I recently bought a Delta 16" DP and it came with a mortesing set free.
Yes I know a dedicated mortiser is better and that the chisel set is not
the best but I'm going to give it a go.

What I notice is that when I move the DP table up or down it can also
swivel making it out of square with the mortise. How do I square the
table to the bit?

Thanks for any help

keith

It would be nice if you had a blank drill rod or a piece of 1/4" or 1/2" rod
that you know is straight. Failing that, use the longest "good" drill bit
you have and be sure to roll it on a flat surface (TS) to check that it is
round and not bent. Chuck that up and use your Engineer square (or
equivalent) and adjust the table height so you get the maximum amount of the
square against the exposed part of the drill bit. Start with the square at
the 270° mark (easier to see) and sight along the blade and drill bit.
Adjust table so the square is parallel to the bit. Move the square to the
360° position and do the same. Move to the 90° position and repeat - it
should be parallel.

Another old trick is to simply take an old coat hanger or other piece of
heavy wire about 12" long and bend it into an L shape with the long vertical
section (8" long) being chucked in the drill press. At the end of the short
section of the L (make that about 4" long), bend down about a 1/2" length of
the wire to act as a scratch nib. Bring the table up until it just touches
the wire. Rotate the chuck by hand and adjust the table so it just touches
the nib at any position. Don't bend the wire when it's being used - it will
be the same length no matter the rotational position of the nib as long as
you keep your hands off it and it's not deflected.

You may have to make some adjustments to the table adjustment mechanism if
you can't get the table perpendicular to the chuck. Both these methods are
rough alignments and for precision alignment, I would use a dial caliper and
a known reference (uncut drill rod) that is within a couple of thousandths
of being straight and round. That's a whole 'nuther procedure....

I'm sure there are many other innovative methods that will work but
essentially - just about any method that aligns the table perpendicular to
the centerline of the drill chuck will work - just a matter of how precise
you want to be.

Bob S.


"Keith Boeheim" wrote in message
...
I recently bought a Delta 16" DP and it came with a mortesing set free. Yes
I know a dedicated mortiser is better and that the chisel set is not the
best but I'm going to give it a go.

What I notice is that when I move the DP table up or down it can also
swivel making it out of square with the mortise. How do I square the table
to the bit?

Thanks for any help

keith

I don't think his question is squaring the table to the quill, I think he's
asking how to get the fence square to the chisel. I have a designated
mortising machine, and I just push the fence against the bit until they are
square, tighten the bit and readjust the fence. You will need a fence
attached to the table to keep your work in line as you make each cut. Since
you cannot move the fence without changing the angle, I guess you will need
to use an appropriate spacer to get the face of the chisel parallel to the
fence. I have never used an attachment, so someone with more experience
might have a better idea.


"BobS" wrote in message
...
It would be nice if you had a blank drill rod or a piece of 1/4" or 1/2"
rod that you know is straight. Failing that, use the longest "good" drill
bit you have and be sure to roll it on a flat surface (TS) to check that
it is round and not bent. Chuck that up and use your Engineer square (or
equivalent) and adjust the table height so you get the maximum amount of
the square against the exposed part of the drill bit. Start with the
square at the 270° mark (easier to see) and sight along the blade and
drill bit. Adjust table so the square is parallel to the bit. Move the
square to the 360° position and do the same. Move to the 90° position and
repeat - it should be parallel.

Another old trick is to simply take an old coat hanger or other piece of
heavy wire about 12" long and bend it into an L shape with the long
vertical section (8" long) being chucked in the drill press. At the end
of the short section of the L (make that about 4" long), bend down about a
1/2" length of the wire to act as a scratch nib. Bring the table up until
it just touches the wire. Rotate the chuck by hand and adjust the table
so it just touches the nib at any position. Don't bend the wire when it's
being used - it will be the same length no matter the rotational position
of the nib as long as you keep your hands off it and it's not deflected.

You may have to make some adjustments to the table adjustment mechanism if
you can't get the table perpendicular to the chuck. Both these methods
are rough alignments and for precision alignment, I would use a dial
caliper and a known reference (uncut drill rod) that is within a couple of
thousandths of being straight and round. That's a whole 'nuther
procedure....

I'm sure there are many other innovative methods that will work but
essentially - just about any method that aligns the table perpendicular to
the centerline of the drill chuck will work - just a matter of how precise
you want to be.

Bob S.


"Keith Boeheim" wrote in message
...
I recently bought a Delta 16" DP and it came with a mortesing set free.
Yes I know a dedicated mortiser is better and that the chisel set is not
the best but I'm going to give it a go.

What I notice is that when I move the DP table up or down it can also
swivel making it out of square with the mortise. How do I square the
table to the bit?

Thanks for any help

keith