I'm not sure how you missed this, but the Rikon has a whole second speed range (see the silver handle near the back on the right side and the big hump on top). It can go down to 150 rpm versus 530 for the others. That makes it better suited for metal machining. It is also 3/4hp vs 1/2 hp.
Great Catch. I did not see those specs and the ranges listed in the Amazon descriptions, and could swear i verified the HP. I did notice the handle on the right side, but thought it was just a belt tensioner. Having the ability to go all the way down to 150 RPM, definitely gives it a leg up in versatility, and would justify the higher price to me. I am going to pin your comment, thanks.
@@mitchfadem6107 A think a more applicable point would be that the Rikon has different capabilities. If you need the lower RPM's and/or greater power, the monetary savings don't mean much if you can't complete the task at hand.
I chose the Rikon for the supposed extra horsepower, the variable speed feature and the versatility that lower rpm’s brings. But with the world’s current medical, geo-political and supply chain issues, consumers are fortunate to several brands and models with roughly comparable features. I bought my Rikon over a year ago and it was priced (at least for awhile) $479-$499 by local as well as online vendors, though usually with a long wait list. It’s a fine machine with just a couple of flaws: the design of the included table complicates using clamps to add a woodworking table; also, the optional drill press square mortise attachment, another attractive selling feature, apparently works, but you have to dismantle (the depth gauge as I recall) to add the attachment (apparently, this is not necessary on Rikon’s larger drill press models). Grr…Still, it’s a reliable workhorse and the variable speed feature is the star. Also, Rikon offers a line of other reasonably-priced woodworking tools. Well-regarded (though maybe not top-of-the-line) products but…not the most expensive either (I actually wanted the digital but very expensive Nova Viking). Long term, if i do purchase other DIY machines, I’d prefer to deal with a single manufacturer for tech support and warranty issues. At the time, my second-choice was the WEN.
I was a purchasing agent for a large industry. We experimented with name brand heavy equipment. We bought top of the line equipment and no name equipment. Our maintenance dept. took both apart and exchanged parts from one to the other,they fit perfect to each other. Had put both into service,the both lasted the same and probably are still in operation. The only difference was color and name plate. U are paying for the name,they both are being built at the same plant.
This press has worked like a charm for my projects th-cam.com/users/postUgkxajoEbapTfqWaadnqb04h6U576yxXp-FE . I didn't even secure it to my table top, mainly due to the fact that I was using a 15 lbs drill vise. It's not flimsy at all as to what others have claimed it to be. Make sure the locking nuts and levers are secured and there won't be any issues with light pressure and patience. I was able to drill through aluminum, plastic, and steel (steel took a while) with no problems at all. Yeah it took a little longer than a regular drill press, but I don't have the space OR the money for one.The instruction manual was worthless, but luckily assembling the press was intuitive. However, the manual would be good for ordering replacement parts if needed. There is a nice breakdown of the parts that are included in the kit. Before ordering, make sure it is compatible with your unit, it is clearly stated what models the press is compatible with.This was an excellent purchase for $40!!
Just got the WEN 4214T from Home Depot for $215. Seems this has been the price for a long time. Runout was only 0.0025” on the stock chuck. I couldn’t be happier!
I bought the Wen 4214. $264 minus 10% off at Home depot. Also got the black and orange drill press table. Drilled about 50 holes for a small spiral Christmas tree I made. No complaints. It's a keeper.
I got the Wen 5 amp model (4214T) last month and love it. Home Depot actually sells it for less than the 3A model (4214) for some reason. It's a great machine, and you get the variable speed and laser guides for only $50 more than the crappy HF 13" model!
I bought the Wen 4214T back in Oct'23 when it was on sale for $195 thru Amazon. I assembled it, bolted it to the rolling cart my HFT 8" unit used to sit on. The 5A motor pencils out to about 3/4hp. The difference in swing from 4" to 6" is actually a big deal. Running 2" forstner bits or 4" hole saws? No problem. Sanding drums or that absolutely sick chisel sharpening attachment from TayTools? Piece of cake. I have yet to stall it in wood. ...all from the same factory? Go take a seriously hard look at HFT's new Bauer 12" drill press. It's red and black. Only difference I could find between it and my Wen...oh, yeah. Price. The Bauer is close to three Benjamin's...Wen at the $250 point (today per Amazon). So...yeah.
It would be interesting to see runout numbers on the spindle. I bought a Ridgid DP1500 and it arrived damaged. The motor fan cover was caved in. I was able to remove it and try it, but runout was horrible. The quill was sloppy in the head. I returned it, thinking I'd buy another. It's been out of stock for 2 years, probably discontinued. I don't see the Bilt Hard on AZ right now, but I'll check it out!
I recently got a bilt-hard bench grinder which is exactly the same as the HF Hercules grinder except that it sells for less. It’s also variable speed. It has been great so far. Nowadays, everything is made in a few factories and the different brands are just names that get stuck on them.
I was looking for a Drill press with the similar criteria as yours. The ones I found around all appears to have the depth gage with the arrow on the top of the bar and the markings on the case. That works but loosen that screw and you can have a variation. I selected the WEN that has the same depth gage as the Bilt Hard you got. That depth gage was my decision maker.
I have to thank you for the review of the built hard 12 inch drill press. I purchased one and because of your review I saved over 400 dollars. Works perfectly for only 180 bucks plus a t- tract set. Again thanks.
I have 3 drill press skill, hf, and now the wen 10", there's 2 model 10" I could not be happier with it. I keep the speed on it's lower settings. great drill press. No problems with it.
I have several Wen tools and love them. Kind of regretting going with a Craftsman for my mitre saw. Many of the tools are coming out of Chinese factories and visually they are the same. For example the Wen, Ryobi, Bauer bench sander are all the same except for the color. I am not sure if other specs like motor and bearings vary. Probably not. Now, my drill press is a Big Lots 16" floor model bought for 199 a decade or more ago and has no name on it. I have not been disappointed with it. When it dies (if it goes before I go) I will replace with Wen.
