Another Drill Press DRO Using a Powerfix (Lidl) Vernier Caliper

So this is the Vernier Caliper Mount I made for my brother's drill press. It's an evolution of the design used for my own drill press, and meets specific design criteria that my brother asked for.

He was a lot more adventurous than me, and he not only succeeded in drilling his caliper, but was also prepared to hack and modify the tool to give it a minimal footprint.

He designed and fabricated a metal bracket, held in place by the existing quill adjuster locking nut, so he only needed the lower mount. This bracket was rather neatly designed to use the caliper body's existing fixing holes, albeit with longer screws, so that the bracket could be kept to very moderate dimensions.

So, his final criteria were:

1. A single (2 piece) column shaft clamp.
2. The body of the caliper's digital read out should be as close to the drill's body as possible.
3. He proposed to cut off any of the caliper that wasn't essential for conversion, to keep size to a minimum.
4. The readings on the caliper's physical scale should match the readings on its digital display - something I couldn't achieve with mine!
5. The caliper's fixing to the column shaft clamp should double as one of the clamp's securing bolts.

Although much of the main casting on his Parkside drill appears identical to mine, a minor difference emerged after I had sent the printed part: His existing threaded depth gauge was slightly closer to the drill body than mine. This meant that the existing gauge's guide loop was fouled by the threaded depth stop rod.

I could have modified the design, and sent him a new print to accommodate this, but he chose to file his drill casing slightly to save messing around. I've attached a picture to show how he did this.

As there was no upper clamp to get in the way on his design, his column shaft clamp was able to sit higheron the shaft, and providing a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. The thickness of the clamp was therefore increased, but with a small step added to clear the fixed casting and rubber damping ring when the drill press was at rest.

I have to say, I think his turned out to be a much neater solution than mine. It looks as if it was always meant to be there, whereas my original design is unmistakebly an afterthought!

Many thanks to my brother, Kes, for the photos of the finished product

Category: Tools