Customer Reviews

Delta 17-900 16-1/2" 12-Speed Drill Press

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

 

 

Bought one of these about 8 years ago after having had excellent experiences with American-made Delta products (eg, Unisaw, shaper, etc.)

I was a bit disappointed with this tool. It was difficult to assemble & the instructions were virtually incomprehensible---had to give up on them and just use common sense/knowledge to get it together. Fit and finish is quite rough in comparison to US made tools----some filing/deburring/minor machining was required to get everything to work smoothly.

Runout was a bit more than I had hoped for, but was within the tolerances I need for woodworking. For more precise tolerances needed in metal working--no way.

The tool works okay, but for those into tool aesthetics (as am I) it comes up short.

Where should I start? The belts that came with it were so tight that it was almost impossible to change speeds and the free Delta replacements were the same size. Had to buy the correct size locally. In the first month- of light use- the chuck wouldn't stay seated in the taper mortise, so I had to use cylindrical bonding Loctite to secure it so it wouldn't fall out when drilling. The table column clamp has so much slop that when I need to set an exact height, like for very light milling operations, I have to guess low, by at least a sixteenth of an inch, because the table will rise at least that much when the column clamp is tightened. The excessive chuck run-out makes using any bit smaller than a number 60 a total waste of time and error is annoyingly noticeable with bigger bits, too. Finally, when I needed to drill and countersink about 600 holes in some fence slats (soft cedar) the other day, after only fifteen minutes or so into a three hour project, the idler pulley shaft walked out of its bushing and crashed around inside the drive housing!!!!!! After analyzing the problem, I determined that the motor mount will allow the pulleys to be aligned at roughly the same height, OR, in parallel planes, but not BOTH at the same time! So, every few minutes I would have to stop the machine and peek under the hood to make sure the idler pulley wasn't about to make the great escape again. All things considered, I wouldn't buy another Delta drill press at gunpoint.

Santa Claus was nice enough to bring me one of these this year (1999) and I couldn't be happier with it. Although it is extremely heavy, assembly was a snap. I had it together in about 30 minutes. Once assembled I practically spent the next two days straight putting it through the paces. I found this press to be solid, powerful, and well built. Although it is cumbersome to make frequent speed adjustments via the belts, it is worth the $500 savings to buy this machine and do just that (as opposed to the electronic variable speed presses). I highly recommend this tool for its quality and value.

I bought my drill press about 4 years ago. It's been a real "work horse" in my shop. I have not measured run out but it is trivial compared to the precision required for woodworking. Fit and finish are fine for my machine. I do not recall any difficulty with assembly.

Once upon a time Delta was THE tool to own if you wanted the best. That reputation was not built on the quality of this tool. For as much as I do with it, for the money, it's a good tool. I bought this model based on company reputation and I am diappointed. I am waiting for the rack that adjusts the table height to break in half. Just feels too flimsy when running the table up and down. Were I to do it over again, I would spending more money for a better drill press.

I purchased this drill press in 1999 and have used it about 12 months. It is functional. I have used this unit on wood (it's intended purpose) and metal (I know but I had to do it). I do not use this on even a weekly basis so I went for price when I bought the drill press.

It is worth it's price. It has poor fit and finish. It could be greatly improved. If you are not using a drill press everyday or are a weekender this is a good value - also consider a jet. They are both made on that little island.

There may be some variability in quality control, but the machine that I received is better than expected. The thing I was most concerned about was excessive runout, which has turned out to be imperceptable with a No. 61 drill, the smallest rated for this (5/8") chuck. Measurements with a 'Last Word' dial indicator against drill shafts of various size showed runout smaller than the roundness or straightness if the drills. The chuck, incidentally, seems to be very well made, but note that on installation, the tapers attaching the chuck to the spindle adaptor and the spindle adaptor to the spindle must be very clean in order to insure strong attachment. On the minus side, the table does rise a bit on tightening the clamp (<0.015"). Swinging the table under a 1/16" drill showed a slope of about 0.025" across its 12" width (factory setup). Neither of these seems to be out of line considering the price.

I haven't used my new drill press yet. Why? Because, after following the assembly instructions and setting the machine up, the instructions THEN tell you to bolt a 28 X 21" plyboard subbase under the machine's steel base to stabilise the machine! It takes two people to assemble the drill press; it will now take three to affix the subbase, something that could easily have been done when the steel base was first unpacked and the remaining 230 lbs. hadn't yet been attached.

I purchased this drill press over 2 years ago and have nothing but praise for it,its a workhorse.I've drilled treated 4x4 post,100's of boards and even metal plating all this without even a wimper its one solid machine.When i purchased this machine it came complete ,all parts and accessories were in box unlike some other tools and machines that i have purchased in past years and the ease of assembly it was a breeze.I had it set up and boring holes in wood in just under 30 minutes ,its a very well put together machine with alot of extra and helpful features that help you get the job done right.I've been a woodworker for over 20 years and have owned other brands that don't even standup to the quality and durability of the Delta 17-900 drill press.75 percent of my woodshop is setup with Delta machines and accessories the other 25 percent with another well known brand.I put my machines through their paces day in and day out and Delta products haven't let me down yet.The delta model 17-900 drill press is very worthy of the 5 star rating i gave it and i highly recommend it as well as other delta machines to anybody looking for quality and durability in woodworking machinery.

While this is my first and only drill press, the unit seems to be very nice.

I recieved this as a Chrismas present from my wife, we had looked at several units and this on had the best price for features....

First off the the instructions were very clear considering that alot of the parts came preassemblied. Took only about 1 hour to set up and every thing went very smooth. It did take 2 people to put the head onto the post but even this went very smooth!

Speed adjustments are very easy with the pop up cover and tension adjustments. The fact that the unit uses a Morris tapper for the chuck is great. The depth adjustment is very easy to use and quick to set!

Fit and finish seemed to be very good. There is some play in the table but from what we saw on other units they will also have the same problem due to the way the rack is held in place to the post!

I only gave 4 stars because this is my first and only drill press and it runs a little loud!