I bought the Masterforce at Menards. Seems to be identical to the WEN. Slightly more purchase price but a better warranty and ability to return to store if you get a dud.
I have been looking also. One thing I have found about Rikon, they have a 5 yr warranty. I think the motor is 3/4 hp, and you go pretty low for speed. Between the Wen and the BiltHard, there is the roller as you said, but the table looks heftier. Good video. Thx.
I should have checked more sources than just Amazon for specs on these machines. If I checked more sources, I would not have included the Rikon in this comparison. Rikon does seem to add features that make the extra cost justifified IMO.
@@affordabletechsolutions6917 Its amazing the cost of motors, going from 1/2 to 3/4, and above. I was buying a bandsaw, and Rikon always seems to have a higher HP motor than others on their tools. Thanks for the video, it helped.
I don’t have a dog in this fight but I did want to comment on Rikon the company. Rikon first appeared in this area(NC) it seems about 10 years ago. I bought a central vacuum unit at least 8 years ago. It worked great except for failure of the on off switch on two occasions. Their service was great and there was not a charge for either switch. I sold the unit a few years ago . The instruction booklet to guide putting it together seemed to be written by some person sitting in a dark room in Asia. I told them so. They replied they were working on that. The filter cloth bag was ok but I replaced with a braided metal filter rated at 1 micron.
I've had the Wen 4214T for 5 months, bought through Home Depot. I like it a lot except for one problem so far. The arbor and chuck keep dropping out. It scared the dickens out of me the first couple of times it did it when it was about 2 or 3 months old. The third time it did it, I had the table far enough down that it cleared the shaft it goes up into and slung it out onto the floor. After cleaning and using a rubber hammer to tap it a few times it stayed in without problems until the other day. It's now dropping out again. I do a lot of drilling with 1" to 1 1/2" forstner bits in wood from 3/8" to 2" thick, softwood and hard. I drilled some bamboo just before it started dropping out again so I'm wondering if that had something to do with it. Anyway, I've got a message into Wen customer support and I hope they have a suggestion that will fix this, because if not, the drill press is useless to me. I assume all of the models you showed use the same tapered arbor that is held in by friction. I also noticed that when you were running yours, that it ran a lot smoother than my Wen does. I don't know if it's the 1 1/2" bit vs the twist bit you had in yours causes mine to not be as smooth or if it's the bigger chuck in the Wen vs the Bilt Hard, which is a smaller chuck. I'm not sure if there is an advantage to having a smaller chuck over a bigger one other than cost of materials or if pure mass makes it better or worse. As I read in the reviews for the Wen 4214T, changing the speed down to it's lowest rating is very hard and in fact I've never been able to get it down to it's lowest speed no matter how hard I pulled on the speed handle. I've thought about taking the cover off and looking to see if it was binding somewhere but really don't want to mess to much with it while it's under warranty. I really hate spending a lot of money on a drill press, but it may be that I will have to move up to the next level of machine if Wen can't resolve my problem. Nice review on the different models. I'm sure most are made in the same factory, but if it's like the electronics industry, they make all the parts and grade the parts. If they fall within the top of the specs, they go in the more expensive machine. If it' falls within the middle of the specs, it goes to the middle of the road machine and if it falls within the lower part of the specs (or slightly under) it goes in the budget priced machine. Maybe, maybe not, but I wouldn't be surprised.
@@sethwallen1153 Thanks for the suggestion, Seth, I did try that after it happened the first time. I saw the TH-cam video where the presenter showed doing that, so I gave it a try. I don't know if it helped but I didn't have any problems for months, when it started coming out again. I did get a very nice reply from Wen asking questions and making some suggestions. He sent me an instruction sheet of things to do and how to check for uneven run out. Besides following the suggestions I also purchased a magnet based dial to check for wobble. I was surprised that when I set it up against various parts of the test rod I put in and the chuck that there was only 1 to about 1.5 thousands wobble. I assume it's thousands. I had it set on zero and as I hand turned it from the pulley the needle only moved barely off the zero to the first hash mark and a little beyond and back less than the first one the other way as it turned around. From the examples I saw on various TH-cam videos, that seemed awful good to me considering the price of the machine. One thing I did find as I was running through the troubleshooting was that my table as tilted a little bit and not 90 degrees to the drill bit. I adjusted it and check that every now and then. The instruction sheet I got also said to use a steel hammer. I've been using a rubber mallet and giving it a couple of moderate taps per the instructions that came with the machine. Maybe I've been to gentle with it. :D I did do another really good cleaning and it hasn't come off so far. The customer service guy said if I do have more problems with it they can start swapping parts out under it's warranty, so I'll see how it goes. Other than that, still love the drill press. Thanks again.
The old saying...cleanliness is next to godliness....make sure both surfaces are as clean as they can be, the whole length. Use denatured alc or acetone. Way back in the day some old timers would color the chuck taper with chalk to both add friction, and fill minor imperfections. Maybe that's an old wives tale...but it worked for me on occasion. That taper fit is really about precision. You can use loctite, but only if you NEVER plan to swap chucks.
Now that you mention laser...I forgot to mention that I did have to adjust the lasers to get the cross point more accurate...no fuzziness, but they were definately not set accurately
Thank you very much for posting this information. Someone on Amazon commented that the slowest speed is not slow enough for drilling metal. What is the lowest speed and have you noticed if this is an issue?
Thanks for the comment, and I should have addressed this in the video. I am a former machinist, and have intended on several occasions to address the generalized comments I see on speeds and feeds. First of all, "drilling metal" is a ridiculous category to create: Drilling Aluminum for example has a drastically different recommended speed, than stainless steel, for example.... There are so many factors involved in drilling...you have to know what your common tasks are...what about a 4" hole saw in wood?!? Why does no one mention that?!? That is a far lower speed than "drilling metal". This drill press goes down to 500 rpm. That is good for a whole lot of things. As a baseline i would consider this press is equipped with a 5/8" chuck...therefore, lets take a general 1/2" drill bit.... Recommended spindle speed for low carbon steel for 1/2" drill bit is around 700 rpm...for Aluminum, you can double that...also, the smaller the bit the faster the speed (generally). Bottom line: The size of bit, the drilling point / drill material, and the material being drilled all have input on the recommended spindle speed. 500 RPM is pretty versatile...I would be more concerned about hole sawing than drilling metal.
