A review of the Proxxon TBM220 Bench Drill. Please note, I have had this product for about 6 months or so in order to give a fair review, having used it in my own modelling.
The head swivels so you can drill into taller objects. Have it swiveled off the bench and you can drill a hole in something tall between the floor of your shop and the drill bit (3 or 4 feet / 1 meter+)...instead of being limited to the few inches between the head and base.
I also wondered why (5:00) the drill bit was not centered/fixed over the hole. would make things a bit easier if only the height was adjustable. but i recently realized why they did this. I had to drill holes in a subwoofer box already fixed in place in spare tire well of car. could never have drilled straight holes by hand. but i was able to use the drill press by swinging the drill bit out to the side of the base. perfect holes every time. this drill press is awesome.
I have one of these. Shortcomings: Requires speed controller, even the slowest speed is too fast Manual height adjustment of the motor housing is a pain Really needs the 3 jaw chuck Otherwise excellent
Here are my experiences with the TBM-115(USA). First I bought it from a well known USA distributor. I bought the TBM115 model with a Proxxon chuck. This was mainly for small PCB drillings.. When I received the drill I just tried to let it run with its genuine Proxxon chuck installed, with no drill but at its maximum speed which is 8500rpm. Ooooff, let me say this drill was NOISY !! Rattling with succeding noises just like if the installed bearing had loose balls. The chuck was tightly screwed, no loose belt.. Very disapointing.. Since the machine was still on warranty I sent it the Proxxon service department. They gently replied to all my emails and asked to send the drill to be tested and replaced. The person at the service dept told me that he will test the other drill before it is shipped to me. Well after about 10 days I received an other brand new TBM115 and guess what ? The other drill had the same noise problem has my preceeding one.. Even if they said they would test it before shipping !! So I had a closer look at the drill and started to wonder if these new TBM models were now made in China.. (??) I wonder because at work we have a Proxxon TBM115 dating around 1995 (the black & grey model) and it is working very silently compared to the new green/yellow ones.. I compared both machine and discovered that their respective original Proxxon chucks were not the same. They looked the same but each of their adjusting keys were differents. The new one had smaller teeth around it compared to the older one. Chinese made ?? Well I cannot tell but it looks like. And the overall press drill mecanisms are also different. The old one looks sturdier. Here is what the old black/grey drill looked like: www.arcenson.com/public/Proxxon/Proxxon%20TBM-115%20drill.jpg Conclusion, don't buy the new yellow/green TBM drills. Try to find the black/grey first version which seems to be all american made and much reliable. By the way, I tried to find a video showing the new green/yellow TBM drills running with the motor sound included but couldn't find one.. The existing videos have their drill sound removed and replaced with background music. Correct me if I'm wrong. So far I found an old working black/grey TBM115 and got rid of the newer one.
Por favor. Desculpe minha falta de conhecimento mas acabei de comprar essa máquina e te pergunto...O mandril grande(3/8)deve ser só da marca proxxon ou podemos comprar de outra marca?
Basic question - can anyone help me? On the top of the machine vice next to the adjustment knob is a 'boat' shaped moulding with a rectangular hole in it. What is this whole feature for?
Are you trying to drill 0.5mm holes vertically through brass or N/S that you intend to tap? Then you need one of these? I have a garage full of larger tools and it's very difficult not to break off small drills on small work, because you just can't feel or hear the cut properly. I just bought one of these, why I didn't wake myself up and buy one 50 years ago when I started this lark is a complete mystery? The drill is great, excellent and really nice, brilliant. It's a shame it's not variable speed though. Movement is 30mm which is more than adequate. Maybe it could do with a key way so it doesn't wiggle day to day? I might modify mine, but all good press drills can swing so you can drill things much longer than the throat. My Meddings is 6ft high and because it can swing, I drilled out the snapped off head bolts on and outboard motor for mate without dismantling it. The optional vise is mediocre but OK. The one I have has been milled flat on the top. It could do with some holes to screw down some slightly thinner outer sacrificial jaws on the top for holding thin pieces flat as the vee is only in one jaw. But press vises are meant to be drilled, tapped, milled and modified for your projects. The fence is complete pants, the play on mine is 4 degrees and when you can tighten it, it sits at 2 degrees ish but changes. It's a rough casting seated in a very nicely milled slot on the bed! This doesn't make any difference for one straight row of holes, but two or three parallel lines of holes you will struggle. Find someone with a mill to make you a proper fence that fits the slot, and is square as it's adjusted and re-seats square. Get the chuck, a must, it's actually very concentric if you keep it clean. Run out is important, small drills skate badly anyway ... always centre punch? Just drilled a 0.8mm hole in 40 thou N/S and tapped it 14BA no problem. The chuck should be standard, collets optional. I haven't tried them but 1/8" is not 3.2mm? Is it a Sherline ... no. Is it good, absolutely yes. A really really good tool for accurate bench top work like locos, brass work etc. My Sherline lathe is 40 years old and is bang on accurate despite heavy use. I don't know what they cost now, more than I want to pay for sure.
