tonyw Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 (edited) So I bought this neat little drill press on a local auction website for $24 (plus $3 for tax and premiums). And I didn't really do any serious restoration work, just derusting and wire brushing and cleaning up grime and dirt and lubing things up. The gears and everything run quite smoothly now. But I can tell that the shaft the flywheel is on is either bent, or the hole the shaft runs in (bore?) is worn, at any rate, I can tell the flywheel is just a teeny bit off balance. Is this something to be worried about and should it be fixed? The other thing is about the bearings. I had heard that there were bearings in the drill press, but I couldn't find any. Then I found some super-tiny ball bearings on the work table, and realized where they had come from--between two grooved disks that were in between the end of the feed screw and the end of the drilling shaft. BUT, the number of bearings that I found on the table (they had fallen out accidentally without me noticing) weren't near enough to fill up the bearing race. So, did I accidentally lose half the ball bearings? I looked and looked but never did find any more. Will the bearings do fine? If the bearing race is not all the way full, will it cause uneven wear? I tried to find information on drill press bearings, but came up empty-handed. Honestly, I feel kind of dumb asking such a simple question, but it is bothering me! I also was wondering about the auto feed mechanism. It really feels clumsy, but perhaps it will work better once I get a chuck mounted and actually start drilling. What has your experience been with the auto feed? Here are some pictures for what they're worth. Edited January 3, 2016 by tonyw wrong picture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Coke Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Greetings Toni, looks to me like a Champion 103.. The bearings are the thrust bearings that is used for smooth operation while under pressure .. Between the brass cages.. The handle is fabricated , non original. You are missing the lower shaft and table .. The limit screw for the feed adjustment has been modified.. Hard to see from your pictures but that's what I got.. I have restored many and I hope this helps .. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyw Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Thank you very much Jim. The first picture shows "No. 65R" in the casting, and the second picture shows the beginning and ending of "Buffalo Forge" I do have the table and support shaft--I just haven't got it cleaned up yet. That's why its not in the picture. As far as the bearings, I did not see any brass pieces at all....??? Are you saying the bearings do need to be spaced evenly? How is the limit screw supposed to be, if it has been modified? And about feed screw gear on top...in your picture, the teeth are pointing up. is that the right way to do it? I'm sorry about all these questions; please don't let this take up too much of your time! EDIT: I looked at some more pictures and saw that the toothed wheel on top is supposed to have the teeth up. and the limit screw is supposed to come up from the bottom. And this thread should probably go in the machinery section, I just realized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notownkid Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 9 hours ago, tonyw said: But I can tell that the shaft the flywheel is on is either bent, or the hole the shaft runs in (bore?) is worn, at any rate, I can tell the flywheel is just a teeny bit off balance. First off I've never worked on one of these like Jim has! But in my far too many years working on equip. it isn't a good thing to "loose some bearings" and if you do something is going to not run true and wobble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Coke Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Greetings Toni, My picture is just for reference .. The bearings should fill the thrust plate with as many that will fit ., The limit screw looks functional but not original ., That's all I can see in your pictures. Forge on on and make beautiful things Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyw Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Thank-you Jim and notownkid for your responses. So even though I am still puzzled about what happened to the bearing, I will try to get some more appropriately sized ball bearings to put in the thrust plate. As far as the flywheel being off balance, there is no bearing on the flywheel shaft--just metal against metal. (that's how it is for the rest of the gear shafts too.) Since it wobbles probably about 1/16" - 1/8" is that something to worry about? If I keep the shaft well greased, will it be fine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stroupe63 Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Hi Tony I believe I may have bid against you on that drill. sorry. I hope you get it back to usable condition. Did you get the forge that was at the same auction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notownkid Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 I don't know about "being Fine" but it will work I would think but it's got to continue to wear if it isn't running straight. Something has worn that's for sure. I have a large chenay otto drill press setting on a pallet in my shop in pieces that needs restoration and I hope to get time sometime to do it and mount it in my mechanical shop. This has wetted my appetite but winter in Vermont isn't a good time to tackle this. This what it is suppose to look like, mine doesn't at the moment. It was headed to salvage when the guy offered it to me, My wife said you can't let that go to junk so to save it I said Oh Sure no problem. Last time in the shop she said You haven't got that done yet!!!! Some wise guy once said women and children should not see unfinished work. You will note in the picture it says ball bearing with an arrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyw Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 13 hours ago, stroupe63 said: Hi Tony I believe I may have bid against you on that drill. sorry. I hope you get it back to usable condition. Did you get the forge that was at the same auction. thankyou stroupe. I was really expecting the drill to go for much more than what it did, which was a pleasant surprise. And no, I didn't even bid on that forge. I really think the $130 it went for was more than it was worth.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobEngl Posted March 15, 2019 Share Posted March 15, 2019 Hello Tony, Did you ever find the answer to the number of bearings that your post drill takes? I just got and took apart a Buffalo Forge 614 post drill and also had the bearings unexpectedly drop while I was removing the feed screw. I recovered eight 1/4" bearings and while there appears to be room for one more, I am not sure that that the 9th should actually go in. I know from working on bike wheels that there is space for an extra bearing but you definitely don't fill that space. How has your post drill been operating? Thanks in advance, and have a great day, Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyw Posted March 16, 2019 Author Share Posted March 16, 2019 As I recall, there was extra space between the bearings. Not a tight fit at all. My drill has been in storage for a while and I've not used it enough to really be able to tell you how the bearings are holding up...The auto feed mechanism is pretty cool tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.