Gil, the great thing about metal is that it has a built in indicator of if you are doing it right...the chip stream...I mentioned that there are many factors that determine spindle speed: Drill bit material, drill bit size, grind angle, and material being drilled...well, metal gives you a good feedback: You don't want "dust", or "chips"...in a perfect world, you want the drill bit to "cut" or "shave" the metal, producing a nice spiraled helix. Not all metals are like this, but the common ones usually are.
@@affordabletechsolutions6917 great answers! I did a little research on sfm or sfpm from the Viking drill bit sight and I think I understand a little "bit" better now.
For me it would come down to customer service, warranty, how easy it is to get parts if something breaks or doesn't function, how easy it is to get in touch/communicate with the customer service. The Wen has a lot more reviews, the Bilt Hard not so much. But is it safe to say get either one over the Harbor Freight Drill Presses? I have the Central Machinery 13 in 16 sp floor press that's still in the box that I'm trying to sell, but looking into the Wen 4212T 12 inch. Tried to look into the Bilt Hard 12 variable speed, but there's not a lot of reviews to go by. Wen customer service seems to be more responsive and I have read several customers getting parts for their DP except the pulley belt. I'd hate to be stuck with a big piece of metal if I can't get parts for it should it break down. Wen seems to have parts for their presses, Bilt Hard I don't know.
What happened to the Bilt Hard? The link you provided isn't any good now and I went to the Bilt Hard website and see nothing about drill presses at all.
I wonder myself if there's an internal difference in components in these machines the jet should out perform them all for how much it is! Or are they all the same? Good question
Just sub"d too BTW.. I guess it depends what u really want a Bench drill for man.. Can I ask u a question if u have the time??? Q. Could I use my Bench drill with a milling machine press and use it to cut Aluminium down to size or should I be using a Lathe for things like that?? It's probably a stupid question but I'm new to metalwork
I would not recommend any drill (no matter what quality brand) to do any form of lateral "cutting" operations. Drill presses are designed for downward force and that is about it...there would be too much flex in the quill for side loading it with a cutter. Either a lathe or mill would be best...if you got a rotary table for a mill you would have a lot of capabilities there.
I bought the Bilt Hard and it works great. The press top moves if I put any pressure on it. Can you explain it to me? Did do something wrong on the setup?
Yes, the entire top with all the mechanisms. It will just rotate around the post. There must be some way to lock it into position. Other than that the drill press is great.
@@mitchfadem6107 The head is supposed to rotate in the event you need to drill odd size items that wont fit within the press, but to lock it stationary, there are 2 set-screws on the spindle feed handle side (right side as you are operating it) that locks the head. One of the allen wrenches that came with the press should fit them.
thank you, I knew it had to be something simple. my old press was an old Harbour Freight and it worked for me for more than 10 years. I got this because it had all the design and features of ones that were much more expensive as you illustrated in your video. I appreciate your videos and have learned a lot. Thanks.😀
I recently purchased a wen 4212 right from their web site. I paid $229. Being a retired machinest of 40 years it's not what I'm accustomed to but for the price it's pretty good for a garage tinkerer. Only disappointment is the slow speed is to fast for most metals. Do you know if there's anything out there to slow it down to 200 rpm or less. Maybe something like a dimmer does for lights or would this put to much load on the motor. Electrician I am not.
The Rikon will go to 200 rpm. It is a VS with the same type of mechanical pulley mechanism. However, it has a low drive pulley that you must manually switch for rpm below 540.
How is the table lift adjustment, how long is tbe drill move, how is it when using larger diameter bits dose the machine bog down, have an old crafts man i got cheep, but put a bigger bit even on wood the thing stalls out
Hey man. I got me a fairly decent bench drill for 69.99 from my local supermarket called lidl.. They're all made in the same place in China anyways and for what I need it for it is brilliant.. I waited for the price to drop and I gotta great deal from 129 euros to 69.99 Thsts a nice one u got though
Amazon seems to have removed it, may have been banned. They do that sometimes if the seller tries something that violates their terms, like posting fake reviews, etc. Like what happened to Tacklife...
Were you able to compare the gauge of materials used across them, especially the jet? I wonder if the thickness and heft of the materials on the jet is greater
I thought about that...but being from a manufacturing background, I don't see the business sense in using different molds or materials. If you were going to go through the effort of engineering different molds, stamps, etc...why not do something unique? I can't prove this, but in my mind the best business model is to retain ownership of the designs and sell them to different customers. Then those customers could pair them with their own accessories and electronics.
Personally, I don't give a crap about the price of most things. I make my buying decisions on which store gives me the very best customer service. I am more than happy to pay for customer service!
Consistency in quality has a lot to do with the price. Jet and Rikon are notable brands in woodworking and they are going to take that extra quality control. Wen is popular but they are know as a home gamer brand. My guess is you were really lucky in the unit you received. I bet if you bought 10 of them 6-7 would have problems and at least 1 would be sent back to amazon.
This is absolutely not true. While Jet and Rikon are well known woodworking brands, they're still having these machines built overseas to meet a cost. Two things you'll find that are higher than the wen and bilt hard are the cost/profit margin, and service after the sale. On these lower cost machines, that's less of an issue. Even the cheap harbor freight press form years ago was excellent for the money. To be fair, a drill press is a relatively simple machine to produce, that's why even the cheaper ones tend to do their job well. So I think him getting a good press is less about being lucky and more about how simple these presses are to produce. If your estimate on defective presses was accurate, it would show in the amazon reviews.
