SKIL 6.2 Amp 10 In. 5-Speed Benchtop Drill Press with Laser Alignment & Work Light - DP9505-00

I needed to drill over 300 7/16" holes in steel and needed a drill press to do it. My application was probably more than this unit was designed for but it handled it pretty well, with a little patience. The laser cross hair was way more handy than I would have guessed, and was exact right out of the box. Others complained about the white LED light not being bright enough, and while I wouldn't use it to illuminate a prison yard, it definitely helped reduce shadows. I would but this unit again and would recommend it. Lots of sturdy metal construction where it counts.

This is a well built, versatile bench-top drill press with a host of good features. I bought it for the size, motor HP, 1/2" chuck, and laser alignment. It has five motor speeds which are selected by moving the drive belt to different pulleys. The laser alignment works perfectly. The table tilts up to 45 degrees, though you need a wrench to make adjustments. The table also swivels around the main post.When mine arrived, the plastic collar holding the drill depth stop was broken. I registered with Skil online (that gets you a three-year warranty) and called them to ask for the part. They sent it out right away, free of charge, and it arrived in less than a week.

i would not call this top quality, it doesn't feel like the components are that beefy.. but it does the job and seems to drill through steel on the slowest setting with no problem... a bit of vibration until you make contact , then it drills true and does a decent job . good enough for a tinkerer like me... light and laser were spot on for me and assembly went smoothly. it's also fairly quiet and smooth.... again aside from a slight wobble when free spinning .

So after reading some reviews, I was hesitant after having already purchased this press.. however I believe alot of the negative reviews are user error, guys beating the crap out of their tools, or not reading the setup instructions which clearly state you have to do some adjustments when it arrives. Now to also state this is not something I would put in a multiple employee fab shop, but for home use where you yourself will (hopefully) take care of your investment, I think it has done a fine job so far, I have already bored 30 holes in steel plate for a trailer fab job, no motor wobble, no collar break, no issues with my table, and holes turned out perfect, I'm very pleased with this machine and especially for the price.

I had been eyeballing this one for a while, because I wanted a little more power than the similarly priced WEN (also I kinda hate the orange color scheme, but that's not really a reason to purchase one over another)Reading the reviews, you'd think this thing were a wobbly piece of plastic slapped together by underpaid monkeys. Either I got lucky, or a lot of the other reviews are simply a matter of user error. Putting it together took me about 30 minutes, intentionally going slow so as not to make a mistake. I would have liked a more robust center column, and the worm drive rack can be a little finicky until you lock it down correctly (the instructions on this part I didn't find sufficient)The laser was dead on perfect out of the box. I haven't used it in anything but daylight so I can't be sure how helpful the light is yet. I didn't have the bolts to lock it down to my bench yet, but I experience no wobble whatsoever, it's as perfectly balanced as any drill press I've used in the past. I'll probably try to get a replacement chuck because the one that comes with it isn't ideal, but there's nothing terribly wrong with it, either.To anyone considering buying one, I'd just say, the collar that holds the rack against the center column -- you want it to be able to glide in an arc around the column but it shouldn't move up or down. Also, even though the rack comes out of the box attached to the column, when attaching the support base you'll want to remove it and run it through the support base and *then* slide it onto the column. That was the only headache I experienced in the process, and it's not even a case of the instructions being unclear, just a tad ambiguous.My use case will be primarily working with wood, but a bit of metal here and there, and it seems more than adequate for those jobs. Should something go horribly wrong, I'll update my review.

Wish I had bought sooner. I don’t have the space or the money for a big ol’ Powermatic, this will have to do for now.Set up was easy. The table wanders all over during adjustment, so the laser is handy for lining that back up if for nothing else. Laser was way off when I got it, but nudging the little doohickey with my thumb brought it back. I get a touch of travel out of the chuck, it wobbles slightly left. Also, when I power down something in the motor sounds a playing card in your bike spokes. Those things would tick me off in 1600 dollar machine, for this price you have to expect a little funkiness I figure. If it blows up I’ll come back and update.Incidentally, the way I dial in the laser is to mount a bradpoint or forstner, poke a little hole in some clamped scrap wood and mess with the laser until it lines up. I have to do this every couple of weeks or so, it doesn’t wander too far.UPDATE a year later: The press still works great; the only thing I have noticed is that in addition to a slight wobble left, when I bring the press all the way down, the bit ticks off to the left about a 1/16 of an inch. This would be horrible for accuracy, but at that point the bit is usually buried in the piece and the hole keeps it in line.Also, I added the Rockler drill press table, which is meant for full size drill presses and doesn’t really work with this one, but I got it to fit with some diy adjustments. The down side is that the table blocks the use of the adjustment crank, so I have to use a wrench to adjust the table up or down. Also I can’t use the vacuum port. Other than that it’s a nice addition for repeat cuts.

skill sometimes make something really good and well made this is a great drill press