Thread: Harbor Freight Drill Press?

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Hey guys-
I'm looking to get a drill press. The 'reason' is so that I can make my cemetery fence this year. At least, that's what I'm convincing myself of. I know Harbor Freight has some cheap ones- especially this weekend... but I'm not convinced of their quality. I also don't like how small they are- a floor drill press would be great, but out of my price range.

Does anyone have experience with HF's power tools? Will they last, or are they junk?
Thanks!

I got one you can have if your in the area(las vegas). Central Pnumatic from harbor freight the table top model. But it dosn't spin true..... got me by tell I could afford a better one. But it sucks to be honest. I should of keep takin them back till I got a good one. That might work good for the money.

My dad has a Delta bench top drill press he uses it a lot for woodowrking and has never had any complaints. I haven't used it a whole lot, but I enjoy the variable speeds.

I have to be honest, Harbor Freight isn't worth it. I've never been happy with their products. My friend has a saying for HF, "they're a great place to get one-project tools". I have to agree, that seems to be about how long their tools last.

I have had a lot of success with Craftsman products purchased at Sears. I have a great Craftsman tablesaw, metersaw, drill press, router, etc. I just look for things on sale -- which means this Memorial Weekend should be great!

That's what I figured. I normally stick to Craftsman for most my tools- lately been buying Ryobi from Home Depot. They're ok, but not stellar. They work. I get minor things from HF- air hoses and what not. I figured their tools are crap.

Any advice on the SIZE of drill press? It just seems like the 10" ones aren't that big, by the time you put in your material and a drill bit- there's not much room to work with. Do you think a 10" handles most work, or will I really need a floor press?

Thanks for the help guys!

I have the Craftsman 10" Drill Press and I'm really happy with it. You can open the hood and change the belt timing for different projects. Last fall I used it to drill out over 100 2" soffets for an addition and it's still in great shape. It has no problem drilling through a 4x4 post, either.

The only thing I disagree with is the "laser sight". It wobbles too much to be really accurate, so I just took it off. Figure people have drilled holes for decades without a laser pointer.

With Harbor Freight product, it seems the more accurate the tool needs to be, the less likely the product is going to be any good.

I have a few tools that I had picked up there that I use all the time, and they're great, but they're a bit more "brute force" kind of tools, compared to precision instruments (I luvs my reciprocating saw from Harbor Freight...it's about 4 years old, and has gone through a lot of material...still going strong - same with an angle grinder).
But both of the rotary tools I've picked up there have been real pieces of......work.
Both found their way into the dustbin within weeks of purchase.
(finally splurged on an actual Dremel...best investment yet)

For a drill press? Spend the extra money, and get a good one...don't bother with HF.

Can't beat craftsman or snapon. Plus they come with lifetime warrenty on hand tools. When I started my biz I went to harbor freight and got everything i needed. Then I started making a little money and as the tools broke I replaced them with good ones. But if your not in the postion to make money and build up buy the good one the first time. Cuz it'll cost more to buy junk twice than buy a good one to start.

I am so glad that you posted this thread. I was thinking about buying one at HF. But, now I will probably go with a Craftsmen if I can find one on sale. Thanks all.

I have to agree, HarborFreight stuff isn't quality. If you're only looking for one time usage or very light usage, then ok. Orther than that, Sears Craftsman stuff has good quality (at least years ago as all my equipment is 20+ years old, can't say anything about new as I haven't bought any major tools in a long time). Bought most of my tools when they would close a Sear paint & hardware store and I could get the items at 10-75% off. Last one that closed, I was able to buy a bunch of PVC @ 95% off and then the guy at the register game me another 5% off the total bill!