These import machines scare me. Cast iron quality is questionable. You get a three jaw chuck, but what quality? I am assuming that none of the low end machines are Morse taper. I haven't seen an import machine in 25 years that has a quality table elevation rack. The variable speed motors and drives is really a nice feature, but this technology for reliable components is still priced higher than the low end machines total cost. This creates a reliability concern for me. Are they sacrificing low speed torque to achieve the low speed with inexpensive components? I am still opting for used old iron. I purchased a 1942 Craftsman bench top DP with a Pexto tilting DP vise for $25. It had serious surface rust, but cleaned up with Scotch Brite to reveal pristine surfaces. I bought a 1994 DoAll 20" gear head DP with power feed 3 Morse taper, Jacobs ball bearing super chuck, T slotted table, multi speed integral reversible 3 phase motor with motor starter for $100. This is a real machine. Yes, it is 3 phase, but I picked up a rotary 3 phase converter from an Amish man for $10. This converter runs all of my 3 phase machines except a very large engine lathe and my wood lathe (which I power with a dedicated freq drive). I bought my vintage Powermatic 15" DP for $10. This floor mount machine has some significant feature upgrades, but does run on a step pulley drive system. I just purchased a 1957 Delta 15" bench top machine including a floor mount column for $180. This old high school shop machine is functional, but the high schoolers have caused repairable abuse. My grandson and I will spend some shop time together correcting these issues and he should have a lifetime shop machine. These examples convince me that real value for low cost DP is old iron. I was turned on to a classic Wilton 1990's vintage gear head DP made by Arboga for $300. I would have added this to my drill press inventory except it is only 3 phase 480V, and I don't want to deal with a dedicated transformer. That Wilton machine is a really sweet operator and only slightly smaller than my DoAll. If this machine was available today, be prepared to pay $3-4k. Old iron is still available, and if patient, can be very affordable. My other small vintage DP were picked up for $50 and $75. I purchased a new 4x4" Wilton vise delivered for $60. This is a Chinese import, but it is a solid quality tool. This is for my grandson. I am setting him up with a lifetime DP and tooling for his highschool graduation gift. I own nearly 200 powered shop tools and machines. By purchasing most of them used, I have extensively outfitted both of my shops with industrial and professional contractor grade machines. Doing so also saved budget surplus to purchase a brand new 14K lb 2 post vehicle lift for the new hobby shop. Good luck with your Bilt Hard, but I think that I got a better machine for my grandson for essentially the same cost by buying old iron.
I bought the built hard off Amazon a year ago…. I regret buying it more than any other tool I’ve ever purchased. Want to know what I don’t like about it? Everything. Very very disappointed. I only like one thing about it…. The color.
For a hobbyist it serves it's purpose and notice all products from China are similar because they tend to be made in the same factories. Example, you play guitar, research guitars or banjos made in China and it will sink in fast. Anyone with the money to invest can have THIER company name slapped on a product with !old variations and it's the same as the others ... Usually. Want a quality instrument, make it your self, it requires tools and some research and it's not as difficult as you think but takes time. Making it yourself won't be cheaper than Chinese labor but if you have high expectations and want quality go for it.
“Not a lot of runout”? “Looks pretty smooth to me”? Subjective assessment is not helpful. Use numbers to quantify margin of error, rather than “looks good to me.” Other details, like if the laser crosshairs are accurate would been helpful. You point out obscure similarities and differences based on pictures, and poor ones at that. Not much help for so many words.
It is because wen is a 60 year old company who actually makes those other drills. They are made to those brands’ specifications - some spend a little more on this or that, from parts to paint - wen is making it all for them and they are marking it up. They are NOT all the same drill press with different paint and even different paints cost different amounts to make. Anyway, they are the same drill presses at different specifications. The Jet or Rikon may be a bit better than the wen, but in some ways, those are superficial differences. Look at the chucks. There is a difference in each other - each company is having Wen do something special for them, for how they want their press to be, and some of them cost more than others to do. What you are getting most from the higher priced ones is customer service, quick replacements, good technical support etc. The BIGGEST difference between Wen and ALL the companies that hire them to make their tools is going to be the service and warranties associated with the companies. Different business models, different specifications, markups - wen is like buying direct at the lowest price point with hit or miss support should anything go wrong. The other companies, who wen manufactures for them as private labels, you are paying for more than the press and some extra bells and whistles you may or may not need or ever notice. That is the reality - MANY tools and companies are made by Wen. Wen makes a lot of Jet, Shop Fox, Rikon, Grizzly etc. Example, the Wen spindle sander is “the same” as the grizzly one. They are different, though. Not all of the 4 presses you showed have light or laser. It is those differences that account for the price, as well as warranty/customer service and so on.
I'm not sure how you missed this, but the Rikon has a whole second speed range (see the silver handle near the back on the right side and the big hump on top). It can go down to 150 rpm versus 530 for the others. That makes it better suited for metal machining. It is also 3/4hp vs 1/2 hp.
Great Catch. I did not see those specs and the ranges listed in the Amazon descriptions, and could swear i verified the HP. I did notice the handle on the right side, but thought it was just a belt tensioner. Having the ability to go all the way down to 150 RPM, definitely gives it a leg up in versatility, and would justify the higher price to me. I am going to pin your comment, thanks.
I'm sure the Rikon is excellent. but, the Built Hard was only 189 and he Rikon is 560. enough said.
@@mitchfadem6107 A think a more applicable point would be that the Rikon has different capabilities. If you need the lower RPM's and/or greater power, the monetary savings don't mean much if you can't complete the task at hand.
I chose the Rikon for the supposed extra horsepower, the variable speed feature and the versatility that lower rpm’s brings. But with the world’s current medical, geo-political and supply chain issues, consumers are fortunate to several brands and models with roughly comparable features. I bought my Rikon over a year ago and it was priced (at least for awhile) $479-$499 by local as well as online vendors, though usually with a long wait list. It’s a fine machine with just a couple of flaws: the design of the included table complicates using clamps to add a woodworking table; also, the optional drill press square mortise attachment, another attractive selling feature, apparently works, but you have to dismantle (the depth gauge as I recall) to add the attachment (apparently, this is not necessary on Rikon’s larger drill press models). Grr…Still, it’s a reliable workhorse and the variable speed feature is the star. Also, Rikon offers a line of other reasonably-priced woodworking tools. Well-regarded (though maybe not top-of-the-line) products but…not the most expensive either (I actually wanted the digital but very expensive Nova Viking). Long term, if i do purchase other DIY machines, I’d prefer to deal with a single manufacturer for tech support and warranty issues. At the time, my second-choice was the WEN.
