Hey all,
I just bought a new Grizzly G7944 14" floor drill press. I am in the
process of setting it up and tuning it and was wondering if current
owners could give me some feedback.

Being new to woodworking, I have no reference for how picky I should be
about play in the quill? I am trying to figure out whether I really
need to complain to Grizzly or not. I have an email into them for their
"spec" .

Fully retracted, the chuck is very stable but when fully extended, I
can move the chuck side to side by at least 0.016".
It seems to drill nice holes, but again, I have very little reference
for what is acceptable.

FYI, The way this DP is setup, the spindle is set inside a spindle
sleeve. There is no detectable play between the spindle and the spindle
sleeve so it is not the bearings. All the play seems to be between the
spindle sleeve and the cast-iron head body. There is a set-screw that
presses into a groove in the spindle sleeve that is supposed to adjust
this play. However, when the screw is set tight enough to prevent the
play, the spindle binds as it is lowered and raised.

A second question concerns the motor mount. The top of my motor is
inclined away from the head body by a visible amount. A quick and dirty
measurement gives somewhat over 1/6th" difference in distance between
the top of the motor mount and the bottom. This of course alters the
angle of the pulley too. What do others experience? Are all motors
inclined like this?
TIA,
-Darrell

I can't say I've noticed any of this in mine. Checked runout when
first assembled (really low) and just drilled holes from then on.

I just walked down to the shop to check. Whaddya know, the motor isn't
quite 'square'. There are four adjustment bolts on the motor mount
though, if it bothers you. The belt will take up minor pulley
misalignment.

I can move the quill (didn't measure) all the way out. Guess that
doesn't surprise as it's fully extended so the restrictions on lateral
movement will be at the absolute minimum. Note it isn't loose - it
takes some force to move, but it does appear to have some play. I
guess when I've drilled I minimize the lateral forces.

Guess since it drills straight I'm not going to worry. If something
were so out of alignment it might reduce the life of the machine I'd
adjust, but these seem pretty minor.

Thanks for checking Tabergman. I guess I'll use it and not look to complain!


wrote in message
ups.com...
I can't say I've noticed any of this in mine. Checked runout when
first assembled (really low) and just drilled holes from then on.

I just walked down to the shop to check. Whaddya know, the motor isn't
quite 'square'. There are four adjustment bolts on the motor mount
though, if it bothers you. The belt will take up minor pulley
misalignment.

I can move the quill (didn't measure) all the way out. Guess that
doesn't surprise as it's fully extended so the restrictions on lateral
movement will be at the absolute minimum. Note it isn't loose - it
takes some force to move, but it does appear to have some play. I
guess when I've drilled I minimize the lateral forces.

Guess since it drills straight I'm not going to worry. If something
were so out of alignment it might reduce the life of the machine I'd
adjust, but these seem pretty minor.

Hi Dusty,

I don't have a Grizzly drillpress (although I have
several other tools of theirs).

With my (probablly similar) import which I have
had for 15+ years, I have noticed that the quality
of the bit is more important than the drill press
itself.

I bought a set of beautiful looking Forstners about
a year ago at WW Warehouse (now defunct). They
were so "untrue" - if that's the term, that it is almost
ridiculous. It's like they were wound off a big spiral
coil & ground out to a bit. The wobble is awful. I only
use them when it doesn't matter.

After your drill-press, check that you have good bits.
Maybe you should check the bits first.

HTH

Lou

In article . com,
dustybasemt wrote:

Hey all,
I just bought a new Grizzly G7944 14" floor drill press. I am in the
process of setting it up and tuning it and was wondering if current
owners could give me some feedback.

Being new to woodworking, I have no reference for how picky I should be
about play in the quill? I am trying to figure out whether I really
need to complain to Grizzly or not. I have an email into them for their
"spec" .

Fully retracted, the chuck is very stable but when fully extended, I
can move the chuck side to side by at least 0.016".
It seems to drill nice holes, but again, I have very little reference
for what is acceptable.

FYI, The way this DP is setup, the spindle is set inside a spindle
sleeve. There is no detectable play between the spindle and the spindle
sleeve so it is not the bearings. All the play seems to be between the
spindle sleeve and the cast-iron head body. There is a set-screw that
presses into a groove in the spindle sleeve that is supposed to adjust
this play. However, when the screw is set tight enough to prevent the
play, the spindle binds as it is lowered and raised.

A second question concerns the motor mount. The top of my motor is
inclined away from the head body by a visible amount. A quick and dirty
measurement gives somewhat over 1/6th" difference in distance between
the top of the motor mount and the bottom. This of course alters the
angle of the pulley too. What do others experience? Are all motors
inclined like this?
TIA,
-Darrell