Hello sir, I've been gifted this by father Christmas - but I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to do with it. i'm a railway modeller in 2FS and just about the only thing I can imagine is drilling out concentric holes on chassis sides, coupling rods, etc. that have been sweated together. Any other ideas?! :)
I don't know were do you guys buy it or how many holes do you drill per hour, but I can *NOT* recommend this tool unless I want to give somebody a *bad* advise. It's a low quality product made of low quality parts which can catch rust (mine came with some signs of rust on the "collar"). Reading such reviews, I procured TBM220 (on 230VAC as in EU) for drilling tiny holes in PCB. Typically on a PCB I have 20-40 holes. Piece of cake for any drill, OK ? The darn thing can't make a single PCB without getting so hot that it might catch fire or meltdown the belt. To get so hot it needs 10 min operation. It uses brushed motor and I can smell the product of sparking brushes. They even saved from building an electronic speed regulator so you either have to make it yourself or are limited to 3 manually ... mountable (you re-mount the belt) speeds.
Hi, thanks for sharing your views on the product. I have to say I am surprised it doesn't work for you, as for me, it does a great job. Out of interest, what drill might you try next?
If I could recommend something, I would do it here. Unfortunately those kind of instruments are like stuck in the mid-20th century tech. No brushless motors, no electronic speed control (with preserving high torgue) and likely (this is from 21st century) no much pre-production testing and quality control.... At least the collar could be of stainless steel. Doesn't your get so hot after 10 min?
I had a proxxon bandsaw a few years back. Not a cheap item by any means and the motor windings melted after 6 months of light use cutting 2~3mm brass and aluminium sheets or flatbars for model engineering. I think these items are very cheaply made for the asking price and relying on the so called German brand name to justify their prices. In all honesty one is better off buying one of those cheap Chinese pillar drills that surprisingly can be quite accurate , much more robust and versatile for a little over £70.00.
Hi great video on showing the many features and operation of the Proxxon is the TBM 220 made in Germany! and do you know anything about the quality of the TBM 115 bench drill Thanks David
I have the TBM 115 version which I understand is the US version? anyway, it is a tremendous piece of engineering, absolutely incredible for the price; I enjoyed this helpful video as well. only minor disagreement, I like the way the collets grip the drill bits, I only use the big collet-free chuck for bigger bits as the collets only go up to 1/8".
@@x1area51ii7 This Proxxon is truly awesome. i detect zero runout with the collets, but they only go up to 1/8", a bit over three mm. they provide better stability and grip than the keyless chuck (which is what you will use for 5mm) does but I suspect you will be fine.
The head swivels so you can drill into taller objects. Have it swiveled off the bench and you can drill a hole in something tall between the floor of your shop and the drill bit (3 or 4 feet / 1 meter+)...instead of being limited to the few inches between the head and base.
I also wondered why (5:00) the drill bit was not centered/fixed over the hole. would make things a bit easier if only the height was adjustable. but i recently realized why they did this. I had to drill holes in a subwoofer box already fixed in place in spare tire well of car. could never have drilled straight holes by hand. but i was able to use the drill press by swinging the drill bit out to the side of the base. perfect holes every time. this drill press is awesome.
I have one of these.
Shortcomings:
Requires speed controller, even the slowest speed is too fast
Manual height adjustment of the motor housing is a pain
Really needs the 3 jaw chuck
Otherwise excellent
Thank you for mentioning the Product Numbers ! I will buy all 3 items, thank you.
Here are my experiences with the TBM-115(USA).
First I bought it from a well known USA distributor.
I bought the TBM115 model with a Proxxon chuck.