I was a purchasing agent for a large industry. We experimented with name brand heavy equipment. We bought top of the line equipment and no name equipment. Our maintenance dept. took both apart and exchanged parts from one to the other,they fit perfect to each other. Had put both into service,the both lasted the same and probably are still in operation. The only difference was color and name plate. U are paying for the name,they both are being built at the same plant.
Thanks for that comment. That is the type of experienced based feedback I was hoping to hear from.
This press has worked like a charm for my projects th-cam.com/users/postUgkxajoEbapTfqWaadnqb04h6U576yxXp-FE . I didn't even secure it to my table top, mainly due to the fact that I was using a 15 lbs drill vise. It's not flimsy at all as to what others have claimed it to be. Make sure the locking nuts and levers are secured and there won't be any issues with light pressure and patience. I was able to drill through aluminum, plastic, and steel (steel took a while) with no problems at all. Yeah it took a little longer than a regular drill press, but I don't have the space OR the money for one.The instruction manual was worthless, but luckily assembling the press was intuitive. However, the manual would be good for ordering replacement parts if needed. There is a nice breakdown of the parts that are included in the kit. Before ordering, make sure it is compatible with your unit, it is clearly stated what models the press is compatible with.This was an excellent purchase for $40!!
I’ve had my WEN for over a year now and I couldn’t be happier with it honestly.
I'm convinced that's a solid press.
It’s so good that a year after this video it’s no longer available.
Just got the WEN 4214T from Home Depot for $215. Seems this has been the price for a long time. Runout was only 0.0025” on the stock chuck. I couldn’t be happier!
I bought the Wen 4214. $264 minus 10% off at Home depot. Also got the black and orange drill press table. Drilled about 50 holes for a small spiral Christmas tree I made. No complaints. It's a keeper.
I got the Wen 5 amp model (4214T) last month and love it. Home Depot actually sells it for less than the 3A model (4214) for some reason. It's a great machine, and you get the variable speed and laser guides for only $50 more than the crappy HF 13" model!
I bought the Wen 4214T back in Oct'23 when it was on sale for $195 thru Amazon. I assembled it, bolted it to the rolling cart my HFT 8" unit used to sit on. The 5A motor pencils out to about 3/4hp. The difference in swing from 4" to 6" is actually a big deal. Running 2" forstner bits or 4" hole saws? No problem. Sanding drums or that absolutely sick chisel sharpening attachment from TayTools? Piece of cake. I have yet to stall it in wood.
...all from the same factory? Go take a seriously hard look at HFT's new Bauer 12" drill press. It's red and black. Only difference I could find between it and my Wen...oh, yeah. Price. The Bauer is close to three Benjamin's...Wen at the $250 point (today per Amazon). So...yeah.
It would be interesting to see runout numbers on the spindle. I bought a Ridgid DP1500 and it arrived damaged. The motor fan cover was caved in. I was able to remove it and try it, but runout was horrible. The quill was sloppy in the head. I returned it, thinking I'd buy another. It's been out of stock for 2 years, probably discontinued. I don't see the Bilt Hard on AZ right now, but I'll check it out!
I recently got a bilt-hard bench grinder which is exactly the same as the HF Hercules grinder except that it sells for less. It’s also variable speed. It has been great so far.
Nowadays, everything is made in a few factories and the different brands are just names that get stuck on them.
Thanks for mentioning that...I am in the market for a new grinder.
I picked up the grinder...good machine. The stones were crazy out of balance, but I upgraded those and it is running pretty good.
@@affordabletechsolutions6917 Cool - I don’t use the stock wheels anyways so I didn’t even notice that. I use CBN.
I was looking for a Drill press with the similar criteria as yours. The ones I found around all appears to have the depth gage with the arrow on the top of the bar and the markings on the case. That works but loosen that screw and you can have a variation. I selected the WEN that has the same depth gage as the Bilt Hard you got. That depth gage was my decision maker.
Here today, gone tomorrow. Can't find that bilt hard on amazon.
I have to thank you for the review of the built hard 12 inch drill press. I purchased one and because of your review I saved over 400 dollars. Works perfectly for only 180 bucks plus a t- tract set. Again thanks.
bought a wen. 2 years ago fabulous
I have 3 drill press skill, hf, and now the wen 10", there's 2 model 10" I could not be happier with it. I keep the speed on it's lower settings. great drill press. No problems with it.
Just bought a wen due to this video. VERY happy for the money spent
I have several Wen tools and love them. Kind of regretting going with a Craftsman for my mitre saw. Many of the tools are coming out of Chinese factories and visually they are the same. For example the Wen, Ryobi, Bauer bench sander are all the same except for the color. I am not sure if other specs like motor and bearings vary. Probably not. Now, my drill press is a Big Lots 16" floor model bought for 199 a decade or more ago and has no name on it. I have not been disappointed with it. When it dies (if it goes before I go) I will replace with Wen.
If you’re looking to build “freedom” built hard works very well on hardened steel bc it has lower rpm
I bought the Masterforce at Menards. Seems to be identical to the WEN. Slightly more purchase price but a better warranty and ability to return to store if you get a dud.
Interesting...the belt/gear housing is different, but looks very similar otherwise.
I have the wen I think it better choice for a mid grade drill press. Very happy with it
I have been looking also. One thing I have found about Rikon, they have a 5 yr warranty. I think the motor is 3/4 hp, and you go pretty low for speed. Between the Wen and the BiltHard, there is the roller as you said, but the table looks heftier. Good video. Thx.
I should have checked more sources than just Amazon for specs on these machines. If I checked more sources, I would not have included the Rikon in this comparison. Rikon does seem to add features that make the extra cost justifified IMO.
@@affordabletechsolutions6917 Its amazing the cost of motors, going from 1/2 to 3/4, and above. I was buying a bandsaw, and Rikon always seems to have a higher HP motor than others on their tools. Thanks for the video, it helped.
