Excellent DP. I have had it for 1-year and no problems. I also use it with
the mortise attachment for mortises.

"The industrial variable speed setup didn't translate well into a
bottom-rung drill press"

What??

Putting a complicated system like that on a machine that needs to be low priced
was a stretch. You might love yours, but I've heard of nothing but trouble with
these things. Maybe they've improved it.

For a production shop that actually needs a variable speed drill press, they
work out really well on the $800 models that are a good, time-tested design.

"and it doesn't give you a wider speed range than the normal belt drive."

DP350 ranges from 500 to 3100 rpm. When would you have an application that
would require a speed outside of this range?

500 RPM is a very high low speed. Usually folks outgrow that pretty soon.
That's why there's a big interest in jackshaft modifications for older DPs
without a low speed range. Too high for a lot of metal work and some larger
wood bits or hole saws. Good drill presses go down to somewhere in the 100-200
range. If you're going to spend $200 on a drill press, I'd rather have a bigger
machine with a usable speed range instead of a benchtop with a variable speed
system.

GTO(John)