Thread: High-End Drill Presses, Brobo Waldown, Parken, etc.

David

New machines are usually either very expensive or poorly made as you have noted

Perhaps you might consider looking for an old industrial Parkanson or Waldown drill...they can be found relativelty cheaply and in good order.

John

Hi John:

Thanks for your reply.

I agree that looking around longer for a used machine is the way to save a lot of money and potentially get a better product. For one reason or another, I don't seem to be in the right place at the right time, and/or I don't know enough to know whether an old machine is beyond saving (with my skill set), and then there is the matter of the time it takes to rebuild said machine. I am not as impatient at the current crop of young people, but I am aware that I could be more patient indeed, when it comes to these things.

I think the Brobo Waldown machine is probably better than Parken, but I can't get past the short stroke (barely over 100mm) and the limited distance between column and quill (191mm). Maybe I should be so concerned about those features?...

David

I'd have to agree with jcge. Sometimes those older drills can be found for only a few hundred dollars and all they need is new bearings. Quite often the motors will still have a lot of life and apart from a a bit of rust and a few knocks they are still pretty sound. 3 Phase machines are cheap and the motors can be swapped out for a similar size single phase unit quickly and cheaply.
Sometimes the tooling that the seller will throw in with the sale is worth more than the drill ( spare chucks, morse tapers, drills, vice etc )

Stewie

Originally Posted by Stewie D

. . . . .3 Phase machines are cheap and the motors can be swapped out for a similar size single phase unit quickly and cheaply.

Or for about the same price you can power them via a VFD and gain all the benefits of a VFD.

Wish List:
When I went shopping for my first drill press, I had wod working projects in mind with many, many screw holes that had to be square to the stock. Thousands, in fact. Bought an 8" Delta ($150), 4 speed, which has served my needs very, very well with changing interests over the years.
If I could go looking again, these Delta features continue to frustrate me:

1. Much large support table/platform, what ever it's called.
2. Spindle to column distance. (I've seen one with the power head on a horizontal rail. I don't know how reliable that geometry is but for me, not a premium unless it was really bad.)
= =
a) With more shop space, a floor stand setup would be nice.
b) Variable speed isn't a premium = if I'm doing enough, setting the belt speed is not a challenge.
Come to think of it, I've never run it over 1100rpm, but I can run 2,000+ to use it as a detail router.
c) Dinky little motor in the Delta. Except for Forstner bits 1" and bigger, it doesn't bog down.

Thanks everyone for your recent posts -- thought I would provide a brief update. On Sunday I used some frequent flyer points and flew down to Melbourne to inspect the new Parken presses. Michael Haussegger, one of two sons who bought the original business from his Dad, opened up the shop on a Sunday just for me.

I will have a lot more to say about Parken drill presses and about Michael. It was a pleasure to meet someone who still loves design, details, and the making of things as good as can be. What a company! I can't say definitively that the new presses are as good as the old ones, but my expectations were easily exceeded.

And Michael personally drove me the 30mins back to the city!

More after the press arrives.

David