Popular Woodworking 2002-12 № 131, страница 40
Delta Variable-speed Drill Presses Changing the speed on a drill press has always been more difficult than it should be, with belts, pulleys and tension levers all standing in the way of the perfect speed. Machines that had easily changed speeds all cost more than $500. Now Delta has changed all that with two inexpensive benchtop drill presses that make speed adjustments a breeze. First you turn on the machine, then you turn the knob on the front until the chuck is spinning where you want it. You're done setting the speed. Go to work. The DP250 (a 10" model) and the DP350 (a 12" model) both adjust anywhere between 500 and 3,100 rpm with ease. The drill presses both have a 1/2" chuck and a decent 3 H" quill stroke (the amount the chuck will plunge). The cast-iron table tilts 90° in both directions and is moved up and down using a crank - a worthwhile feature that's not found on all benchtop machines. Delta officials say that this same variable-speed technology eventually will migrate to the company's floor-model drill presses, but they did not know when this would happen. The DP250 sells for about $130 and the DP350 sells for about $210. In our opinion, these drill presses are long overdue in the home workshop. Stop burning up your large and expensive drill bits just because the speed is a pain to change. And say "bye-bye" to belts. Contact Delta at 800-438-2486 or deltawoodworking.com Veritas Smoother a Triumph of Engineering Veritas's newest hand plane is based loosely on the much-coveted and discontinued Stanley 164 low-angle smoothing plane. And it's fair to say that this Canadian company has created a plane that is significantly improved over the original Stanley. Low-angle smoothing planes are, in essence, overgrown block planes. And like block planes, they have an adjustable mouth opening and the iron is bedded at 12°. They excel at planing end grain and short grain (trimming dovetails, finger joints and miters). But they have somewhat mixed utility on long grain. In softer woods and in straight-grained hardwoods, the tool excels. But when dealing with unruly grain patterns and direction in hardwoods, I turn to a traditional bench plane with the iron bedded at 45°. The Veritas smoother has a number of excellent refinements. Its body is made of nearly indestructible ductile iron. The blade is hard-wearing A2 steel. And the adjuster itself changes both the depth of cut and the skew angle of the iron. On top of all this, the Veritas is priced at only $139, a great price for a plane that will see a lot of use in any shop. Available from Lee Valley Tools, 800-871-8158 or leevalley.com DeWalt Multi-base Router DeWalt waited a while to introduce a single-motor/multi-base router system, but it was worth the wait. The motor slips into one of three bases, using a pair of quick-release latches, then locks in place with the switch position also locked in one place. Height adjustment (in V64" increments) in either the fixed- or D-handle base is handled using the microfine adjustment ring. When used with the plunge base, the height adjustment moves to the smooth-operating columns with through-the-column dust collection and a simple micro-adjust depth stop. All the switches are located within easy operating access, and a strong level of attention to ergonomics is obvious. The detachable rubber power cord makes it affordable to replace the cord in case of damage and makes switching to the available D-handle base a snap. Along with both a 1/4" and 1/2" collet (with spindle lock), the system offers a quiet, soft-start 12-amp variable-speed motor, with plenty of power for the serious woodworker. This is a very nice router system that's been carefully thought through with the end user in mind. Sold as a fixed/plunge single-speed kit (DW616PK) for $199, and the variable-speed kit (DW618PK) for $249, this system is one of the best tools to happen this year. Contact DeWalt at 800-433-9258 or dewalt.com |