This was mainly for small PCB drillings..
When I received the drill I just tried to let it run
with its genuine Proxxon chuck installed, with no drill but at its maximum speed which is 8500rpm.
Ooooff, let me say this drill was NOISY !! Rattling with succeding noises
just like if the installed bearing had loose balls.
The chuck was tightly screwed, no loose belt..
Very disapointing.. Since the machine was still on warranty
I sent it the Proxxon service department. They gently replied to all
my emails and asked to send the drill to be tested and replaced.
The person at the service dept told me that he will
test the other drill before it is shipped to me.
Well after about 10 days I received an other brand new TBM115
and guess what ? The other drill had the same noise problem has
my preceeding one.. Even if they said they would test it before shipping !!
So I had a closer look at the drill and started to wonder
if these new TBM models were now made in China.. (??)
I wonder because at work we have a Proxxon TBM115 dating
around 1995 (the black & grey model) and it is working very silently
compared to the new green/yellow ones..
I compared both machine and discovered that their respective original Proxxon chucks
were not the same. They looked the same but each of their adjusting keys were differents.
The new one had smaller teeth around it compared to the older one.
Chinese made ?? Well I cannot tell but it looks like.
And the overall press drill mecanisms are also different.
The old one looks sturdier.
Here is what the old black/grey drill looked like:
www.arcenson.com/public/Proxxon/Proxxon%20TBM-115%20drill.jpg
Conclusion, don't buy the new yellow/green TBM drills.
Try to find the black/grey first version which seems
to be all american made and much reliable.
By the way, I tried to find a video showing the new green/yellow TBM
drills running with the motor sound included but
couldn't find one.. The existing videos have their drill sound removed
and replaced with background music.
Correct me if I'm wrong.
So far I found an old working black/grey TBM115 and got rid
of the newer one.
jpdesroc But can i use it in drilling PCB sir. is it perfect in drilling pcb exceprt the noise?
If you use the small six triple slit MICROMOT precision steel collets it generates less noises.
And yes it is good for small PCB drillings.
the 115 is made in Luxembourg, not China. and it is awesome. and yes, I have the new yellow/green model.
Por favor. Desculpe minha falta de conhecimento mas acabei de comprar essa máquina e te pergunto...O mandril grande(3/8)deve ser só da marca proxxon ou podemos comprar de outra marca?
Basic question - can anyone help me? On the top of the machine vice next to the adjustment knob is a 'boat' shaped moulding with a rectangular hole in it. What is this whole feature for?
Are you trying to drill 0.5mm holes vertically through brass or N/S that you intend to tap? Then you need one of these? I have a garage full of larger tools and it's very difficult not to break off small drills on small work, because you just can't feel or hear the cut properly. I just bought one of these, why I didn't wake myself up and buy one 50 years ago when I started this lark is a complete mystery?
The drill is great, excellent and really nice, brilliant. It's a shame it's not variable speed though. Movement is 30mm which is more than adequate. Maybe it could do with a key way so it doesn't wiggle day to day? I might modify mine, but all good press drills can swing so you can drill things much longer than the throat. My Meddings is 6ft high and because it can swing, I drilled out the snapped off head bolts on and outboard motor for mate without dismantling it.
The optional vise is mediocre but OK. The one I have has been milled flat on the top. It could do with some holes to screw down some slightly thinner outer sacrificial jaws on the top for holding thin pieces flat as the vee is only in one jaw. But press vises are meant to be drilled, tapped, milled and modified for your projects.
The fence is complete pants, the play on mine is 4 degrees and when you can tighten it, it sits at 2 degrees ish but changes. It's a rough casting seated in a very nicely milled slot on the bed! This doesn't make any difference for one straight row of holes, but two or three parallel lines of holes you will struggle. Find someone with a mill to make you a proper fence that fits the slot, and is square as it's adjusted and re-seats square.
Get the chuck, a must, it's actually very concentric if you keep it clean. Run out is important, small drills skate badly anyway ... always centre punch? Just drilled a 0.8mm hole in 40 thou N/S and tapped it 14BA no problem. The chuck should be standard, collets optional. I haven't tried them but 1/8" is not 3.2mm?
Is it a Sherline ... no. Is it good, absolutely yes. A really really good tool for accurate bench top work like locos, brass work etc.
