Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Tom’s Hardware
Tom’s Hardware
Technology
Ash Hill

3D-printed drill press can drill through metal — costs around $45 to create your own drill press

3D printed drill press.

Some of the coolest projects we've seen come from makers who make something because they can, not because of any necessity., Today, we came across a neat 3D-printed drill press by a YouTuber known as DC Sets. This project didn't just involve 3D printing a drill press; he also bought one to study and then designed a custom STL from scratch.

As cool as this project is, that's its main selling point. According to DC Sets, it costs around $45 to gather all of the necessary materials, and you still have to factor in time for the assembly process. Overall, you're not saving money by 3D printing your drill press, but you are possibly setting yourself up for an exciting evening making a handy tool from scratch for the fun of it.

While DC Sets modeled this drill press for fun, they also wanted to practice 3D modeling and drill holes in M2 standoffs, helping push the project along. It's important to note that not all of the drill components are 3D printed. Some metal pieces are necessary, as is the motor (which happens to be a 775 DC motor in this case).

DC Sets printed the unit we see using PLA, but you could replicate this yourself using any filament you like. The STL has been made open source and is available for anyone to download and print. So far, DC Sets has tested the drill press on both aluminum and brass with great success.

If you want to know more about the build process, DC Sets breaks down the assembly in a video shared on his YouTube channel. It's important to note that this sort of project could be particularly dangerous. Exercise caution when using electric tools like these, especially homemade ones.

If you want to get into 3D printing or want a better idea of what's leading the way in today's market, check out our list of the best 3D printers and see which ones we like the most.

Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.