3/4 HP 15 in. Benchtop Drill Press with Worklight, 16-Speed, 115-Volt, J-2530

JET J-2530 15-Inch 3/4-Horsepower Bench Drill Press Two common reviewer complaints about higher-end drill presses are failures of a unit’s variable-speed or laser light pointer. This press has neither feature – it’s just a good basic machine. Another common complaint is shipping damage, so I ordered a J-2530 from Home Depot’s web site and picked it at a local store, since it’s MUCH easier to return a large heavy item in person to HD (even though I kept the machine) and shipping is free to the store. Besides, Home Depot provides a 90-day return window, unusually long. The Home Depot site for this tool has a link to the Instructions & Parts Manual as PDFs. It comes packaged in a double thickness cardboard box. The box could be a bit larger to accommodate thicker filler material, but nevertheless, mine was undamaged – with all parts. If your press arrives damaged, consider whether to return it for a replacement, or obtain parts – you could also call Home Depot for advice. This is my fifth drill press and my third bench model. For large jobs, I have an expensive 20" floor model. The J-2530 replaced a well-used 13-year old Delta DP350 with a cracked aluminum pulley. Delta now considers that pulley (and many other parts) “obsolete”, so it’s no longer available. For a bench model, the J-2530 is big. On a 40" tall bench chuck bottom is 63" off the floor. So mounted, a step stool might be needed for machine operation unless you’re tall. (I’m 6/4.) Assembling the machine is straight-forward, with decent instructions (English & Spanish manuals included) if needed. This is a really nice machine: - big, beefy, heavy duty. The switch assembly and the table crank handle are plastic. Everything else is cast iron or steel - the 3/4 HP double ball-bearing motor is plenty powerful - the huge 5/8" chuck holds bits firmly; not like those key-less chucks on some PowerMatic machines for example - 15" swing (7.5" from bit center to column) – a typical size for a decent floor press – is the largest available for any bench model that I could find - Quill travel is 3-1/8". The quill travel lock, to fix drilling depth, consists of two round threaded nuts to stop downward movement. It’s a slow process to adjust these. It might be faster to adjust table height instead. - the table can be raised easily with a [heavy] 5" cross vise mounted, plus it can be rotated 360 degrees as needed for positioning – and locked in place - speed changes are quick and easy. Release the belt tension, move the belts as per the diagram on inside cover, and re-tension. - the built-in bulb holder in the cast iron drill head is well placed. A 50 watt incandescent spot bulb (or equivalent LED) aims light on the work table and out of your eyes. A Delta 25-870 Magnetic Work Light magnetically stuck on the left side of my press provides additional focused light (see Customer Image), if desired. - no vibration or belt chatter. Machine simply hums when running, regardless of speed. - mine has no perceptible run-out. - the on and off buttons on my machine require a firm quick jab with a couple of fingers to work. Simply pushing one does nothing. It was annoying at first, but I’ve gotten used to it. - Jet provides a 5-year warranty on their drill presses; better than any other company - it’s too bad such things aren’t made in America, but all cast iron tools seem to be made elsewhere, frequently China or Taiwan. At least the Chinese are getting better at making quality stuff – this machine is well done. Similar machines: - One web seller offers a Powermatic 15" bench drill press visually similar to the J-2530, for nearly two thousand dollars. Then, there is the Dake TB16 or Optimum B24H – they are probably better machines, but they cost twice as much. The “best” bench drill press available is probably the Knuth KB 20 S – that beauty cost four times as much. Summary: If you want a high quality large capacity bench model drill press for under a grand, this model should be on your short list. ... Non-review comment: If at all possible, get someone to help you to mount the (very heavy) cast-iron head assembly atop the column. It’s a two-person job. If no help is available, it IS possible to do it alone following these steps: - loosen the tension and remove the two drive belts - lift off and remove the middle drive pulley - loosen the Allen screw on the motor pulley and slide it up and off - immediately remove the “key” from the motor shaft, and for God’s sake, don’t let it fall into the motor - remove the on/off switch plate - disconnect the black, white, and green wires emanating from the motor - bend up the three wire hold-down tabs next to the pulley system up and loosen the large Phillips screw on the wire clamp on the left side of head - gently extract the motor wire out from the switch assemble and pull it through the belt cover lid. - don’t lose the rubber grommet in the lid where that wire passes through - unscrew the four nuts holding the motor in place and place the motor aside. Parts removed above will reduce drill head weight by 31 pounds, which should be sufficient to lift the head onto the column by yourself. Reverse these steps to reinstall the motor and other parts. Verify that the motor is mounted perfectly vertical and tighten the motor pulley level with the middle pulley.

Runout on my J-2530 purchased from Home Depot is more than .010 measured at various points. None of the usual measures corrected the problem. Very disappointed.

A great drill, it is pretty heavy but therefore very stable and precise

The drill was easy to assemble

All parts in shipping container and no damaged goods. Instructions made it easy to assemble. Powerful 3/4 hp motor handled all my needs, especially when using 2” Forstner bit. Love it!

A good serious drill. I put a nice Jacobs keyless chuck on it so I don’t have to fiddle with a chuck key.

The milling on the table and base castings were a little rougher than I would expect from a quality brand like Jet (and for the price), but overall I’m pretty happy with the machine.