Doc wrote:
Looking for any tips/tricks for drilling a hole w/a drill press
that's as
close to dead-center to a specified point as possible.

Here's what I've been doing - I have the position marked with graph
paper
that's taped to the workpiece. With the help of a magnifying glass, I
painstakingly move the piece until the tip of the bit is aligned with
the
conjoining lines. By aligning with the tip I mean I view the tip both
from
the narrow or "pointy" persepective within the channel of the bit and
then
turn it 90 deg and look at the the wider perspective, and view it
from the
side and front to make sure I have it aligned with both the X and Y
axis.
When I finally get it so the tip is as centered as I can make it
whichever
way the bit is turned and in relation to both axis, I clamp the piece
to the
plate of the drill press and drill the hole. However, on examination,
the
hole comes out obviously not dead center in relation to the graph
paper
lines.

I've also tried aliging it with the drill running, going visually by
where
the "point" appears to be when the bit is spinning. I get somewhat
better
results this way but wonder if there's a more precise and dependable
way of
achieving a centered hole.

Thanks for any input.

Without a spotting pip, you'll never, never get your hole dead center
that way. A drill press will be too loose for it and the drill will
always skate. Some of the guys will recommend using a spotting drill
to start with. You can get within a couple of thousandths using one of
the optical center punches where you line up the mark in the crosshairs
and then substitute the marking punch. That would probably be the best
method for what you've described, if it's a one-off. Using stub drills
will help, too. Get name brands, cheapy chink ones will do you
absolutely no good at all.

There's other methods, but if all you've got on hand is a drill press,
suggesting use of a vertical mill is kind of useless. Guy Lautard
details a poor-man's jig borer for drill press use in one of his later
Bedside Reader series but you aren't going to make that up with just a
drill press on hand, either.

Stan