Woodpeckers Professional Drill Press Table

            Woodpecker’s new Professional Drill Press Table comes out of the box with a large 16x23x1 inch thick work area covered with a non-glare low friction Micro-Dot dimpled laminate and a solid high density banding around a flat MDF core. There is a replaceable tear out eliminating block that is supported by 4 leveling screws. Beneath the plate is a 3/8” centering hole that allows you to center the table for mounting to your drill press.

            Next is the double wide T-Track system. This is comprised of two extruded aluminum T-Tracks that are laser engraved with an imperial scale. They are mounted in recesses by T-Track bolts that are secure and won’t move. This is where the hold downs and the fence can be mounted for accuracy and repeatable drilling operations. The table also sports a big 36 inch dual track fence with a laser engraved center scale measuring system. This allows for quick set up of most drilling operations. The table came with 2 hold-downs for heavy drilling situations. We found the scales are easy to read and the table was easy to set up. I was told to buy some extra mounting T-bolts and to add a second bottom. I decided to forgo that and simply drilled 4 mounting holes on the edges of the expansion wings on the Powermatic PM 2800 Onyx drill press. Centering the table on the chuck was a snap by online slots placing a 3/8” drill in the chuck and lowering through the centering hole provided. I drove in 4 screws and never looked back. I doubt I will ever take the table off and if I do I have 4 small holes in the table which is no big deal to me and much quicker and easier to set up.

            In practical use I have found the molded flip stops are great and the long fence can be moved to accommodate longer boards for repeated drilling operations. The system has a low fence but they offer a high fence for it for doing mortise drilling. I will be adding the second fence as I like the added support for drilling taller work pieces. I love the bright red color of the very accurate laser engraved measuring scales on the tracks. My other favorite feature are the wonderful little flip stop. I think I will buy a few more of these for multi hole drilling procedures. The complete system comes with 2 and I use them all the time.

            When I first got the table, I was a bit disappointed in the loss of depth of drilling. I do have an 18 inch press but I quickly figured out I can work from the other side of the fence and get extra depth that way. I would like to see a larger deeper table for bigger presses but in practical use I found I have been able to do every application I can think of on this table with no restrictions. I would like to see an add-on dust collection system as my stock fence had a great dust collection port. Unfortunately the stock fence was difficult to adjust and in practical use this system is faster and easier. I have been using this system in the shop for 6 months and I have found no problems with it. The table remains flat in weather changes and the filler block is easy to replace out of 1/2” MDF. The leveling screws let you adjust the filler piece flush with the surrounding table.

            How necessary is this tool? Well, that depends on your situation. I have a busy shop and I need to be able to move from operation to operation quickly so I have found that the Woodpecker table accommodates my needs very well. I also need the repeatability the press is capable of and the table gave me easier adaptability from job to job. Over all I have no concerns about quality and I find the price is acceptable for the level of quality. I am pleased to recommend this tool to you for your shop.

Cheers

Lance granum