- Joined
- Nov 9, 2013
- Messages
- 791
I just finished restoring a 1956 Delta DP-600 drill press. A friend found it at an estate sale. It was the last day of the sale, and this drill press was so ugly that no one wanted it. I got it for $65.
This is my first restoration thread, so let me know if I didn't do it correctly.
I had to haul it out of an old barn on a hand cart. On the way out the door there was a 6" tall threshold, and then a 6" drop back to ground level. Coming down off the threshold the hand cart bounced and the drill press tumbled off. I jumped out of the way and let it fall into the grass. One of the bars on the handle broke off, but that's an easy fix so I wasn't concerned. Just happy to get it out without damage to life and limb.
I hauled it home in the back of my minivan and started to disassemble it.
This machine was so rusty, it was a tetanus shot waiting to happen. Someone painted a hideous green over the original Delta gray, and that had to go. The green paint was so bad it came off in sheets in several places. I wire brushed everything with an angle grinder and twisted knot wire brush so the green paint wouldn't plug up my sand blast cabinet.
Then sand blasted, primed, and painted with Rustoleum Machine Dark Gray paint.
I also put new bearings in the spindle and in the electric motor so it would run as good as it looked.
The table sits on a 3 1/2" bearing so it will swivel easily even though it is very heavy. That bearing was crushed and all but two balls were missing. I straightened the bent bearing housing and ordered new 3/8" ball bearings to rebuild it with.
I cleaned, painted, and put the new bearings in the motor.
I'm at the photo limit for this message. Continued...
GG
This is my first restoration thread, so let me know if I didn't do it correctly.
I had to haul it out of an old barn on a hand cart. On the way out the door there was a 6" tall threshold, and then a 6" drop back to ground level. Coming down off the threshold the hand cart bounced and the drill press tumbled off. I jumped out of the way and let it fall into the grass. One of the bars on the handle broke off, but that's an easy fix so I wasn't concerned. Just happy to get it out without damage to life and limb.
I hauled it home in the back of my minivan and started to disassemble it.
This machine was so rusty, it was a tetanus shot waiting to happen. Someone painted a hideous green over the original Delta gray, and that had to go. The green paint was so bad it came off in sheets in several places. I wire brushed everything with an angle grinder and twisted knot wire brush so the green paint wouldn't plug up my sand blast cabinet.
Then sand blasted, primed, and painted with Rustoleum Machine Dark Gray paint.
I also put new bearings in the spindle and in the electric motor so it would run as good as it looked.
The table sits on a 3 1/2" bearing so it will swivel easily even though it is very heavy. That bearing was crushed and all but two balls were missing. I straightened the bent bearing housing and ordered new 3/8" ball bearings to rebuild it with.
I cleaned, painted, and put the new bearings in the motor.
I'm at the photo limit for this message. Continued...
GG
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