Best Power Mortisers
Makita 7104L Powerful 10.5 Amp Motor Extremely Portable Chain Mortiser. Powerful 10.5 AMP motor (3,200 RPM) to quickly notch or cut holes in thick wood stock. Innovative power tool notches or cuts through-holes in thick wood stock quickly, neatly and accurately. Large adjustable vise and knob for attaching firmly onto logs 3-1/8"" to 12-1/8"" thick. Sliding rear clamp adjustable to desired width with a quick adjust tension knob. Adjusting levers and knobs for quick changes without resetting the tool.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Well worth it very happy as I usually am with most makita products."
"awesome tool, works great."
"It does a great job and saves a lot of time."
"Good unit well made didn't realize was 120 volt though as we are 240 volt here in this country australia."
"The Makita chain mortiser is very easy to use and does a great job!"
"If you do timber framing....you are going to want to get this."
"Tool works very well for straight mortises, not sure if it can mortise at an angle to the work piece, as in making stairs."
"This tool saves a lot of time in a timber frame build."
The head-stroke capacity is 5-1/2-inches and the chisel center to fence is 4-3/8-inch with a chisel capacity up to 3/4-inch. 3/4-horsepower bench mortiser with 1/2-inch chuck, in-line depth stop, and 5/8- and 3/4-inch bushing sizes. 3/4-horsepower bench mortiser with 1/2-inch chuck, in-line depth stop, and 5/8- and 3/4-inch bushing sizes.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"However, there is a triangular metal piece that acts both as a spacer and holds the head steady as it goes up and down the shaft. The first time this happened, we didn't notice it was gone and the piece fell behind the stand and out of sight."
"Works well didn't expect anything else from Powermatic."
"The table is perfectly flat and the fence is perfectly square to the table."
"Easy set up of chisels and depth settings and hold down works great."
"There are not any glaring negative aspects of the apparatus as of this date; I do recommend that the purchase of good quality bits to bring out the best in this devise."
"The hold-down fork does not release - it seems to bind on the staff, so I am constantly having to pry it up with a screwdriver."
"Meaty and beefy....well built with many features to insure long term consistent mortises!"
"The existing clamp is good, but does not hold the piece absolutely solid."
708580 JBM-5. Bench Mortiser. At a Glance: Powerful 1/2-horsepower motor for consistently smooth performance Heavy-duty cast iron and steel construction Long, multiposition mortising handle Dependable rack-and-pinion head adjustment Quick-adjust depth stop for uniform mortise depths. Other features include a three-jaw drill chuck that keeps a positive grip on mortising bits for chisels up to 3/4-inch in size, two hinged side doors for easy access to the chuck, and a reversible column for mortising larger stock. Features: Heavy-duty cast iron and steel construction provides durability and stability during use Dependable rack-and-pinion head adjustment gives you accurate drilling control Long, multi-position mortising handle let you reposition the feed handle for easier operation and optimum handle position Three-jaw drill chuck keeps a positive grip on mortising bits with up to 3/8" diameter shanks Two hinged side doors allow easy access to the drill chuck Quick adjust depth stop for uniform mortise depths Column is reversible for mortising larger stock Removable On/Off toggle switch prevents accidental or unauthorized use of the tool Powerful 1/2HP motor provides consistently smooth performance Includes 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" mortise chisel bits (also sold separately). 1/2-inch chisel capacity; 4-3/4-inch head stroke; rack and pinion head.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"You can do mortises in a number of ways, I found this way to be one of the most fun ways to help me build furniture made of mortise and tenon in mission style."
"I called JET and they were extremely pleasant on the phone and sent the replacement parts right out (standard delivery)."
"I purchased this mortiser a few weeks ago and have made many practice mortises and a few real ones in a piece of furniture I am building. I've seen some people complain that the platform isn't parallel to the fence. I took off the platform, squared it to the fence, and added a few pieces of paper until it was square, then tightened it back down checking again to make sure it was still square."
"The perfect machine for a handyman shop repairing small to medium furniture."
"It's a good thing I read all the reviews of both the Delta and Jet mortisers. To the guys who bought the Delta and wrote the reviews, thanks for jumping on that grenade."
"It's not perfect, positioning the workpiece square against the fence requires some care and attention to detail, but the machine still makes mortising easy and accurate."
"It could be improved by offering a higher speed range, since it tends to bog down a bit with deep mortises in soft wood, But, for the convenience of an easy to use dedicated bench tool, the Jet has done all I've needed - 21 doors done, and the results speak for themselves."
"Contrary to some of the recent reviews below, mine arrived without a scratch in a pristine-looking box-- and just three days after I ordered with free shipping. This is my fifth or sixth major tool purchase from Amazon (inc. jointer and planer) and I've always had excellent experiences with their shipping service."
