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Buffalo #15 copy from scrap metal

sardonyx

Plastic
Joined
Aug 14, 2022
This drill press was found by my friend at scrap metal. It was in ugly state w/o table and motor.

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After some time he found a table from another drill press (with 3 T-slots in good state). So the puzzle now consists from two drill presses from the USSR period. The top is from NS-12, and bottom one from 2M112. Original Buffallo #15 drill press was produced in different variants from 1937. A copies of this drill press was produced in USSR as NS-12 after WW2 from 1947. I don't know when this one was made. It didn't have any badges on it. But I believe in the period 1950-1960ss.

My friend already managed to clean it outside and paint it. And after this he decided to do exchange. This drill press parts on my big aluminum stock. This is how it came to me.

It had a broken lift handle. There was only one handle out of three for feed pinion. It had very weak column clamp. Ugly chuck and taper at spindle.

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The spindle has two woring key slots and one spoiled faulty
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No reverse spring. High wear bearings and slightly broken pulley (not critical).
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Restored spindle taper and new chuck
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Restored broken lift handle
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Feed sleeve. Some one slightly beat it

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Small 1/4 horse power motor (that I already had). I use VFD to control it. There is enough for my tasks

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Column diameter of this drill press is 69.4 mm and hole in head frame is 69.8. That is near to original Buffalo's column diameter 2.75". But with standard handle I can clamp only to 69,5 mm, that is not enough. So I changed M12 stud to M16 and added two more bolts for clamping

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Scraping...
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Almost final result

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Scale compared to a Chinese drill press and my 3-phase gear drill on a stand

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Restoration video

 
Ship that Russian drill press to Ukraine a.s.a.p. They can use it to repair all the tanks the Russian army left behind.
 
Interesting that this buffalo drill press was copied in Russia - I didn't know that.
This copy is a fairly popular machine in exUSSR. I believe that buffalo machines came to the USSR thanks to WW2 lend-lease. Because sometimes the original American Buffalo No. 15 machines are also on sale here. And only after that they began to copy. Other american machines from this time will also come across: lathes, milling, band saws, etc.
 
Ship that Russian drill press to Ukraine a.s.a.p. They can use it to repair all the tanks the Russian army left behind.
At the moment I am in the zone of occupation in Kherson, that at south of Ukraine. Drill press is alredy at its place :)
Everything has its time. For now, I'm trying to be as non-provocative as possible. Because filtration actions are constantly taking place in the city. But the big number of tanks, after their recent retreat, really remain in combat
 








 
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