Customer Reviews

DELTA 17-990X X5 3/4 Horsepower 16-1/2-Inch Variable Speed Drill Press

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

 

 

We recently purchased this drill press for our small custom shop. We appreciate well made machinery and for the price of this unit that is what we were hoping to receive. Some parts of the machine are excellent, variable speed and generally solid construction. Yet the machine is mechanically flawed.

1. There is a full 1/16" of quill play. This exists between the quill and the gear in the handle assembly. This equates to a vertical rattle and an inability for the drill press to drill a hole to a precise depth. I called Delta and their response was that this is acceptable and normal in this model..........

2. The drill press quill stop is a piece of flexible bent steel and is not a part of the head casting as with many sturdy old drill presses. The steel is flimsy enough that you have to be careful not to deflect the stop at the bottom of the stroke by pushing aggressively, or you will be boring a hole deeper than you would like.

3. The top of the head is open exposing the variable speed drive. It would be very difficult to get your hands down into the pulleys but this is still a safety issue. All pulleys with belts should be fully enclosed, period. This may even be an OSHA violation, but regardless ...... sloppy design.

Overall this machine is a disappointment in its price class. Some bad design elements, and some poor machining......made in China.

David Kuznitz

DK Woodworks

This drill press is great it is quite and has all the power I will ever need. The only reason that I am giving it 4 stars instead of five is the table that is with it. I ordered a clamp and a vise to go with this great drill, they had to be jacked around to work because the slots in the table do not goo all the way through. These everyday extras work well but had to do a lot of fiddling to get them attached to the base.

One comment is that I find it incredable that Delta feels the top covering the belt and pulleys to be an extra. Made one from plywood to protect the pulleys from loading up with sawdust.

Over all I am most pleased and highly reccomend this drill to any one.

Robb

After having used this drill press for several months I can say that over all I am quite happy with it. I have drilled holes in wood and metal with everything from 1/16 inch twist to 2-1/2 Forstner bits with no problems and have used spindle sanders also with no issues. It runs smoothly and quietly with power to spare.

That being said I am disapointed with several small things: 1. the top of the head is open and the cover is extra $ this seems chintzy on an $800 machine. 2. The table is more geared towards metal work as are most drill presses but there are no through holes to allow an add-on table to be attached. Admittedly these may seem like minor issues but they are enough to take a star away for being cheap on the details.

I purchased this machine new a while back. Generally it is a very good machine. It has plenty of power and the variable speed controls work easily. The 6" stroke is very nice. The table is flat and true but the design leaves a little to be desired for a wood shop. The only way to really clean it is to blow it out with compressed air. I did not like the opened top. I immediately built a hinged cover for the top. In a wood shop a lot of dust would collect and probably cause problems at some point. The machine is quite noisy compared to most drill presses. The chuck is massive and looks good but I had trouble with it becoming very hard to adjust and had to clean and lubricate it frequently. I finally replaced the chuck with a good Jacobs chuck. Over all this machine is a nice addition to the shop.

From the day I bought this drill it has been a series of problems all related the the primary variable v-belt. The belt would slip when in low range(high torque)so I took it to the authorized repair shop. They worked on it but when I first used it the belt flopped around so much it jambed and stalled the motor. Back to the repair shop-wasn't very happy to be taking the trip. They worked on it and didn't encourage me to come back. Still had the problem so I called Delta service-they sent me a complete power head including the motor. The serial number on the replacement unit was older than my original unit other than that it was identical. The replacement unit has the same lack of torque in low range. It can't drill a 1/2 hole in steel so I avoid using at all.

This is a woodworking drill with a metal working table. I own a lot of good Delta equipment and tools so it was a major disappointment to get one that is that is so poorly designed.

I Just bought this drill from my local tool store. I had to have it for a job drilling 3/8 and 9/16 " holes through 5/8" steel plate. this was the only press they had, I have drilled 120 holes and used a squrit bottle for coolant, the speed control is nice, and I cant seam to stop this thing no matter how hard I pull on the handle. So overall a OK machine for being made in China. I will make a cover for the open belt drive, I guess that is the advantage of having a sheetmetal shop.

If you read Amazons review of this product - it illudes that this Drill press comes with a Jacobs Chuck & yet it DOES NOT!!!! It comes with a CHEAP off BRAND chuck with a Jacobs Taper!!! BIG DIFFERENCE!!!! They also will do nothing to correct this problem!!!

This is what thier review says;

We like that the power switch is right on the front of the head, rather than on the side, for quick starts and stops. When we examined the 1/2-inch chuck, we found yet more quality in the Jacobs name.