What kind of drill press? Does it already have a pulley arrangement
to change speeds? A smaller motor pulley, and/or a bigger quill
pulley. And there is also replacing the motor with a slower model.
You generally only have two choices, 1725 and 3450 RPM.
What WON'T work - a light dimmer.


Yeah the dining room light dimmer, let's rip it out and put it on the motor! WEEEEEE!!!
Sounds like it could be advice from Mad magazine.

It is a cheapy Chinese mini DP, $40 at the Homier traveling tool show. Something like
4 1/2" center-to-column and with a 4 speed set of pulleys on top. Very standard and low-
end, can't lock the quill in place. The motor is 1700 rpm (not 1725). Works well but the
lowest speed has this tacky chafing sound first time I ran it, so, must be some runout.

I imagine one could place a larger single gulley wheel on the front spindle, or something
like that...? I know a variable speed DC motor and control board would be really expensive,
after all the searching I've done.

Alex