Use a hole-saw to make 1.5" holes in .25 stainless and use low speed but
firm downpull and a good lubricant. Or better yet, get a trepanning tool
because hole-saws are primarily for softer materials such as wood and
plastics. The trepanning tool may cost as much as a drill press though! And
make sure to sandwich the plate so when the final chip is cut away you won't
lose a hand as the piece picks up the same speed as the spindle.

wrote in message
oups.com...
Since there are no places near me that sell used machines of the type I
need, it looks as though I'll have to gamble on ordering something new
over the internet.

At the most extreme, I'll need to be able to drill 1-1/2" holes through
1/4" thick stainless steel, space and weight are a big issue, to the
best of my abilities I've narrowed the choices down to a Grizzly G7943
drill press and a Mini Mill/Drill(if I can find a suitable one).

Since I'll need to make parts of various shapes and sizes I thought
that a mill/drill might be a plausible option. But I've discovered that
there may be books that show how to do milling on a drill press with
the proper jigs and attachments, so I may just stick with that idea.

Is there anyone here that has had a lot of experience with using a
drill press as a milling machine? If so, advice would be appreciated.

Thanks a lot.

Darren Harris
Staten Island, New York.