Motorized Drill Press Table Lift

[shopstorm]

Drill press table crank problems .... I know I'm not the only one!

My DP table accessories are heavy.
My custom woodworking table impedes the rotation of the crank handle.... knuckle buster!
I routinely work large/long items, so my table lift gives me a workout.

Given all of the advancements the DP has seen, variable speed, rapid speed change, keyless chuck, laser site, etc... The hand crank is laboriously outdated, especially on higher end machines.

I removed my crank handle exposing the rack and pinion drive shaft and found a way to mount a motor.
Initial specs and estimates led to a lot of trial and error, but I found a great combo of hardware that gets the job done based on a $5 DC power tool motor.

Parts include:
Aluminum L bracket for mount
Small high RPM DC motor with cooling fan
3 stage gear reduction
Drive shaft coupler
Mechanical and logical motor controls for speed direction
AC to DC power converter/supply
Inline fuse protection
Mounting hardware
Cable management
Motor enclosure

Install requires: drill, metal bits, taps, screw driver, allen wrench

Take a look at the video .... Very straight forward operation. Easy up, easy down!

I've also added some photos.

[kbalch]

Thanks shopstorm! I've added your Motorized Drill Press Table Lift to our Drilling and Drill Presses and Electrical categories, as well as to your builder page: shopstorm's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Motorized Drill Press Table Lift by shopstorm

tags: power supply, drill press, lifting, motor

[DIYer]

Cool mod. About how much did this cost you in parts?

[shopstorm]

Cool mod. About how much did this cost you in parts?

Thanks.

The first prototype cost me less than $100. I had some of the minor supplies lying around.
I am building a right angle lower profile unit now and my target is to build it for ~$50.

It could be done for less, but I am building this to be able to move over 100 lbs. So it may be a little over engineered for a standard DP table weight.

[Captainleeward]

Wow I want one Nice Job Shop Storm.....:O)

[Altair]

Another useful addition to a feature-laden DP! Great job shopstorm.

Al

[shopstorm]

Another useful addition to a feature-laden DP! Great job shopstorm.

Al

I love the functionality. I'm working on a right angle worm gear style gear motor to minimize the profile. But all in all it is a simple design that works great.... at least for my needs.

[permagrin falcon]

my press has no rack on it and would really like one of these

[nimedic]

Hey shopstorm, I just came across your post and was wondering how the second generation lift came out? I'd like to add one to my DP, but there are so many choices for parts, and since this is a one-off design, I'm thoroughly confused as to what the minimum specifications are required for the motor. If you're not too busy, would you consider giving, or selling your parts list and specs? Thanks!

[dbat74]

Very nice job. More like this please.