Chester D19 drill press

I'm looking to replace my "hobby" drill press with something a bit more substantial.
The Chester D19 seems to be the beefiest I can find within my budget but I would be grateful to hear from anyone who has experience of these drills.
The D16 seems to have only a slight decrease in various of the specifications but comes in at almost halft the weight, which I find surprising.
Previous experience has put me off the Sealey/Clarke line of drills and is seems that buying second hand ones can be a bit of a lottery.
Adrian.

On Mon, 06 Dec 2010 16:46:00 +0000, Adrian Harris
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Seems the Axminster ED16B2 is the same drill in slightly different colours, and the only review on their site containis "Only negative point is built quality which lets it down a tad"
Adrian.

Adrian Harris wrote:
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For 212 quid you would be much better off buying a second hand lump of British cast iron. Startrite, Meddings, Fobco etc are amongst good names to go for.
Bob

On Mon, 06 Dec 2010 19:19:12 +0000, Bob Minchin
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Thanks Bob.
I've found myself a Meddings drill, so I'll see how I get on with that.
Next on the learning curve is 3ph to 1ph conversion :-O
Adrian.

Adrian Harris wrote:
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You might find this useful http://homepage.ntlworld.com/bob.minchin/Induction%20motors%20-%20Issue2.pdf Come back to me directly if you need more help Bob

On Mon, 13 Dec 2010 10:18:55 +0000, Bob Minchin
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Many thanks Bob - a most interesting read.
Adrian.

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You should be well pleased with that. Some years ago I built a hydraulic press that required about 12, 1" clearance holes in 2" steel. My single phase 3/4HP chinese drill took almost 5 minutes per hole. The 3 phase 3/4HP Meddings at work flexed less and drilled each one in less than half the time. I was never sure whether the advantage was from 3 phase or the better drill. I suspect a combination of both since the chinese belts slipped unless run VERY tight.
John

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Before that seems to come wiring it up again.
The main switch has a severed length of 15A three core mains cable attached to the three poles opposing the motor connections. I strongly suspect this isn't how it's meant to be wired up.
Is there a PDF available of the correct wiring for this switch ?
Or will that depend upon, or affect, the invertor I purchase ?
The switch seems to have two indicated postions. One icon is of a drill bit turning, which seems fairly self explanatory. The other icon looks like a square with foud HV flashes at the corners. What does that one signify ?
Adrian.

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My mistake, it's a circle, with four HV flashes.
Adrian.

On Thu, 16 Dec 2010 14:56:14 +0000, Adrian Harris
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On my Meddings drill that one means stop - the other two unmarked positions are also on and off. I have some time ago taken the switch out and as I recall it is a 3 pole switch so could be used for single or three phase (mine is single phase).
Russell

Adrian Harris wrote:
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I'd use the existing 3ph motor and add a single-to-3ph VFD. Once you've used variable speed control on a drill you'll never want to be without. You get instant reverse too. (Ditto for lathes and mills).

On Sun, 12 Dec 2010 23:08:24 +0000, Adrian Harris
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Finally got the 3ph working - don't you just hate it when you ring a company to find out where your order is and they tell you it's scheduled to be despatched that day >-|
The next problem is that the belt is shot. This one is marked Z1080 M42, which seems to make it a 3/8" x 42" belt. Before I order a replacement on a purely like-for-like basis, can anyone confirm if this is the correct belt for a Meddings DrillTru ?
Adrian

Adrian Harris wrote:
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I can't answer your question directly but if the puley width is around 3/8" or 10mm then this is the right section of belt sometimes known as SPZ or older belts M section. At this sort of belth length they are available in 1" steps which equated to 1/2" step between pulley centres Check to see if your current belt can be tensioned in the mid range of adjustment on all pulley steps. allowing for wear in the old belt which will make it run deeper in the vees if anything, decide if a centre distance of 1/2" less would still mean a shorter belt would fit on all steps. If possible I would buy a cogged vee belt as these are more flexible and smoother running thus inducing less vibration. Cogged belts often have an X in the designation eg SPZX 1078.
hth
Bob

On Sat, 22 Jan 2011 16:16:00 +0000, Bob Minchin
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Thanks again Bob.
I'll take some measurements and see what size is the best looking fit.
It's interesting you recommend a cogged belt - my instnct would have been that that type of belt would introduce vibration rather than reduce it.
Adrian.

The motor on this drill has the following ident plate information:
Brook Motors Ltd 240/420-460/1740/60hz T4LV4R Class - E Phase - 3 Rating - CONT 50Hz Enc - DP 250W FL Current - 1.2 0.7 Voltage - 220 380-420 FL Speed - 1440
It was obvisously green when fitted, as the ident plate has blue paint over the edges. Can anyone shed any light on this motor ? Is it likely to be original ?
Adrian.