a bit tricky. I ordered two sets (one for table locking mechanism and one for height adjustment) off of eBay. When these arrived, one pair was incorrect and had to be returned. Eventually, I was able to get the size/ratio I requested and was refunded for the other. This is an example:

It's been a while since I ordered. I should inspect the parts to make sure I give you the sizes I ordered. PM me if you have specific questions.

 

[creasman]

Found a Jimmy B48 but no Jimmy C?????? at all.

It's just @creasman .

 

[bobsmodels]

Did this awhile back and it has worked just fine for me.
Bob

Drill Press Table Lift

(I changed text size per request) There was a thread last March asking for help in raising a drill press table with lots of good suggestions. I replied with my potential solution using a linear actuator that I had acquired. I said when I got it done I would post the results. The idea for...

ncwoodworker.net

 

[charlessenf]

@charlessenf I did the mods to mine shown in this post. Sourcing the gears proved to be a bit tricky. I ordered two sets (one for table locking mechanism and one for height adjustment) off of eBay. When these arrived, one pair was incorrect and had to be returned. Eventually, I was able to get the size/ratio I requested and was refunded for the other. This is an example:
View attachment 231639
It's been a while since I ordered. I should inspect the parts to make sure I give you the sizes I ordered. PM me if you have specific questions.

I revisited your Drill Press Table Upgrade - amazing! The three quarter inch Aluminum depth stop bracket and the way to made it! Geeze!

5/8" rods for the control handles?! BULLETPREUF!

THANKS FOR THE FEEDBACK

 

[chris_goris]

Look at mcmaster.com for all these hard to find parts. they should have anything you need.

 

[charlessenf]

Thank you Chris
My issue is NOT a lack of suppliers. Rather my lack of understanding of the way they specify the pair of gears I'll need. See the example @creasman shared, above.
I'm partial to the idea of a geared approach with the motor mounted to the table and have seen a couple of builds (YouTube, etc.) but the links to parts were not detailed and had expired. I'm also working on the power supply - though I have two linear actuators salvaged from a handicapped power chair rated for a three hundred pound human! One is complete (actuator, motor, power (can run on AC or battery) and switch (For Rev).

 

[creasman]

I like the way my configuration works. The only drawback is the weight it adds. My table weighs about 35-40 lbs. This makes the height adjuster hard to turn using only the handle. I usually use two hands to turn the wheel, instead. My plan is to add weights with a simple compound pulley to add counterbalance. If anyone has a set of old window weights lying around unused I'm interested in them .

I've seen other setups using motors to turn the height adjustment. The most interesting configuration used a motor from a cordless drill that was reversible. They wired it directly into a power inverter (i.e., no battery) and then used the switch to toggle direction. Drills have a lot of torque. Looked pretty slick. Maybe a future mod for me.

 

[charlessenf]

Did this awhile back and it has worked just fine for me.
Bob

Drill Press Table Lift

(I changed text size per request) There was a thread last March asking for help in raising a drill press table with lots of good suggestions. I replied with my potential solution using a linear actuator that I had acquired. I said when I got it done I would post the results. The idea for...

ncwoodworker.net

Now, that is an impressive actuator!
(Nice work, too! - Were those 'off the shelf' electrical boxes? I'm looking to enclose a relay, current switch and possibly a 120VAC outlet)
As to the text issue "When I typed it into Publisher it was Calibri 12. When I copy it from the thread into the same file it comes in as Calibri 10. When I copy this text into the file it is Verdana 10, which is a larger font than Calibri." It has been my experience in the field that the software folks provided too many options for the average end user as if MORE was a 'feature.'

For publishing to this and similar sites, the suggestion to use NOTEPAD as an intermediate step (for TEXT, of course) should serve everyone well. BEFORE
Like This:
For publishing to this and similar sites, the suggestion to use NOTEPAD as an intermediate step (for TEXT, of course) should serve everyone well. AFTER

When looking to compose for 'export,' think KISS Principle and Generic Fonts (Courier New, for instance is available everywhere - and is good for numeric / Math because it is a Fixed Width Font) (Courier New, for instance is available everywhere - and is good for numeric / Math because it is a Fixed Width Font)

When you control the creative production and display - the availability of so many options is akin to a god send.

However, when you're in an organization, these options will drive the I.T. Guys to distraction (ask me how I know). When I was at IBM (late eighties - the World of DOS), they had an entire Style Manual for inter-company communications!

When I got to a municipal government and Windows was adopted - it was crazy. Everyone with access to a PC Mag was an 'expert,' I.T. was an offshoot of Finance and there were no standards.

 

[charlessenf]

If anyone has a set of old window weights lying around unused I'm interested in them .

Any antique shops in your neck of the wood?​

 

[chris_goris]

What do you mean by automate? Raise and lower?. What about tilt and rotate about the column?

 

[tvrgeek]

I would love a front handle and lock. When I get around to it. As far as automate, as in power, I wonder about precision. We can be really delicate by hand. Now so sure with a motor.

 

[charlessenf]

"We can be really delicate by hand. Now so sure with a motor."

Well, rotating my table left to access the crank handle (after crawling under at left to release the lock), turning that little crank handle from below is neither pretty nor pretty accurate by a long shot.

A DC motor running at (what, four?) RPM or less under the load above should be controllable. Especially since we are most often only needing to 'get in the ball park' as the quill travel and depth stop will be used to exact the requisite precision, no?

If you look on the YouTube you can get a better feel for the action from the finished product(s) they have shared there.

