Holes & mortises · review
The smaller WEN: the same motor and the same readout, with two inches less swing and an inch less travel.
The end of it The same documentation as its bigger sibling, on a machine two inches smaller and an inch shallower.
Every figure below names its source. Each one is a manufacturer specification read off the listing itself. The judgments are ours.
Six point two amps, a digital readout, a class IIIA laser, a bevelling table, a stated two-year warranty — and a published weight and overall size.
The maker’s 12 inch press on this shelf publishes the identical list. What differs is three numbers: ten inches of swing instead of twelve, two inches of travel instead of three and an eighth, and a 1/2 inch chuck instead of 5/8.
And fifty-seven pounds instead of eighty-five, which is the difference between one person and two.
A drill press is bought for holes square to the face. What decides how deep those holes can be is the quill travel — how far the spindle comes down in one pull of the lever.
Run out of travel and the work has to be lifted on packing and the hole restarted, which is where accuracy goes. Fifty millimeters is shallow-hole territory: shelf pins, dowels, hardware. Eighty to ninety reaches most Forstner work. Past a hundred, a drill press starts to be a boring machine.
It is also the figure that is left out most often. Three of the seven European listings on this shelf publish it; the published Scheppach DP60 page names its absence as the one number that defines a drill press.
Fifty-one millimeters, which is the shallowest on the American half of this shelf.
It covers shelf pins, dowel holes, hinge cups, hardware — most of what a small shop drills. It does not cover a 25 mm (0.98 in) hole through a 60 mm (2.36 in) leg, or a mortise drilled as overlapping holes in thick stock.
The published Scheppach DP16VLS and Einhell TC-BD 450 here both publish 50 mm (1.97 in) and say the same thing in the same words: shallow holes in one plunge.
Thirteen millimeters, which is the other limit and the less obvious one.
A 35 mm (1.38 in) Forstner bit has a shank, and on cheaper bits that shank is 8 or 10 mm (0.39 in) — fine. A large hole saw arbor is often 1/2 inch exactly, and a 16 mm (0.63 in) shank is not unusual on better Forstner sets.
The maker’s 12 inch press takes 5/8. The published Einhell TC-BD 630/1 on this shelf has 16 mm (0.63 in), and its page names the same ceiling: a 16 mm (0.63 in) chuck capacity limits large Forstner bits.
Five hundred and thirty revolutions a minute at the bottom, against 580 on the larger press.
The bottom of the range is the half that matters. A 35 mm (1.38 in) Forstner in oak wants to be near 500; a hole saw wants less. The top end — 3,100 on both — is for small bits in soft material and is rarely the constraint.
It is also the figure most of this shelf leaves out. Five of fourteen listings publish a range at all.
Read on the day this page was built: $240 at the American Amazon shop.
Read from Keepa on the day this page was last revised; stock and price both move without notice.
Prices quoted in this text were read on 2026-10-07. The live price is at the top of the page.
| Motor | 6.2 A induction, published — the same figure as the maker's 12 in press · No wattage and no horsepower are claimed |
|---|---|
| Swing | 10 in — 254 mm |
| Quill travel | 2 in, published — 51 mm (2.01 in) |
| Speed range | 530 to 3,100 rpm, mechanically variable by a lever, with a digital readout of the current speed |
| Chuck capacity | 1/2 in keyed — 13 mm (0.51 in) · A chuck key with onboard storage is included |
| Table | Bevelling, 8 × 7.5 in — 203 × 191 mm (7.99 × 7.52 in) |
| Laser | Class IIIA, 2.5 mW, published |
| Overall size | 13.2 × 19.3 × 33.9 in, published — 335 × 490 × 861 mm (13.2 × 19.3 × 33.9 in) |
| Weight | 57 lb, published — 25.9 kg (57.1 lb) |
| Stated capacity | A 1/2 in hole through 1 in thick cast iron, stated by the maker |
| Also fitted | An adjustable depth stop and a stated two-year warranty |
| Amazon reference | B0DQ9BTQVR |
| EAN | 0044459110620 |
Anything deeper than about 50 mm (1.97 in) in one pull. That covers shelf pins, dowel holes, hinge cups and hardware, which is most of what a small shop drills. What it does not cover is a 25 mm (0.98 in) hole through a 60 mm (2.36 in) leg, a mortise drilled as overlapping holes in thick stock, or any boring operation. The published Scheppach DP16VLS and Einhell TC-BD 450 on this shelf both publish 50 mm (1.97 in) and their pages say the same thing: shallow holes in one plunge. This is the same limit, published in inches.
