ProxxonPrecision Bench Drill Press - Micro Hole Capability, Adjustable Depth & Table, 3-Speed Selection - TBM 115

The PROXXON Precision Bench Drill Press is a small machine with limited size and power, but that is what it is made for.Even with those limitations I have been able to complete a decent amount of drilling and countersinking various types of soft steels. It does a great job and the portability is very convenient.I purchased and use the optional chuck.

I had previously bought the small drill press that is available at many places, under different brand names (at least in pics they appear the same, sometimes different colors), for approx $100.00 and it was fine but I had not seen this one when I bought that one. So through no fault of its own (I was carelessly moving the table and it fell off), I broke its base (though, impressively, it still worked) and that gave me excuse to get this one as a replacement. This is a huge upgrade. well worth the higher price. This Proxxon is significantly better and well-engineered, easier to adjust, has a built-in straight edge to line up and steady target, works very cleanly and smoothly. Another example of nicer build quality: the cover of the other one snapped on and off by two annoying little tabs which did not hold the cover on well, the top was constantly popping off at even a slight bump. The Proxxon has a solid bolt-on top that stays on like it should yet is still easy to remove if desired to change the band. So this Proxxon is well worth the price but glad I learned my lesson not to carelessly move the table with the cheap one.

So here's the thing, it's a pretty good drill press if you have tiny stuff to work on. The system for changing drill bits is pretty bad and finding and buying the optional chuck is probably a smart move. The machine seems well made and mine was brand new (I read some reviews on these that sounded like re-furbs were sent out) so no complaints there.The biggest issue is the quality of the sliding bar on the base of the press. Not sure what it is called but it's the bar that the mini vise would attach to and/or other accessories. It has a thumb screw to tighten the bar (once you set it were you want it) but it NEVER gets tight. Not even close to tight. It just wobbles all over the place which means your accuracy on drilling goes way down. Had I known how bad that one feature was I'd have skipped this drill press completely so buyer beware.With that said, with some work I think I can make it better but I shouldn't have to and neither should you. If this one thing was fixed (and others complain of it as well so my fault for not listening) it would get 5 stars easily.

Smaller in size than I expected but still perfectly usable for my purpose (drilling PCB through-holes). Spindle and collet system run true enough to easily drill 0.3mm holes. I can't do 0.2mm or 0.25mm reliably but then I haven't bolted down the machine for extra stability like they recommend. Also I'm holding the workpiece freehand rather than clamping it down securely. In any case, this drill machine beats a dremel rotary tool mounted in their $50 drill stand by a large margin.Initially there was problem with the machine when I opened it to change the belt to the higher-speed setting. The "set screws" for the motor-side "gear thingy" were coming out and would clearly eat into the belt as it operated. These set screws are basically intended to stay "sunked in" on the high-speed track of the motor-side gear thingy. So I tightened them as best I could but when I turned on the machine, the centrifugal force caused them to roll back out and damage the belt. I explained my situation to proxxon support and thankfully they sent a new belt by express mail at no charge. I've taken out the set screws entirely and it seems to work OK so I'm not sure what they're really good for. If you get one with loose set screws I personally recommend removing them rather than trying to secure them properly. AFAICT, it's not easy to secure them because there is no "head" to these screws.