Thread: mortising machine or attachment for drill press

This has been discussed before and the general comments were the drill press mortisers were false value due to strength and depth of cut.

Depending on the amount of mortising you want to do either dowel or use a router and buy/make a jig.

Try a search on mortising as it was a recent thread.

I've got one of the drill press jobbies. It works OK but it's a pain to set up. Would be OK if you had two drill presses (which I do). The hold down arrangement is a bit ordinary and there's no easy adjustment for locating the mortice - a bit trial and error. If you combine it with an XY vice, then it's a bit of an improvement providing the vice is bolted to the table.

If you plan on doing a lot of them, I would go for a proper morticer instead. Even a relatively cheap one would be better than the drill press attachment.

I use a router to do my mortices.

Originally Posted by silentC

I've got one of the drill press jobbies. It works OK but it's a pain to set up. Would be OK if you had two drill presses (which I do). The hold down arrangement is a bit ordinary and there's no easy adjustment for locating the mortice - a bit trial and error. If you combine it with an XY vice, then it's a bit of an improvement providing the vice is bolted to the table.

If you plan on doing a lot of them, I would go for a proper morticer instead. Even a relatively cheap one would be better than the drill press attachment.

I Agree whole heartedly with the above coments, I've just cut 64 12mmx24mm by 60mm deep mortices with a drill press jobby, it worked well although not quite as accurate as a proper morticer. However I only cut mortices occasionally so I bought one from carbatec.

There was a Delta mortiser for sale in the buy, sell, swap section. An American brand but made in Taiwan no doubt. If you can google up a review these models seem to get a reasonable write up and are probably more than suitable for us hobbiests. It would be worth your while to check it out at least.

John.

I've got one of the drill press things and don't use it. It cost about $60 from Bunnings, then I (foolishly) spent $90 on a sharpener thing from Timbercon which never seemed to work well.

My problem was I was trying to do mortices in some rock hard wood and it just didn't have the oomph. I have thought about digging it out for use on softer woods, but haven't. I'm now thinking of getting a Trend M&T jig.

Have not used moticing machine but in my experience and as silentC says the drill press attachment is false economy compared to one of the cheaper MM's IMHO

I tried the drill press unit years ago and it was so good I sold at a garage sale. Just got a Leda free standing unit, very solid. It is certainly in a different league. Very happy so far, except for the $$$
BobT

Hi,
I have one of these jobbies and find it is fine. More recently I predrill to get the bulk out.

I only use the fence that came with it as the hold downs are clumsy and time consuming. I also built a long jig for the table which enables me to easily slide work piece along as I am morticing.

A dedicated machine is better, but other new machines have priority..and my mortices are excellent.

cheers,
conwood

Thankyou all for your educated responses, I Will most definitely only go with a machine then! I wander if a second hand overhead router would be any good? as I have stumbled across one.

cheers