 

[pop-pop]

I would love a front handle and lock. When I get around to it. As far as automate, as in power, I wonder about precision. We can be really delicate by hand. Now so sure with a motor.

Not quite a front handle, but this cam handle has worked really well for me on my metal-working DP for months, as well as another on my Nova DP:

]

The original thread is here: DP table lock improvement

The geometry for the cam is quite simple.

 

[Alan in Little Washington]

For all types and sizes of gears, pulleys, leadscrews, timing belts, and all sorts of CNC hardware check out SDP/SI (Stock Drive Products/Stirling Instrument at https://sdp-si.com/

I hardly ever need to move my table up and down, but when I do, vertical precision is not usually needed. When I do need to raise and lower the table, it is because the stock is thicker or thinner or I need to use a larger/longer (or smaller) drill bit. However, what bothers me the most is the current (Delta) rack and pinion and table lock are terrible- slow and sloppy and the table often rotates on the column a tad. That makes it impossible to precisely align a new bit, counter bore, etc. horizonally with an existing hole.

My solutions: Remove the existing rack, pinion, and crank lift mechanism (doesn't work worth a darn anyway) and replace it with a motorized leadscrew lift or a manual mechanical lift using a multi-sheave pulley and counter-weight system (weight inside the column), etc.

For table lock and alignment, I would remove the existing crank and rack crap, especially the semi-floating toothed rack and insert a spacer between locking faces on the column collar. I would firmly attach a small, solid, trapezoidal-shaped rail, vertically, to the front of the column, file a clearance slot in the collar, then mount a locking lever to the table. The leverl would have an over-center shape (like Biesmeyer fence lever). The contact/pressure point of the lever would have a female profile that matches the new column rail. A connecting rod could be used to allow the lever to be mounted under the table at the front. Once locked, the table would be securely locked to the column, vertically, and also the table would be locked in the exact same horizontal position as before, and unable to rotate. (Note, currently, to drill off-center holes or holes not in the center of the table insert, I just rotate the headstock, not the table. It is easy peasy since I replaced the setscrew/bolts that lock the headstock to the column with star knobs)

This is just another drill press project I need to get to, along with tweaking the spindle digital RPM readout and replacing the VFD that controls motor RPM/drill speed which quit a few weeks ago. (I think I should have been using a breaking resistor.)

 

[tvrgeek]

"We can be really delicate by hand. Now so sure with a motor."

Well, rotating my table left to access the crank handle (after crawling under at left to release the lock), turning that little crank handle from below is neither pretty nor pretty accurate by a long shot.

A DC motor running at (what, four?) RPM or less under the load above should be controllable. Especially since we are most often only needing to 'get in the ball park' as the quill travel and depth stop will be used to exact the requisite precision, no?

If you look on the YouTube you can get a better feel for the action from the finished product(s) they have shared there.

I have and that is why if I get around to it, just doing the 90 degree to get the crank and lock reachable seems most reasonable. Actually, I was considering a flex shaft.

 

[bobsmodels]

Now, that is an impressive actuator!
(Nice work, too! - Were those 'off the shelf' electrical boxes? I'm looking to enclose a relay, current switch and possibly a 120VAC outlet)
As to the text issue "When I typed it into Publisher it was Calibri 12. When I copy it from the thread into the same file it comes in as Calibri 10. When I copy this text into the file it is Verdana 10, which is a larger font than Calibri." It has been my experience in the field that the software folks provided too many options for the average end user as if MORE was a 'feature.'

For publishing to this and similar sites, the suggestion to use NOTEPAD as an intermediate step (for TEXT, of course) should serve everyone well. BEFORE
Like This:
For publishing to this and similar sites, the suggestion to use NOTEPAD as an intermediate step (for TEXT, of course) should serve everyone well. AFTER

When looking to compose for 'export,' think KISS Principle and Generic Fonts (Courier New, for instance is available everywhere - and is good for numeric / Math because it is a Fixed Width Font) (Courier New, for instance is available everywhere - and is good for numeric / Math because it is a Fixed Width Font)

When you control the creative production and display - the availability of so many options is akin to a god send.

However, when you're in an organization, these options will drive the I.T. Guys to distraction (ask me how I know). When I was at IBM (late eighties - the World of DOS), they had an entire Style Manual for inter-company communications!

When I got to a municipal government and Windows was adopted - it was crazy. Everyone with access to a PC Mag was an 'expert,' I.T. was an offshoot of Finance and there were no standards.

Charles
They were just outside plastic boxes w/ covers from Menard's from another project if I recall. I used outside box's so they were sealed from sawdust.

As for the text issue it was one of my first posts back in 2017 and one person made a suggestion so I fixed it up, have not had any issues since then

Good luck with your project. Now at 77 it is even more useful. I also automated the collet closer on my Bridgeport about the same time with an air system, another great addition I should have done 15 years ago - do not have to reach up with a wrench. Automation is great - in moderation!

Bob

 

[charlessenf]

I have and that is why if I get around to it, just doing the 90 degree to get the crank and lock reachable seems most reasonable. Actually, I was considering a flex shaft.

I read POPPOP's original post with detailed explanations of his locking mechanism and realized that, while he left his control at the read of the table, and used it in the vertical plane UP = Loosey Down = Tighty, it could be rotated so as to work in the horizontal plane using a longer set screw through a collar extending the pivot Left (away from the column) so it could be manipulated with a handle at the front of the table pull = Loosey, Push = Tighty With a rod tying the front arm to the rear (parallelogram).