Drill press stand height for Nova Viking

[yangwoodworking]

Hi all,

I just got a Nova Viking drill press as a replacement for my old WEN 12 inch. I am trying to make a stand or cabinet for it and am wondering about what height it should be. I live in Los Angeles and always worry about earthquake. The stand I made for WEN was pretty low at 12 inch to gain some stability. I can comfortably use it when I sit on a chair.

With the Nova, I am thinking maybe I can make a taller stand, maybe 30 inches high 27"x27". It would be nice to have more drawers in it. There are a lot of plans online. It seems not many people worry about the earthquake. Maybe I should not either?

Just want to see how people think. If you live in California, how you handle this?

Thanks.

 

[Peter_C]

FWIW I live about 3 miles from a major earthquake fault that is long overdue for a major event. During an earthquake I would worry about my house falling around my drill press, not my drill falling over. First make sure your house is fully earthquake proofed! Things around the house should be mostly prepared for earthquakes with taller cabinets bolted to the walls, shelving that has a lip on it, etc. Now lets get back to a normal life...

Everything in my garage needs to be on top quality wheels with 2 fixed and 2 swivel double locking wheels. For my floor standing drill press some smaller 3" wheels raised it up about 4.5", putting my current average table working height for regular drill bits at around 46". Standing 5' 10" that is a comfortable working height for me with good visuals.

Since I love recycling and "If it is FREE it is for me" moto, I took an excellent used condition Ikea night stand with 2 drawers as a base cabinet, and modified the cabinet with a cut out for the mast of the DP, and boxed in the back of drawer for clearance of the mast. While also fully gluing the cabinet plus drawers and using biscuits where needed. With drawers full this probably added almost 60lbs to the base down low.

Everyone's needs are different. I do a lot of metal working and my drill press needs to be ready to get oily, along with having a tubing fish mouth jig bolted to the table which takes up a lot of vertical space. With a floor standing drill press and the lower Ikea cabinet I have plenty of space to work. Also made my drill press table for woodworking bolts to the DP table so it can be installed and removed in around 20 seconds with hand T nuts.

There are a ton of photos and write ups available. Here are a few I used for ideas to plan my cabinet out.https://www.lumberjocks.com/projects/419320https://www.woodsmithplans.com/plan/3-in-1-drill-press-upgrade/https://www.lumberjocks.com/projects/82112https://www.lumberjocks.com/projects/126873https://fixthisbuildthat.com/diy-drill-press-stand-plans/https://www.lumberjocks.com/projects/264090

 

[Bob D.]

"Just want to see how people think. If you live in California, how you handle this?"

I don't live in a quake zone, but you could add a couple straps on the column just below the head of the DP running back ot the wall at a 45 on each side and anchor into a stud or other sturdy anchor point.

Just measure the distance of the column off the wall then from a point on the wall directly behind the column measure out the same distance. Pick the stud closest to this point and you should be good.

There are some tip-over kits for large screen TVs that might work and may have all the hardware and adjustable straps you need except a method to attach to the column. I'm basing that off the kit I bought for our 65 inch that came with some 1 inch wide nylon adjustable straps with metal hardware to attach to the TV and the wall or a table.

Some of that perforated metal plumbers strap would work to get a firm grip on the column.

Anchor the DP to whatever base or table top you place it on. Don't rely on gravity alone to keep it in place during a quake.

Wheels and earthquakes don't mix, so if the base has wheels then add jacks or adjustable feet to level and stabilize. Or use some removable wheels. PowerTec sells a set of four for about $65. Look for 'POWERTEC #17002 Workbench Casters with Quick-Release Plates'. The beauty of those is you can buy a second set of mounting plates for about $20 and then use the casters on two (or more) benches.

 

[yangwoodworking]

Thanks Peter and Bob. This is very helpful. I feel a lot more confident now!

 

[Peter_C]

~Wheels and earthquakes don't mix~

Curious what you base that on? The Japanese started putting buildings on wheels long ago, and they are far ahead of the USA for earthquake proofing. (Fukushima was a tidal wave disaster.)https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/earthquake-rollers/

I have ridden out my share of earthquakes, and objects on wheels are the least of my concern. *shrugs* Things overhead do worry me, but after running out of a shop I got to watch the waves of an earthquake roll across a parking lot that was pretty darn cool during Loma Prieta in 1989. We were taking a scuba tech class in shallow water of around 25' in Monterey Bay when the 2011 Japanese Tsunami hit. I was mid Basic 5 Valve Drill and got blown off the line we were using to show stability. Another day we got hit harder by what must have been a massive rouge wave in 45' of water in Albion Bay that moved us fast and far taking vis from 40' to 15' almost instantly. We turned our dive and reeled back to the boat immediately.  Scary stuff! Earthquakes are no joke and need to be well respected, but we can't live in fear of something when we may never experience "The Big One" our entire lives. Remember over 90% of San Francisco was destroyed by fire, not the initial earthquake. For me fire is my #1 concern, but we live in a forested area.

 

[mino]

For stability, I would not bother with height and just screw-in a concrete tile or two to the botom of the cabinet. If it is on casters it may not even consume any space ...

For height, go for ergonomy - what is best for you, not for the tool.

 

[4nthony]

I'm 6'2" and I put my 13" benchtop drill press on a Powertec stand with a Bora mobile base.

It's a comfortable height for me, but it may not be for you.

It's pretty stable. I'm in Southern California and if an earthquake knocks this over, I'm going to guess that I'll have much bigger problems to deal with.

 

[Paradox]

I just got a Viking and made a stand for it.  The stand is 30 1/2” high which I find perfect for my 5’11” height. 

 

[Mike Goetzke]

I just got a Viking and made a stand for it.  The stand is 30 1/2” high which I find perfect for my 5’11” height.

Nice - how do you like that WP fence? (They want soooo much for the DP-Pro I was thinking of getting one of their white DP tops and adding the DP-Pro fence)

 

[Peter_C]

I just got a Viking and made a stand for it.  The stand is 30 1/2” high which I find perfect for my 5’11” height. 

Welcome to the FOG Nice setup!

Nice - how do you like that WP fence? (They want soooo much for the DP-Pro I was thinking of getting one of their white DP tops and adding the DP-Pro fence)

I keep eyeing that Woodpecker fence as it is not too overly expensive. As to the drill press table I would say make one. They really are not that complicated and I don't really feel like having scales on the inset track is that important, but it is not hard to add a tape measure to say Woodpecker tracks. Stops on the other hand are important.

One Kreg Autoclamp is awesome to have! The other side needs to be lower to clear the handles. A piece of wood with an oblong hole works even. Glue a couple pieces on the bottom to form a bench...or buy 1-2.

 

[Paradox]

A little late to the party, but I made a stand for my new Viking bench top drill press last winter.  It’s 30” high including the casters.  The top is 16”x25”.  It has four drawers.  I made the table, but used the Woodpeckers fence with dust collection.  I didn’t want to use the Woodpeckers table because it used a lot of vertical real estate with its drawer which is important with a bench top drill press.