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Step 3Prepare The Drill Press
First make sure everything is clean. Yes, that's far from easy in most workshops, but at least make sure there's no dust, sawdust, grit or other stray particles around the immediate vicinity. Getting a piece of sawdust in the works is really all it takes to throw off the alignment.
This goes for the drill chuck too. I needed to blow a bunch of air through it to get it clean. The first time I tried to use it there was a bit of grit inside that kept the drill bit from centering correctly.
Attach the jig. This should be pretty self explanatory. Make sure it's secure.
Check the Stability of the drill. Or Dremel in this case. Give it a little push left and right, backward and forward. Ideally it shouldn't wiggle or move at all. But it probably will. You might have adjustment screws that can be turned to reduce the wiggle somewhat, so try that first. In my case I still had a about 1/2mm of wiggle remaining, so I secured it by wrapping a rubber band around the body and putting both ends around the top of the depth stop. This got rid of the small wiggle, and since both the drill and the depth stop move at the same time it doesn't get in the way of any of the mechanics of the drill press.
Insert the drill bit. With very very fine drill bits it can be a bit tricky to get them perfectly centered. First close the chuck all the way. This makes sure the gripping jaws are centered and clear of debris. Open the bit very slowly while trying to insert the bit. When the bit slips in stop, adjust the location of the bit so the shaft is deeply in the chuck but the bit groves are all visible, and tighten. This will help clamp the bit securely and directly in the center rather than off to one side.
To make sure it's centered, put on your safety glasses and give the bit a good look while while turning the drill on. The bit should appear exactly the same width when spinning as still. If it looks wider at the bottom or really blurry in general it's off center, which will give you inaccurate holes and will break bits. (See illustration below.) Take it out and start over.
This goes for the drill chuck too. I needed to blow a bunch of air through it to get it clean. The first time I tried to use it there was a bit of grit inside that kept the drill bit from centering correctly.
Attach the jig. This should be pretty self explanatory. Make sure it's secure.
Check the Stability of the drill. Or Dremel in this case. Give it a little push left and right, backward and forward. Ideally it shouldn't wiggle or move at all. But it probably will. You might have adjustment screws that can be turned to reduce the wiggle somewhat, so try that first. In my case I still had a about 1/2mm of wiggle remaining, so I secured it by wrapping a rubber band around the body and putting both ends around the top of the depth stop. This got rid of the small wiggle, and since both the drill and the depth stop move at the same time it doesn't get in the way of any of the mechanics of the drill press.
Insert the drill bit. With very very fine drill bits it can be a bit tricky to get them perfectly centered. First close the chuck all the way. This makes sure the gripping jaws are centered and clear of debris. Open the bit very slowly while trying to insert the bit. When the bit slips in stop, adjust the location of the bit so the shaft is deeply in the chuck but the bit groves are all visible, and tighten. This will help clamp the bit securely and directly in the center rather than off to one side.
To make sure it's centered, put on your safety glasses and give the bit a good look while while turning the drill on. The bit should appear exactly the same width when spinning as still. If it looks wider at the bottom or really blurry in general it's off center, which will give you inaccurate holes and will break bits. (See illustration below.) Take it out and start over.
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