# ShopFox W1668 Drill Press



## clarionflyer (Apr 27, 2008)

I just bought this press two weeks ago so I'm only giving preliminary info...

I was pleasantly surprised. It truly seems to be a nice machine. The package and delivery were perfect (unlike the reviews I read). I also read bad reviews about the fit and finish of the press. The fit couldn't be any better and the finish is completely adequate for the product in my opinion. Yes, several parts are just painted cast but it's a $400 drill press, not an airplane.

The most impressive to me is the run-out. A 5" bit gives me a tighter run-out than any of the high-end "big name" presses I tested before purchase ($200-$1100). I, personally, am impressed.

I attached a vac to the table and sanded some pine in the (handy) imbedded table... almost no dust. I have not used the oscillating function yet, so I can't comment on that.

Now bad things.
If you're planning on using the oscillating sanding function it's going take a few minutes to move belts, etc. You're not going to flip between drilling and sanding in an instant. And I doubt that tight run-out will last if you're doing much sanding.

It's minor, but my old press had a storage area under the base that I used a lot. This one has nothing.
The light is also at your expense. This one has nothing.

Other than than that... I'm impressed for the money.
It seems to be a good quality, full sized press, cut for bench top.


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## clarionflyer (Apr 27, 2008)

*Oops:*


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## against_the_grain (Aug 15, 2010)

A couple of years ago Woodworker's Journal did a comparison of 8 bench top drill presses. The Febuary 2011 issue.


Craftsman 21014
Delta DP 350
General-Int'l 75-030
Grizzly G7943
Jet GDP-12
Rikon 30-120
Ryobi DP 121L
Shop Fox W1668

And you will be happy to know that the Shop Fox won the prize for best bet.Its dual functionality was a big reason why. This press is also pretty beefy and has a decent motor in it.


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## 4nthony (Aug 9, 2020)

I just put one of these together (first drill press) and had a question.

There's a collar on the spindle hub with threads for a lock screw, but there's no mention in the manual of what the collar does or when/why you would need to lock it.

What is the purpose of this collar? Thank you!


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

4nthony said:


> I just put one of these together (first drill press) and had a question.
> 
> There's a collar on the spindle hub with threads for a lock screw, but there's no mention in the manual of what the collar does or when/why you would need to lock it.
> 
> What is the purpose of this collar? Thank you!


It may be only a depth "indicator" , not a depth stop like this one with graduations on the outside:


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## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

4nthony said:


> I just put one of these together (first drill press) and had a question.
> 
> There's a collar on the spindle hub with threads for a lock screw, but there's no mention in the manual of what the collar does or when/why you would need to lock it.
> 
> ...


Does the cylinder rotate around 360 degrees, or is there a stop?
My guess: It stops. 

What does it look like from the front? Is there a mark on the drill press body? Are there marks on the cylinder?

If it stops, then it may be a way to lock the quill in a lower position or to use it as an alternate depth stop (or both). There are variety of reasons you might want to lock the quill lower - such as using a fresh area on a sanding cylinder.


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## 4nthony (Aug 9, 2020)

Tool Agnostic said:


> Does the cylinder rotate around 360 degrees, or is there a stop?
> My guess: It stops.


Yes, it stops



> What does it look like from the front? Is there a mark on the drill press body? Are there marks on the cylinder?


Here's the front. There's no markings and not sure if that rectangular extrusion is meant to be an indicator of sorts.












> If it stops, then it may be a way to lock the quill in a lower position or to use it as an alternate depth stop (or both). There are variety of reasons you might want to lock the quill lower - such as using a fresh area on a sanding cylinder.


I was playing around with it a bit today after reading the replies and noticed that if I lock it down at different locations, the depth and position will change, so I guess that's it. 

It would be nice to have a little gauge like what's on @woodnthings picture above, but once I get it fully figured out I can add my own indicators.

Thanks for the replies!


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## Nowthatumentionit (Aug 8, 2020)

clarionflyer said:


> It seems to be a good quality, full sized press, cut for bench top.


If you mentioned it and I missed it, apologies. What model are you referencing? I'd like to look it up.


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## bargoon (Apr 20, 2016)

4nthony said:


> I just put one of these together (first drill press) and had a question.
> 
> There's a collar on the spindle hub with threads for a lock screw, but there's no mention in the manual of what the collar does or when/why you would need to lock it.
> 
> What is the purpose of this collar? Thank you!


On mine you turn it one way and tighten the thumbscrew and it locks it at that depth, turn it the other way with the quill held at a certain position and tighten the thumbscrew and it is a depth limiter.


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## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

My drill press is similar to @woodnthings photo.

If you rotate the ring in one direction, it can be used to lock the quill in a lower position. The return spring on the quill handle holds it there.
If you rotate the ring in the other direction, it serves as a depth stop.
Because you already have a depth stop (and maybe a quill lock) on the left side of your drill press, the ring on your drill press is vestigial, so they omitted the index plate on the body and the markings on the ring.

Photos:

Quill locked in an arbitrary down position. Useful with sanding cylinders.
Drill press depth stop set to 1/4 inch.


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