Customer Reviews

JET 354165 JDP-15M 3/4-HP 15-Inch Bench Drill Press

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

For those of you who need a quality drill press, but whose shops are a little small for a floor-standing model, this is probably your best bet. Combined with a quality drill press vise (6" or larger), you can do just about anything. I build custom furniture and use this press for numerous purposes, and can confidently drill accurate stopped holes in curved hardwood stock without problems.

The press comes via freight in a single box. It is HEAVY but can be man-handled around on the ground without too much issue. You will need to assemble the press out of the box. Assembly is very easy - until you need to lift the drill head and motor housing onto the column. It is possible to do it yourself if you are tall and strong, but I recommend having a helper because it is a bit of a workout.

All parts are well-machined and HEAVY. The base and column are substantial pieces of metal, and the worktable is larger than most. Fit and finish are good - the work table moves easily on the column without too much play, and the clamp handles to lock down the table require little effort to utilize and hold the table very securely. Out of the box the machined metal will be greasy and dirty - you will want to wipe it down with a good degreaser like WD40 to clean it up before use. Not necessary, but you might also want to run a metal file around the table edges and slots to make sure there aren't any sharp burrs left after machining. Once assembled, this is a HEAVY piece of equipment. I keep mentioning the weight, but my last benchtop drill press I was able to move around pretty easily and scoot it on the top of a worktable. Even sitting on an old towel, it is hard to push this drill press around even a few inches. This is good if you are looking for a solid, stable work surface. It is not so good if you like to pull it forward to work, and push it back out of the way between jobs.

In use, the drill is very accurate, with minimal run-out (so-called drill bit "wobble") which is the bane of most cheap drill presses. Proper setup of the spindle and chuck during assembly is required to get perfect accuracy, but once setup properly, the machine continues to perform accurately without additional adjustment. The on/off switch in the front of the machine is large, easy to access, and feels substantial so that you aren't left wondering when the switch is going to malfunction. A very nice feature on this drill is the dedicated work light which is located inside the drill head behind the bit. The light takes standard medium base bulbs, and is controlled via a separate rocker switch on the side of the drill head, so you can turn the light on and off independent of the operation of the drill. The light provides good task lighting from BEHIND the bit - an area that is normally shadowed if you are only using ambient shop lighting - and makes it much easier to line up your drilling work.

Changing drill speeds require shifting belts in the drill head (as in all non-variable speed drill presses). Fortunately, this task is made simpler by the degree to which the motor slides easily on rails to allow slack in the drive belts. To change speeds you simply loosen side-mounted motor housing clamp, slide the motor slightly towards the drill head (providing slack in the belts), adjust the belts, slide the motor back away from drill head (tightening the belts), and lock it down with the clamp. This operation can be a hassle if the motor does not slide easily, but is pretty effortless in the case of this press.

The drill depth gauge is located on the side of the drill head, and has positive and negative stops. The positive stop is a locking stop, so your setting will not start to drift if you are executing repetitive drills that all have to be the same uniform depth. The depth gauge works well and accurately.

The work table can be set at an angle, but I have not used this feature since I prefer to keep my table always set square and angle the work on the table (via a vise). The angle setting for the work table is located beneath the table, and there is a small angle gauge there to allow you to eyeball an angle setting. If you decide to use this feature, I would highly recommend you purchase an electronic angle gauge (one of the magnetic ones) so that you can set your table angle more accurately than what can be accomplished using the small gauge that is attached to the drill press.

My last comment is to suggest that you purchase a good drill press vise for use with this press. A drill press vise will add a great degree of accuracy and control, and when setup properly will increase the speed with which you can execute repetitive drilling or angled holes. It is much better to keep your table flat and work with an angled vise, than to try to angle your work table with your work piece clamped to it. Personal opinion :)

In summary, I recommend this drill press for anyone who is looking for power, accuracy and weight in the smallest possible package. A drill press is a very simple machine when it works the way it should - but will cause no end of nightmares if it doesn't. The Jet 15" bench top drill press has been for me a very dependable and reliable machine.

I decided to write this review since it didn't have a very good rating. I've had my drill press since April 2008 and I use it quite often. I haven't had any problems. It does everything I need. It drills very straight without wobble. I do woodworking and pen turning. It was easy to set up, although it was very heavy so I needed assistance placing the top portion on the lower portion. Like one reviewer wrote, it's a table top but it's not small. It's works and acts like a full size press. If you're looking for a press that is portable or that you can move around your bench, this isn't for you. I put mine on a cabinet I built that has wheels so I can move it around the garage.

I would highly recommend it.