Because the motor is not what limits this class — the frame and the spindle are. Six point two amps is ample for a 1/2 inch bit in hardwood; what stops a 10 inch press is the 51 mm (2.01 in) of travel and the 1/2 inch chuck, not the power. It does mean the smaller machine has margin, which shows up as less speed droop under load. Three machines on the American half of this shelf publish 6.2 A, and the two WEN presses are the two that claim no horsepower from it.
Five hundred and thirty here, five hundred and eighty on the maker's 12 inch press — so the smaller machine runs slightly slower at the bottom, which is where a large bit in hardwood wants to be. Both top out at 3,100. The difference is small and the direction is useful: the bottom speed is the one that matters, because it is the one a Forstner bit or a hole saw needs, and it is the one most listings on this shelf leave out entirely.
Between woodworking machines of the same category and nearby price. Shown: what they all state. A half-filled column says nothing.
| Model | Price | Motor | Swing | Quill travel | Speed range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WEN DP1062V, 10 in benchtop | $240 | 6.2 A induction, published — the same figure as the maker's 12 in press · No wattage and no horsepower are claimed | 10 in — 254 mm | 2 in, published — 51 mm (2.01 in) | 530 to 3,100 rpm, mechanically variable by a lever, with a digital readout of the current speed |
| WEN DP1263V, 12 in benchtop | $265 | 6.2 A induction, published · No wattage and no horsepower are claimed | 12 in — 305 mm | 3-1/8 in, published — 79 mm (3.11 in) | 580 to 3,100 rpm, mechanically variable by a lever, with a digital readout of the current speed |
| Skil DP9505-00, 10 in benchtop | $185 | 6.2 A induction, published · No wattage and no horsepower are claimed | 10 in — 254 mm | Not published by the maker. | Five speeds from 610 to 2,800 rpm · The five steps are not listed individually |
| VEVOR 1216BVS, 12 in benchtop | $320 | 6.2 A and 1.0 HP, both published · 6.2 A at 115 V is about 713 W of input; 1 HP is 746 W of output | 12 in — 305 mm | Not published by the maker. | 530 to 3,140 rpm, variable, with a digital readout |
Shelf pins, dowels and hardware holes on a bench, lifted into place by one person
Amazon reports what buyers took in the month before this page was last checked: at least 50.
The figure is a floor, rounded by Amazon, and read through Keepa — it says what buyers picked, not what a maker claims.
Specifications: the manufacturer sheet for woodworking machines and the matching Amazon product page. Prices and availability: Keepa. Every figure on this page names its source.
710 W · 90 mm (3.54 in) quill · 40 mm (1.57 in) in wood
The longest stroke of the European bench drills here — 90 mm (3.54 in) — and the only one that states its capacity in wood as well as steel.
Best for: Deep holes and large Forstner bits — the work the cheaper presses cannot reach
8 in · 620–3,100 rpm in 5 steps · 150 mm (5.91 in) quill claimed · 2.5 A
An eight-inch press claiming five point nine inches of spindle travel — more than the floor-standing machine on this shelf.
Best for: The smallest sum that puts a press with a tilting table on a bench — with the travel figure confirmed first
≈ $97
450 W · 5 speeds to 2,650 min⁻¹ · 50 mm (1.97 in) depth · €115
A €115 pillar drill that publishes its depth, its speed range and its chuck capacity — and states all three plainly.
Best for: Shelf pins, dowels and hardware holes — accurate shallow drilling on a small bench