I don’t have a dog in this fight but I did want to comment on Rikon the company.
Rikon first appeared in this area(NC) it seems about 10 years ago. I bought a central vacuum unit at least 8 years ago. It worked great except for failure of the on off switch on two occasions. Their service was great and there was not a charge for either switch. I sold the unit a few years ago .
The instruction booklet to guide putting it together seemed to be written by some person sitting in a dark room in Asia. I told them so. They replied they were working on that.
The filter cloth bag was ok but I replaced with a braided metal filter rated at 1 micron.
I would have to see the variable speed mechanism in side of all four in order to make the decision to buy
I've had the Wen 4214T for 5 months, bought through Home Depot. I like it a lot except for one problem so far. The arbor and chuck keep dropping out. It scared the dickens out of me the first couple of times it did it when it was about 2 or 3 months old. The third time it did it, I had the table far enough down that it cleared the shaft it goes up into and slung it out onto the floor. After cleaning and using a rubber hammer to tap it a few times it stayed in without problems until the other day. It's now dropping out again. I do a lot of drilling with 1" to 1 1/2" forstner bits in wood from 3/8" to 2" thick, softwood and hard. I drilled some bamboo just before it started dropping out again so I'm wondering if that had something to do with it. Anyway, I've got a message into Wen customer support and I hope they have a suggestion that will fix this, because if not, the drill press is useless to me. I assume all of the models you showed use the same tapered arbor that is held in by friction. I also noticed that when you were running yours, that it ran a lot smoother than my Wen does. I don't know if it's the 1 1/2" bit vs the twist bit you had in yours causes mine to not be as smooth or if it's the bigger chuck in the Wen vs the Bilt Hard, which is a smaller chuck. I'm not sure if there is an advantage to having a smaller chuck over a bigger one other than cost of materials or if pure mass makes it better or worse. As I read in the reviews for the Wen 4214T, changing the speed down to it's lowest rating is very hard and in fact I've never been able to get it down to it's lowest speed no matter how hard I pulled on the speed handle. I've thought about taking the cover off and looking to see if it was binding somewhere but really don't want to mess to much with it while it's under warranty. I really hate spending a lot of money on a drill press, but it may be that I will have to move up to the next level of machine if Wen can't resolve my problem. Nice review on the different models. I'm sure most are made in the same factory, but if it's like the electronics industry, they make all the parts and grade the parts. If they fall within the top of the specs, they go in the more expensive machine. If it' falls within the middle of the specs, it goes to the middle of the road machine and if it falls within the lower part of the specs (or slightly under) it goes in the budget priced machine. Maybe, maybe not, but I wouldn't be surprised.
Get a board and and press the chuck against it like your drilling but with it off and press down hard it should fix it👍🏼
@@sethwallen1153 Thanks for the suggestion, Seth, I did try that after it happened the first time. I saw the TH-cam video where the presenter showed doing that, so I gave it a try. I don't know if it helped but I didn't have any problems for months, when it started coming out again. I did get a very nice reply from Wen asking questions and making some suggestions. He sent me an instruction sheet of things to do and how to check for uneven run out. Besides following the suggestions I also purchased a magnet based dial to check for wobble. I was surprised that when I set it up against various parts of the test rod I put in and the chuck that there was only 1 to about 1.5 thousands wobble. I assume it's thousands. I had it set on zero and as I hand turned it from the pulley the needle only moved barely off the zero to the first hash mark and a little beyond and back less than the first one the other way as it turned around. From the examples I saw on various TH-cam videos, that seemed awful good to me considering the price of the machine. One thing I did find as I was running through the troubleshooting was that my table as tilted a little bit and not 90 degrees to the drill bit. I adjusted it and check that every now and then. The instruction sheet I got also said to use a steel hammer. I've been using a rubber mallet and giving it a couple of moderate taps per the instructions that came with the machine. Maybe I've been to gentle with it. :D I did do another really good cleaning and it hasn't come off so far. The customer service guy said if I do have more problems with it they can start swapping parts out under it's warranty, so I'll see how it goes. Other than that, still love the drill press. Thanks again.
The old saying...cleanliness is next to godliness....make sure both surfaces are as clean as they can be, the whole length. Use denatured alc or acetone. Way back in the day some old timers would color the chuck taper with chalk to both add friction, and fill minor imperfections. Maybe that's an old wives tale...but it worked for me on occasion. That taper fit is really about precision. You can use loctite, but only if you NEVER plan to swap chucks.
I got the Wen and the only issue I had was one of the lines of the laser was fuzzy......
Now that you mention laser...I forgot to mention that I did have to adjust the lasers to get the cross point more accurate...no fuzziness, but they were definately not set accurately
Thank you very much for posting this information. Someone on Amazon commented that the slowest speed is not slow enough for drilling metal. What is the lowest speed and have you noticed if this is an issue?
580, not suitable for some holes in metal.
Thanks for the comment, and I should have addressed this in the video.
I am a former machinist, and have intended on several occasions to address the generalized comments I see on speeds and feeds.
First of all, "drilling metal" is a ridiculous category to create: Drilling Aluminum for example has a drastically different recommended speed, than stainless steel, for example....
There are so many factors involved in drilling...you have to know what your common tasks are...what about a 4" hole saw in wood?!? Why does no one mention that?!? That is a far lower speed than "drilling metal".
This drill press goes down to 500 rpm. That is good for a whole lot of things. As a baseline i would consider this press is equipped with a 5/8" chuck...therefore, lets take a general 1/2" drill bit....
Recommended spindle speed for low carbon steel for 1/2" drill bit is around 700 rpm...for Aluminum, you can double that...also, the smaller the bit the faster the speed (generally).
Bottom line: The size of bit, the drilling point / drill material, and the material being drilled all have input on the recommended spindle speed. 500 RPM is pretty versatile...I would be more concerned about hole sawing than drilling metal.
