Stripping down Elliott Progress No. 1 Mk. 1 bench drill press

Is anyone here familiar with how to remove the quill / spindle from this vintage drill? I have removed all obvious set screws and sprayed lots of release oil but there is no obvious (to me) method to remove the assembly. The spindle and bearings are in good condition (less than 0.15 mm of runout) but I would like to dissemble completely for a complete refurbishment. Curiously, I cannot find a set screw on the spindle pulley nor see a keyway or splines. I must be missing something obvious.

There are some good manufacturer photos on Tony's lathes website.

Thanks, Brian.

Edited By AJAX on 20/10/2021 08:20:15

The belt pulleys come off, the rack lever pulls out and the spindle drops straight out?

Thats my guess (with caveats)

edit: You may not need to touch the pulleys at all, but the rack lever definitely needs to be withdrawn for the spindle to get out

Edited By Ady1 on 20/10/2021 09:43:53

I would stick a roundbar in here to see if it unscrews against the handle on the other side

Looks like 1/4 inch which is a standard size handbar tightening hole (chucks etc)

Edited By Ady1 on 20/10/2021 10:23:48

Thanks, Ady. I did try that before posting (it would make sense as I have some familiarity with part dismantling other drills) but it didn't want to budge. I may have to put a bar through and give it a sharp tap. I can't apply heat.

That "hole for a bar" was a red herring which should be ignored. From my experience with other drills, I thought I could remove the "cover" and expose the return spring without removing the handle and rack gear. I was wrong. When I figured things were gummed up with 75 years of dried up grease, I managed to tap the whole assembly out.

Most parts have now been cleaned up and repainted and it shouldn't be long before it's all reassembled. The spindle and rack mechanism was in perfect condition, and apart from a couple of screws and knobs that I need to make there's not much else left to do. I will of course need to fit a motor but there's no rush as I already have a perfectly serviceable pillar drill.

The castings were painted using Hammerite red oxide primer (inside and out) and Paragon enamel paint. I had to thin the enamel paint using white spirit as I was down to the gloopy dregs from another job, but it seems to be just fine.

How on earth did you manage to get no overspray on the living room walls, floor or ceiling?? I'm impressed.

Martin

Bearing in mind the castings are not smooth (I removed the filler when stripping the paint) I was quite happy to apply a brushed finish. I realise that I could have applied a filler and sanded down first but I'm lazy...

That's a nice colour, good to resurrect something that's been unloved, it was probably someone's pride and joy a long time ago.

What paint did you use then? - I'm even more impressed that it is brush applied finish, and not as I thought a 'spray job'. I've used Teamac in the past as they do a good range of colours which have matched my machines original colours - the exception being the QDM 750 discussed elsewhere as it originally had a 'Hammered' finish (reduces the need for an expensively applied filler and rub down by the manufacturer! ). Looks uncannily like Ferguson TE35 grey.

Martin

Paragon enamel gloss, "Boxford Smoke Grey"

I originally bought one litre to repaint a Boxford lathe (hence the choice of colour) but then had enough to repaint a table saw, small milling machine, and now this bench drill. It is expensive paint, but does seem to go a long way.

Yes, I think so. Hopefully my kids will want to keep it one day.

Here's another photo to give you an idea of where I'm now up to. You may note the switch cover is on the incorrect side (there's a similar sized cover blanking panel on the other side) but it happens to fit that way better and I won't be reusing the switch to control the motor, even though the switch is still in surprisingly good condition. I still haven't decided what motor to fit and I'm even toying with the idea of fitting an intermediate pulley to step the speeds down. The "arc of shame" has been filled with JB Weld and I'm quite happy with the result.

I found this serial number (?) on the drill table when cleaning it up. Would anyone happen to know if it's a serial number and whether it would help date the machine? Or maybe it's an asset number of a previous owner?

BEC 53564-8

Brian

I just discovered the "BEC" most likely stands for B. Elliot and Company Ltd.

Link