You wrote: >What I want to decide immediately is the cost effectiveness >of a RADIAL ARM >DRILL PRESS. (snip) Are they worth the investment for hammer boring? (snip) Are table size bandsaws enough for piano work? Lorin, I have all the equipment that you are contemplating purchasing. My best response would be to remember that you always get what you pay for and if you are looking for outstanding results then go for the biggest and best that your space and wallet will handle. Specifically, a table top band saw will be accurate and powerful enough for most light to medium cutting needs. I've not seen one that will handle cutting a pinblock. Lack of power and table size. I have a Shopsmith 12" bandsaw that I use for cutting pinblocks. It is just enough saw. I hope to get a larger floor unit someday. The radial head drill press for drilling pinblocks is an allright way to go, although a large table mount drill press will work well providing the head is reversible to the base. Mount either on a large plank that spans the rim of the piano and shim the base to get the injection angle you need. I use a bench top drill press for drilling hammers using the appropriate jigs . IMHO the radial press for drilling hammers would be a lot of work! Hope this helps. Paul Dempsey Marshall University wippen@aol.com
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