Gil, the great thing about metal is that it has a built in indicator of if you are doing it right...the chip stream...I mentioned that there are many factors that determine spindle speed: Drill bit material, drill bit size, grind angle, and material being drilled...well, metal gives you a good feedback: You don't want "dust", or "chips"...in a perfect world, you want the drill bit to "cut" or "shave" the metal, producing a nice spiraled helix. Not all metals are like this, but the common ones usually are.
@@affordabletechsolutions6917 great answers! I did a little research on sfm or sfpm from the Viking drill bit sight and I think I understand a little "bit" better now.
It seems all bench drill presses including the high-end ones are very loud. Why is that?
I never noticed...maybe the bench is amplifying vibrations?
Thanks for informative review. What is the lowest rpm and highest on the Bilt Hard drill press?
Thanks again
If you really torque the lever you might get down to 470/480...according to the display
For me it would come down to customer service, warranty, how easy it is to get parts if something breaks or doesn't function, how easy it is to get in touch/communicate with the customer service. The Wen has a lot more reviews, the Bilt Hard not so much. But is it safe to say get either one over the Harbor Freight Drill Presses? I have the Central Machinery 13 in 16 sp floor press that's still in the box that I'm trying to sell, but looking into the Wen 4212T 12 inch. Tried to look into the Bilt Hard 12 variable speed, but there's not a lot of reviews to go by. Wen customer service seems to be more responsive and I have read several customers getting parts for their DP except the pulley belt. I'd hate to be stuck with a big piece of metal if I can't get parts for it should it break down. Wen seems to have parts for their presses, Bilt Hard I don't know.
Bilt Hard no longer available on Amazon.
What happened to the Bilt Hard? The link you provided isn't any good now and I went to the Bilt Hard website and see nothing about drill presses at all.
I just went to the bill hard website and they didn’t show any drill presses?
Good review, thanks for posting.
I wonder myself if there's an internal difference in components in these machines the jet should out perform them all for how much it is! Or are they all the same? Good question
Very possible. Maybe a better built motor? Maybe they use a stronger column?
the Jet will last longer than its owner the others are good if you only use them a couple times a month might make it long enough to seem worth it.
Thanks for the video, would you happen to know the Max Table to Spindle or Chuck distance? thanks in advance
I am not able to find it for sale at any of the big box stores or Amazon. Anyone know where it can be purchased?
Just sub"d too BTW.. I guess it depends what u really want a Bench drill for man..
Can I ask u a question if u have the time???
Q. Could I use my Bench drill with a milling machine press and use it to cut Aluminium down to size or should I be using a Lathe for things like that?? It's probably a stupid question but I'm new to metalwork
I would not recommend any drill (no matter what quality brand) to do any form of lateral "cutting" operations. Drill presses are designed for downward force and that is about it...there would be too much flex in the quill for side loading it with a cutter. Either a lathe or mill would be best...if you got a rotary table for a mill you would have a lot of capabilities there.
I bought the Bilt Hard and it works great. The press top moves if I put any pressure on it. Can you explain it to me? Did do something wrong on the setup?
By the top, do you mean the actual drilling head? What direction does it move...side to side?
Yes, the entire top with all the mechanisms. It will just rotate around the post. There must be some way to lock it into position. Other than that the drill press is great.
@@mitchfadem6107 The head is supposed to rotate in the event you need to drill odd size items that wont fit within the press, but to lock it stationary, there are 2 set-screws on the spindle feed handle side (right side as you are operating it) that locks the head. One of the allen wrenches that came with the press should fit them.
thank you, I knew it had to be something simple. my old press was an old Harbour Freight and it worked for me for more than 10 years. I got this because it had all the design and features of ones that were much more expensive as you illustrated in your video. I appreciate your videos and have learned a lot. Thanks.😀
I recently purchased a wen 4212 right from their web site. I paid $229. Being a retired machinest of 40 years it's not what I'm accustomed to but for the price it's pretty good for a garage tinkerer. Only disappointment is the slow speed is to fast for most metals. Do you know if there's anything out there to slow it down to 200 rpm or less. Maybe something like a dimmer does for lights or would this put to much load on the motor. Electrician I am not.
Short of spinning the vise in the opposite direction, I wouldn't know how you'd slow the thing down without some electronic speed control....
The Rikon will go to 200 rpm. It is a VS with the same type of mechanical pulley mechanism. However, it has a low drive pulley that you must manually switch for rpm below 540.
How is the table lift adjustment, how long is tbe drill move, how is it when using larger diameter bits dose the machine bog down, have an old crafts man i got cheep, but put a bigger bit even on wood the thing stalls out
I've been looking and the Bilt Hard brand is no longer available.
Hey man. I got me a fairly decent bench drill for 69.99 from my local supermarket called lidl.. They're all made in the same place in China anyways and for what I need it for it is brilliant.. I waited for the price to drop and I gotta great deal from 129 euros to 69.99
Thsts a nice one u got though
If supermarkets around here sold tools, I would spend a lot more time in them. I love getting a good tool deal...
If you go up to Wen 12” model it has digital speed read out
The yellow button on the WEN, is a safety pull.
How do you change speeds
Link is no longer valid. Do you have a part number?
Amazon seems to have removed it, may have been banned. They do that sometimes if the seller tries something that violates their terms, like posting fake reviews, etc. Like what happened to Tacklife...
Were you able to compare the gauge of materials used across them, especially the jet? I wonder if the thickness and heft of the materials on the jet is greater
I thought about that...but being from a manufacturing background, I don't see the business sense in using different molds or materials. If you were going to go through the effort of engineering different molds, stamps, etc...why not do something unique?
I can't prove this, but in my mind the best business model is to retain ownership of the designs and sell them to different customers. Then those customers could pair them with their own accessories and electronics.
I saw that drill press and liked what l saw. Then l saw your video bad news is there not in stock. I hope they don't quite making them.
For me an important consideration would be the run-out.
It's the motor windings $$$ and bearings. $$$
GOT THE W E N DONE
Personally, I don't give a crap about the price of most things. I make my buying decisions on which store gives me the very best customer service. I am more than happy to pay for customer service!