Best Power Magnetic Drill Presses
SKIL 10 In. Adjustable depth stop for accurate measurements and repetitive drilling.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Actually, there's a problem with the way it's packaged, (see picture) not Amazon's fault and I don't really blame the shipper. My initial impression "out of the box" was quite positive, table is nicely machined, painting is well done and general fit and finish is excellent . I chucked a piece of drill rod and set the table to "0" using a high quality machinist square. There is no mechanism, such as a lever, to apply tension to the drive belt but that's not a problem, just loosen the two wing nuts and push on the motor to tension then tighten the wing nuts. I do have some concern with the motor though as it gets quite hot after running for 15 minutes or so under very light load drilling 1/8" holes in pine. It's hands down the nicest small drill press I've seen and I believe would please most all users."
"I'll use the drill for drilling regular holes, and it works well with Forstner bits, but I'll be cutting mortises by hand until I can get a dedicated mortising machine."
"I received my Drill press last week (Nov 11/2012) but haven't had a chance to open the box and assemble it. The clamping system for the base works very well and allows the user to keep the base really snugly in position (a must for accurate drilling). It seemed to get pretty reasonable alignment but I still need to adjust for some small drill wander. The laser alignment works (I might do a bit of minor adjustment but nothing radical). For those interested I tried using my x-y base to do some milling (with a drill bit!). I think this is going to work really well once I get some proper milling bits that are meant to cut sideways."
"Despite the reviews saying that the allignment was good, the one I purchased - the drill platform was not perpendicular to the drill bit or to the main support post - so there was a significant angle off of 90 degrees that could not be adjusted."
Best Benchtop Drill Presses
It's a drill press, tool holder and flex shaft holder all in one. Tool Holder- Holds Tool at 90 Degrees Horizontal for Tasks Such as Polishing Metal Objects, Sanding Different Shapes and Grinding Metal Pieces.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"no ammount of adjustment can fix this, I took the entire thing appart, and determined it is a problem with the plastic mold. if you are only going to be drilling thin peices of material and dont need real accuracy this wont bother you."
"When I was looking through all the reviews I couldn't find anyone mentioning if it works with the WEN rotary tool."
"It's a little flimsy, but for very few uses and basic drill pressing on light projects, it will work."
"This is a beautifully crafted tool, that has been obviously carefully engineered by Dremel. Thank you Dremel for so many decades of producing fine, useful tools for us DIY craftsmen."
"In addition to this I would have liked to see a way to lock the spring loaded drill press in a down position for when you are using it to cut or route areas out, this way you could drill down, lock it in position at a set height and carry on with your cut rather than having to loosen and adjust the entire mechanism. In the end this is a great accessory if you need an affordable solution for using your dremel as a drill press, or if you need a vice etc."
"The first time I tried using it: I attached the rotary tool and lowered it on a small plastic part."
"As you pull the level, you can visibly see the dremel traveling left to right. I'm so disappointed with dremel quality lately; it's like they relabeled the HFT imported junk and didn't quality control any of it."
"I've attached a picture and both holes were made with a 1/8" drill bit at different speeds to show the horrible lack of precision."
Best Stationary Drill Presses
Its powerful induction motor features ball bearings for an extended life and it all comes together with smooth and balanced performance even at high speeds. Since 1951, WEN has proudly produced innovative powered tools focused on value delivering meaningful features that will help you complete and enjoy the work as much as the project. Spindle travels up to 2 inches with easy to read, locking linear depth stops for accurate and repeatable drilling operations. Spindle Travel of 2" with easy to read, locking linear depth stop for accurate and repeatable drilling operations.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I put the belt on the second to highest torque setting, which would mean the second to slowest speed and the press worked great."
"Yes, there is a little bit of flex between the post and the actual machine head but it was not enough to cause significant drill deflection, even at max throw and minimum chuck."
"The only con I have found thus far is the table handle being on the left side - however, for the price I can deal with it. 01/15/17 Update: Drilled a bunch of holes today in 1/2" thick steel Flat bar for a project, and it performed well."
"I am not a huge fan of how the depth guide works, the two nut setup is kind of a challenge to get right because the space is so tight to get a wrench in there. The nuts on my drill press were so tight, I had a hard time getting them loose in order to adjust the depth. If there was an alternate way to set the depth, or perhaps if the guide was moved outward a little from the head of the unit, that would make it easier to adjust. Once I freed the nuts, they have become a little easier to move, but the gap between the nuts / depth guide-rod and the head of the drill press is a little tight, so it does make getting the fingers in there a bit tight."
"Attach stand to foot with 3 bolts, slide on the table, put the motor unit assembly on, tighten 2 hex key screws, put the chuck in by hand and give it a few good taps with a covered hammer and then plug it in and drill some holes. Unbeknownst to me, they now make chuck keys that cannot be left in the chuck. This Wen chuck key however has a small spring bar insert, so you have to push the key into the chuck and then the springs force pushes it back out."