166 of 170 people found the following review helpful
Not for the person who is really going to use it!!!!!,
October 1, 2000 Paul L. Augustyn (Elma, New York United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: JET JDP-17MF/354169 Drill Press (Tools & Home Improvement)
This is the second Jet drill press I have owned. The first had the same problem as the second and Jet replaced it free of charge, even though out of warranty. I have owned this drill press for just over two years now and it is used but not abused. The problem is that after using the depth stop, as is the case with a good majority of holes the spindle kicks over to the side of the drill press that the stop is mounted on. This has a tendency of causing drill walk as well as an out of round condition of the hole itself. After grabbing and shaking the quill a great amount of play is noticable from just hand force. This would indicate worn bearings. The fact that the first drill press had the same defect as this one tells me that Jet knows it has a problem but evidentally isn't that concerned about fixing it. I have owned and still do own other Jet tools but this drill press is the worst. Vibration and noise are other built in features you might encounter. I will replace it soon...Read more
55 of 55 people found the following review helpful
Rounded up to 5 stars,
June 5, 2003 SJZ "-Steve" (Long Island, NY USA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: JET JDP-17MF/354169 Drill Press (Tools & Home Improvement)
Since there is no 4.75 star choice available, I'll round the Jet 17MF up to 5 stars. While it has some issues, overall I like it a lot! I got tired of patching up my old Dunlap drill press, so I figured I would treat myself to a newer & larger unit. I did a lot of research, focusing on the Delta, Shop Fox, Grizzly, & Powermatic floor units in the 17" range. I was able to download the manual for all of them, and judging by the exploded diagrams and parts list, they all seem to be clones, with slight differences (i.e. type of depth stop, pulley cover, style of on/off switch, etc.).
My usage will be 80% metal fabrication, & 20% wood.
The drill press was delivered in one package, about 5 feet long, 2.5 feet wide, 16" high & 210+ pounds. Large, but not unmanageable for most people. There is a top and bottom block of Styrofoam, each molded to house the parts securely. All parts were complete & undamaged. Assembly took less than half an hour. As mentioned in other reviews,...Read more
48 of 49 people found the following review helpful
Good but not GREAT,
May 16, 2002 Eric J. Kovach "ekovach" (Carlsbad, CA United States) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: JET JDP-17MF/354169 Drill Press (Tools & Home Improvement)
After finally deciding to make the agonizing choice to abandon Delta as my brand of choice because of declining quality, I purchased this drill press along with 2 other Jet tools. here are my opinions of this tool. On the plus side: 1. the castings seem to be high quality and substantial. 2. I found the packaging to be excellent. 3. Assembly went without a hitch. 4. It's nice to have a built-in light. 5. 16 speeds: more than I'll probably ever use. On the minus side 1. My unit does have excessive vibration at certain speeds. 2. The table height locking handle is too small to get enough torque to lock the table easily. 3. The belt cover does make a certain amount of noise at certain speeds. While it is annoying, these problems are easily fixed. I replaced the stock belts with some PowerTwist v-belts and it virtually eliminated all vibration and noise. I think we should all petition manufacturers to inclued PowerTwists on all belt driven tools. Some weather stripping around the belt...Read more
(45 customer reviews) 