The 12” is now on sale for $169.
oh heck...you got to be kidding me?!? How?!? That is ridiculous. I just checked...if you get the t-track bundle...$169...
Consistency in quality has a lot to do with the price. Jet and Rikon are notable brands in woodworking and they are going to take that extra quality control. Wen is popular but they are know as a home gamer brand. My guess is you were really lucky in the unit you received. I bet if you bought 10 of them 6-7 would have problems and at least 1 would be sent back to amazon.
This is absolutely not true. While Jet and Rikon are well known woodworking brands, they're still having these machines built overseas to meet a cost. Two things you'll find that are higher than the wen and bilt hard are the cost/profit margin, and service after the sale. On these lower cost machines, that's less of an issue. Even the cheap harbor freight press form years ago was excellent for the money. To be fair, a drill press is a relatively simple machine to produce, that's why even the cheaper ones tend to do their job well. So I think him getting a good press is less about being lucky and more about how simple these presses are to produce. If your estimate on defective presses was accurate, it would show in the amazon reviews.
These import machines scare me. Cast iron quality is questionable. You get a three jaw chuck, but what quality? I am assuming that none of the low end machines are Morse taper. I haven't seen an import machine in 25 years that has a quality table elevation rack. The variable speed motors and drives is really a nice feature, but this technology for reliable components is still priced higher than the low end machines total cost. This creates a reliability concern for me. Are they sacrificing low speed torque to achieve the low speed with inexpensive components?
I am still opting for used old iron. I purchased a 1942 Craftsman bench top DP with a Pexto tilting DP vise for $25. It had serious surface rust, but cleaned up with Scotch Brite to reveal pristine surfaces. I bought a 1994 DoAll 20" gear head DP with power feed 3 Morse taper, Jacobs ball bearing super chuck, T slotted table, multi speed integral reversible 3 phase motor with motor starter for $100. This is a real machine. Yes, it is 3 phase, but I picked up a rotary 3 phase converter from an Amish man for $10. This converter runs all of my 3 phase machines except a very large engine lathe and my wood lathe (which I power with a dedicated freq drive). I bought my vintage Powermatic 15" DP for $10. This floor mount machine has some significant feature upgrades, but does run on a step pulley drive system. I just purchased a 1957 Delta 15" bench top machine including a floor mount column for $180. This old high school shop machine is functional, but the high schoolers have caused repairable abuse. My grandson and I will spend some shop time together correcting these issues and he should have a lifetime shop machine.
These examples convince me that real value for low cost DP is old iron. I was turned on to a classic Wilton 1990's vintage gear head DP made by Arboga for $300. I would have added this to my drill press inventory except it is only 3 phase 480V, and I don't want to deal with a dedicated transformer. That Wilton machine is a really sweet operator and only slightly smaller than my DoAll. If this machine was available today, be prepared to pay $3-4k. Old iron is still available, and if patient, can be very affordable. My other small vintage DP were picked up for $50 and $75.
I purchased a new 4x4" Wilton vise delivered for $60. This is a Chinese import, but it is a solid quality tool. This is for my grandson. I am setting him up with a lifetime DP and tooling for his highschool graduation gift. I own nearly 200 powered shop tools and machines. By purchasing most of them used, I have extensively outfitted both of my shops with industrial and professional contractor grade machines. Doing so also saved budget surplus to purchase a brand new 14K lb 2 post vehicle lift for the new hobby shop. Good luck with your Bilt Hard, but I think that I got a better machine for my grandson for essentially the same cost by buying old iron.
Can’t decide on a press without knowing the speeds.
I bought the built hard off Amazon a year ago…. I regret buying it more than any other tool I’ve ever purchased. Want to know what I don’t like about it? Everything. Very very disappointed. I only like one thing about it…. The color.
For a hobbyist it serves it's purpose and notice all products from China are similar because they tend to be made in the same factories. Example, you play guitar, research guitars or banjos made in China and it will sink in fast. Anyone with the money to invest can have THIER company name slapped on a product with !old variations and it's the same as the others ... Usually. Want a quality instrument, make it your self, it requires tools and some research and it's not as difficult as you think but takes time. Making it yourself won't be cheaper than Chinese labor but if you have high expectations and want quality go for it.
update your links and also put affiliate links for each make you money
Rikon pulley housing is PLASTIC. Probably only one in your line up
Annnnddddd.......... it's gone?
“Not a lot of runout”? “Looks pretty smooth to me”? Subjective assessment is not helpful. Use numbers to quantify margin of error, rather than “looks good to me.” Other details, like if the laser crosshairs are accurate would been helpful. You point out obscure similarities and differences based on pictures, and poor ones at that. Not much help for so many words.
Wen is the best...Jet is a rip off big time
IMHO WEN is the go to budget drill press they have a USA Office.wharehouse and sell spare parts for their machines.
It is because wen is a 60 year old company who actually makes those other drills. They are made to those brands’ specifications - some spend a little more on this or that, from parts to paint - wen is making it all for them and they are marking it up. They are NOT all the same drill press with different paint and even different paints cost different amounts to make. Anyway, they are the same drill presses at different specifications. The Jet or Rikon may be a bit better than the wen, but in some ways, those are superficial differences. Look at the chucks. There is a difference in each other - each company is having Wen do something special for them, for how they want their press to be, and some of them cost more than others to do. What you are getting most from the higher priced ones is customer service, quick replacements, good technical support etc. The BIGGEST difference between Wen and ALL the companies that hire them to make their tools is going to be the service and warranties associated with the companies. Different business models, different specifications, markups - wen is like buying direct at the lowest price point with hit or miss support should anything go wrong. The other companies, who wen manufactures for them as private labels, you are paying for more than the press and some extra bells and whistles you may or may not need or ever notice. That is the reality - MANY tools and companies are made by Wen. Wen makes a lot of Jet, Shop Fox, Rikon, Grizzly etc. Example, the Wen spindle sander is “the same” as the grizzly one. They are different, though. Not all of the 4 presses you showed have light or laser. It is those differences that account for the price, as well as warranty/customer service and so on.