My Sherline lathe is 40 years old and is bang on accurate despite heavy use. I don't know what they cost now, more than I want to pay for sure.
A useful review. Thank you.
Which is the maximum depth you can drill? Or in other words, which is the max height of a piece you can block under the drill? Thank you!
does one measured the runout of such a machine?
maybe modified it to take "ER" collets ?>
Hello sir, I've been gifted this by father Christmas - but I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to do with it. i'm a railway modeller in 2FS and just about the only thing I can imagine is drilling out concentric holes on chassis sides, coupling rods, etc. that have been sweated together. Any other ideas?! :)
so many negative comments on this producr but is it perfect in drilling pcb excerpt the noise?
Nice tool.
Iwant to add it in to my collection soon
I don't know were do you guys buy it or how many holes do you drill per hour, but I can *NOT* recommend this tool unless I want to give somebody a *bad* advise. It's a low quality product made of low quality parts which can catch rust (mine came with some signs of rust on the "collar").
Reading such reviews, I procured TBM220 (on 230VAC as in EU) for drilling tiny holes in PCB. Typically on a PCB I have 20-40 holes. Piece of cake for any drill, OK ? The darn thing can't make a single PCB without getting so hot that it might catch fire or meltdown the belt. To get so hot it needs 10 min operation. It uses brushed motor and I can smell the product of sparking brushes. They even saved from building an electronic speed regulator so you either have to make it yourself or are limited to 3 manually ... mountable (you re-mount the belt) speeds.
Hi, thanks for sharing your views on the product. I have to say I am surprised it doesn't work for you, as for me, it does a great job. Out of interest, what drill might you try next?
If I could recommend something, I would do it here. Unfortunately those kind of instruments are like stuck in the mid-20th century tech. No brushless motors, no electronic speed control (with preserving high torgue) and likely (this is from 21st century) no much pre-production testing and quality control.... At least the collar could be of stainless steel. Doesn't your get so hot after 10 min?
The Loco Builder is it usefull in pcb drilling sir?
I had a proxxon bandsaw a few years back. Not a cheap item by any means and the motor windings melted after 6 months of light use cutting 2~3mm brass and aluminium sheets or flatbars for model engineering. I think these items are very cheaply made for the asking price and relying on the so called German brand name to justify their prices. In all honesty one is better off buying one of those cheap Chinese pillar drills that surprisingly can be quite accurate , much more robust and versatile for a little over £70.00.
@@angelg3986 Nothing to recommend but empty air...
Hi great video on showing the many features and operation of the Proxxon is the TBM 220 made in Germany! and do you know anything about the quality of the TBM 115 bench drill Thanks David
Luxembourg and the 115 is awesome.
Very helpful. Thanks mate.
does the drill yank sideways when it reaches the depth stop, like with many cheap bench drills?
The quill is rock solid on this device. It can even be tightened should it ever develop any slop.
oh...why only 6mm for a tabledrill?
The TBH model goes up to 10 mm, this one is especially for very small precision (hobby) jobs
Can i use this proxxon 220 with giaride electro generator?giaride generator have 100 watt ,proxxon use 85 watt?
I'm afraid I couldn't advise on that issue, I'm not an electrical engineer. Sorry.
I prefer the Micromark variable speed jeweler’s drill press.
Show us how you changed the belt.
I have the TBM 115 version which I understand is the US version? anyway, it is a tremendous piece of engineering, absolutely incredible for the price; I enjoyed this helpful video as well. only minor disagreement, I like the way the collets grip the drill bits, I only use the big collet-free chuck for bigger bits as the collets only go up to 1/8".
Im planning to buy this off amazon, how do you like it? Any vibrations? Slop? I'm going to be drilling stock 5mm round shaft rod.
@@x1area51ii7 This Proxxon is truly awesome. i detect zero runout with the collets, but they only go up to 1/8", a bit over three mm. they provide better stability and grip than the keyless chuck (which is what you will use for 5mm) does but I suspect you will be fine.
@@drm9979 thank you for reply. I will be using 5/64 drill bits (2mm).will it be ok? My order coming tomorrow, do I still.need a chuck?
@@x1area51ii7 nope, no need for the chuck. should be great.
@@drm9979 cool thanks!.
Can this drill through brass sheet?
Pode sim,eu furo.
к этому станку очень нужна педаль для ноги.