***May 25, 2010 Update***
Still using the drill press, a lot, and still working great and I would still recommend it.

I was looking for a benchtop drill press, and decided to get the jet. It is called a bench top drill press but i think that it is a full size drill press on a short pole. The table top is the biggest in its class. Changing speeds and setting the depth stop are excellent. Spend the extra money for a 3/4 hp instead of a 1/2 or 1/3 hp. Just another great jet product.

I looked around for quite a while for a quality drill press. I kept going back to an 2008 issue of Fine Woodworking magazine that rated this drill press top dog. I'm glad I did, because this drill press is a solid, durable machine. It's compact and has plenty of power. Even after I bought this drill press, I kept looking around at other machines, to compare mine to the others. I can honestly say that I am happy with my purchase and would do it again.

I like the speed options, the smooth running nature of it, and the large worksurface. It was very easy to set up. I'm glad I bought it, but I wish I knew how annoying the table tilt adjustment was going to be. You need a large ratchet (15/16") to turn the large nut tucked away under the table in a tight area that prevents using a typical wrench. And you really need to tighten down the nut very hard to keep the table from moving. The scale is easy to read, but when you tighten the big nut it is easy to move the table out of square. Everything else about the tool is excellent.

Overall, I am happy with this machine. It is well-built, but there is a slight wobble in the chuck. This could, however, be how I installed it. I'm going to try redoing that.

It is larger and higher than I expected for a benchtop drill press. It is very heavy because it is a floor-model remade to a bench-model. It is too high to be on my regular 36" bench. I had to have a lower,very sturdy table to set this on, which I hadn't planned on.

Still, it does a good job. I wanted to drill into 3/4" steel and it does this very well.

The Jet drill is performing perfectly. Good fit for me and my shop. My Amazon experience coulda used some help. I ordered this is early February and it didn't arrive until a few days ago. The item said in stock soon (this means nothing other than not in stock I came to learn). I called several Jet dealers and they had it in stock. I even sent the dealers numbers to Amazon to fulfill the order. In the end...they use one dealer who did not have it in stock.

I saved a good deal on this Machine, but, I would have cancelled it for better service. I still love the site....just gonna go to local dealers for this type of purchase.

I bought this press intending to use it for demanding metal fabrication. The low possible spindle speed (250 rpm) is excellent for large holes in metal to keep from chipping expensive bits. 3/4 horsepower gives this press plenty of grunt, and I run mine on 220v and it starts instantly. I has a built in work light and chuck key holder. The quill stroke is only 3 1/8", however, it is thick and designed for minimal defection. It is an excellent metal fabrication press, which is no surprise considering Jet's pedigree. Please beware that if you switch the motor over to 220 you have to rewire the light to run off only 1 leg so it only draws 110v, otherwise the bulb will pop every time.
Take off the front switch panel, and locate the light power wires, which are black and white and thinner gauge than the motor power wires. Unscrew one of the leads, black or white doesn't matter, and attach it to one of the grounds in the back of the compartment (green wire). Now only 110v reaches the bulb socket and you can run the press fully on 220!

The drill arived from the freight company several days later than expected, but in good condition.

Purchase date 1 April 2011

I researched the reviews from Fine Wood Working, looked a the General International and choose the Jet based on the table dimentions and other individuals reviews. As a comparison, I priced out the General 15" bench top made in Canada. At nearly "FIVE" time the cost of the Asian manufactured tools, I doubt the more costly cousin would yield five times the accuracy (it does not.) Yes, the Canada made General is a better quality tool, the castings are fine grain, motor and handles are up scale.

Assembly was easy, the castings for the table and base are little coarse, a small hole was filled in the table, but nothing to loose sleep over.

It is a large drill, you will need help assembling the head if you are not over 6' tall.

The tappered spindle out of the box was not true. Once everything was assembled, I installed a 1/4 drill bit on slow speed and watched it swing around like a it had one to many.

I put the tappered spindle between centers on the lathe and sure enough, no dial indicator needed, it was not ground concentric.

A call to Jet and a replacement spindle was sent in a few days. They quouted .08" for acceptable spindle runout.

Runs like a champ, powerful and smooth (for a general purpose drill press.)

If not for the spindle, I would have given five stars and it will probably last my lifetime.

I received my drill press Saturday and immediately set out to assemble it. I had a spare base and modified it for the drill press; I would highly recommend getting one with this tool. The assembly was straight-forward and alignment was simple. Setting the drill speed was intuitive; a chart in the pulley housing cover makes it easy to set the desired speed. I drilled a number of test holes in various pieces of scrap and the results were very precise. All I need to do now is try to figure out why it took me so long to get one.