Wiki
Overview
| Name: Standing drill press |
| Location: Metal Shop |
| Status: Operational |
| Training: Required – Metal shop safety |
| Slack Channel: #Help-Metalworking |
| Owner: Denhac |
Training
This machine requires completion of the Metal Shop Safety training authorization. This class is run a few times a month and covers the Drill Press, Band Saw, Chop Saw, Angle and Bench Grinders. refer to the training calendar for currently available classes.
Operation
Safety
-No loose clothing, jewelry or long sleeves that aren’t properly cuffed/rolled up
-wear safety glasses this machine will fling metal shavings at you
-long hair should be put up in a bun/ponytail/tucked into a hat
-closed-toe shoes only
-It is highly advise you do not wear any type of fabric/leather gloves while using this machine. Gloves can get caught in the spinning bit and will pull your hand into the machine resulting in serious injury. generally speaking thin rubber/nitrile gloves are acceptable but it is preferred you do not wear any gloves while operating this machine.
Setup
Do whatever layout you need to do to your work piece beforehand (marking and center punching hole locations, etc)
Clamp your work either to the table directly with hold-down clamps or to a vise securely bolted to the table. Please be mindful to leave space below your work for the drill bit to clear all the way through and make sure it won’t drill into the table or vise, you will damage the machine/vise if you don’t.
making sure the machine is uplugged, Set up the appropriate speed for the size drill and type of material you are working with. To change the pulleys disengage the locks on both sides of the rear of the machine near the motor and then pull the tensioner lever. you should see the motor mount slide back towards the body of the machine relieving tension on the belts. Swap the belts onto the grooves of the pulleys you need for your desired speed, the top cover has a chart on the inside that shows the various speeds that can be achieved by moving the belts to different pulley combinations.
spin the pulleys by hand a few times to check their alignment then push the tensioner handle until the belts are tight on the pulleys, retighten the locks on both sides of the machine and close the cover.
insert the bit you would like to use into the chuck and tighten with the check key. make sure you rotate the chuck and snug up all 3 hole locations on the chuck. spin the chuck by hand a few times to make sure the drill bit doesn’t wobble or spin off center.
the table can be adjusted by disengaging the lock on the back side and then cranking the handle up or down to raise or lower the table, make sure you disenage the lock before attempting to raise or lower the table or you will damage the rack and pinion assembly. The table can also be rotated side to side when the lock is disengaged. position the table so your hole location is lined up with the drill bit and then retighten the table lock. DO NOT attempt to drill with the table lock disengaged this can damage the machine and cause injury to yourself.
Usage
Switch the machine on and pull down on the 3 handle lever to bring the quill down into the work to begin drilling. Go slow and push smoothly without excessive force.
Let the cutter do the work, pressing down too hard will cause excessive heat to build up that will ruin a drill bit in seconds, using cutting oil/wax can greatly improve the quality of the cut and is highly recommended.
if you are drilling larger holes (generally anything 3/8″ or larger) you should start with a smaller pilot hole and then swap to your final size and drill your hole, this allows the larger cutter to do less work and cause less heat buildup resulting in significantly longer tool life as well as much better results.
Monitoring
When operating the machine and making parts you will be constantly monitoring various aspects of the process and using them as feedback to make adjustments to the way you operate the machine. This is multi-sensory task that requires your full attention while the machine is running and you are performing any operation.
Things to look out for:
How do the chips coming off the work look?
How does the surface finish look as I’m cutting?
Is my tooling going to get close to any of the fixturing?
is the machine shaking?
is there smoke coming from anywhere?
did the work move in the fixture during cutting?
Things to Listen out for:
Is the machine making any strange noises?
squealing, chattering, clunking, grinding or any other unusual sound?
does the motor sound bogged down when the cutter is engaged?
Does the cutter make a woody knocking or squealing sound when cutting? (dull tool)
Things to Feel out for:
Does the machine bind at any point?
Is there excess vibration anywhere?
does anything feel too loose or too tight?
Shutdown & Cleanup
-Remove any tooling you used and out it back in it’s proper spot
-Clean any chips and lubricant off the machine
If you used any specific workholding other than the vise please remount the normal vise to the table
Materials
This Drill Press is only for drilling Metal please do not use this machine for wood, there is a drill press in the woodshop for that.
Files & Resources
Specifications
| Name | Drill Press |
| Manufacturer | Guardian Power (Old Harbor Freight Brand) |
| Year Released | Unknown |
| Model | FDM-58-16S |
| Spindle | Morse Taper #2 |
| Capacity | 5/8″ |
| Motor | 3/4HP 110v 5/8″ Shaft |
Pending Repairs
- The Drive pulley on the motor has a wallowed out bore. this causes excessive rattling during operation. the bore has been shimmed and is operational at this time but will need to be addressed further soon. (Possibly drill out the bore and weld in a spacer?)
History
-
- Donated by Marcel Grenier
-
- Table bracket replaced by Jack LeRoi
- Motor replaced January 2026
- New drive belt installed April 2026