Thread: Help! Broken rack on pedestal drill

Hi there,
Just wondering if anyone has any suggestion about fixing this problem. We have a pedestal drill at work, just your generic Taiwanese single phase model and its done a reasonable job for 12yrs or so.
I've done a few minor repairs over the years, but there has been one that I've attempted and now is beyond fixing. The rack that runs down the pedestal, which lifts the deck up and down, got a serious bend and did snap when a student (or two) attempted to wind the handle with the collar lock on. I've welded it up several times, but the metal is poor quality steel, not quite 'cheese' alloy, and has eventually ruined the rack teeth at that point.
I just rang our usual tool repair place and they advised that they can't provide a new part. Reason being: the Chinese manufacturers who have taken over the market with this type of machine don't use the same pitch rack, and retrofitting the worm or pinion drive is not possible. His answer, buy a whole new drill!
Anyone know of a place that still stocks Taiwanese spares? The model is Toolmac 82-532402. The rack is 865mm longx 17mm wide and the pitch is 6mm.
Other options, cable lift?? Buy a new deck with matching rack, assuming the pillar diameter is a standard...yeah, big ask!

Thanks for reading.