On 11/30/2016 4:04 PM, Leon wrote:
On 11/30/2016 2:18 PM, John McCoy wrote:
"G. Ross" wrote in
:

I love my Nova electronic lathe, but admit all those push buttons are
daunting to my age and eyes.

I can see the value of electronic speed control on a
lathe. Not sure I really see it as being useful on
a drill press - even for metal working, close is good
enough, and if it bogs down that's telling you something,
and "more power" probably isn't the right answer.

John



Well possibly, if you do not often use a DP much, close is good enough,
Forster bits do like to be spun at particular speeds and while precise
is not necessary the speed control dial beats the dickens out of having
to move belts around, and if you can dial the correct speed, why not.

Bogging down on a DP with belt drive can equally mean you have chosen
the wrong speed/belt combination for a particular soft or hard wood
regardless of feed rate.

There is a big difference in resistance from a 35mm Forstner bit
drilling into plywood, MDF, poplar and or white oak, to name a few.

I'm with John on this, and I use my DP very often. Both for wood and metal.

I just don't need it. Would it be easier to adjust speeds, hell yea. But
do I need it.. no... A reeves drive would also provide the same ability
to set speed easily.

I also take the belt off and use the spindle to tap, it keeps the tap
straight, so there are no problems. Can't do that with direct drive,
and I doubt that free wheels easily.

--
Jeff