Two of my drill presses have foot controls. They're Dumont drills with
Jacobs #0 taper chucks. Since they have universal AC/DC motors, a simple
trigger switch from a variable speed drill will easily carry the currents of
the motors.

A similar setup could be constructed for most drill presses, with a foot
switch to act as just a Start/Stop switch for a relay/contactor to run the
motor.
Typical, inexpensive foot switches aren't rated for high currents that a
full-sized shop drill press motor would require, but they can easily handle
the contactor coil's voltage and current.

Heavy duty indsustrial-rated machine control foot switches are generally
expensive, and nearly always have a guard covering the switch pedal to
prevent accidental activation of a machine.

The guard is a sensible feature for any foot switch, and especially if
children or pets frequent the machine area. A safety lockout switch located
on the machine could prevent unanticipated surprises or injuries.

If the drill press had a DC motor, it wouldn't be too difficult to put
together a variable speed foot control for some particular purpose..
polishing, maybe.

An AC variable speed control could probably be constructed without too much
difficulty using a VFD for a 3-phase motor and a foot switch.

--
WB
..........
metalworking projects
www.kwagmire.com/metal_proj.html


"Ignoramus18829" wrote in message
...
Outstanding. Not to hijack the thread, but has anyone tried using a
foot pedal as a switch for a drill press.

i