I bought the Proxxon FBS 240/E drill (mains powered, 100W, up to 20,000 rpm) and the Micromot MB 200 drill stand.
There was an "accusation" made in this thread sometime ago that the Dremel 4000 was breaking my carbide drill bits because its ball bearings had some play.
Here are my first impressions of the Proxxon FBS 240/E and the Micromot MB200 drill stand.
The Proxxon drill makes less noise than the Dremel, and also promises high torque at low revs. However so does the Dremel 4000. I suspect both drills are the same quality except the Dremel is almost twice as powerful and much faster (35,000 rpm vs 20,000 rpm).
The Dremel Workstation drill stand has a lot of plastic and a lot of play. This was suspected to be a major contributor to broken drill bits.
I am always talking about steel carbide drill bits with a common shank diameter of 3.2mm. I have been using these in preference to any other drill bits, because they do not wear off. They make perfect holes time after time.
The Micromot MB 200 is visibly much smaller than the Dremel Workstation. However it looks to be made of metal parts without any plastic, where it matters. For example the Dremel Workstation has a plastic drill holder, a plastic attachment to the drill pillar, and finally a plastic pinion for the plunger action (which gave me additional problems).
The Micromot MB 200 has all metal parts and very good reviews, however here are the (terrible) faults even when compared to the silly Dremel Workstation.
1) The drill base hole, where the drill bit plunges into, is misaligned and positioned a few mm forward (towards the user) so that the drill bit barely misses the metal! How can that even be possible?! Even if I had made this out of clay I'd have positioned the base hole more accurately.
2) The little torsion screw that secures the drill onto the pillar is too small and requires considerable force to lock the drill in place. At the same time you are trying to hold the drill stable so as to adjust the height and center it over the tiny base hole, so the process is hard, much harder than the Dremel Workstation which has a large lever screw which you can easily turn with one hand while holding the drill steady. Every time an adjustment to the height and/or centrering needs to be made, it is a pain.
3) There is no easy way, no practical no way, to twist the drill horizontally. On the Dremel there is a large knob which you turn to release the angular movement, and then you can turn the drill horizontally in one smooth action. This allows you to change drill bits and collets easily and painlessly because the bits do not fall off in the horizontal position. On the Micromot it is a nightmare. As the drill does not turn you have to firstly raise it on the pillar, which has its own challenges, then hold the spindle lock in while with the other hand you are tightening the collet in place. Except you need a third hand to hold the drill bit in. A practical solution is to place the whole drill stand on its side so as to change the drill bit using only two hands. Someone forgot to tell the Germans that humans generally come with two hands.
4) The drill base is unecessarily narrow, really narrow, and it is all too easy to rock it from side to side as you are working on the job. You could bolt it on the workbench, but then you'd not be able to lie it sideways to change bits. WHy the base is so narrow I do not know. The Dremel Workstation's base is almost twice as wide.
5) Even though all metal, there is still considerable play on the drill, because of the plunger mechanism. It is rack and pinion but there is play in the rails it slides through. Almost as much play as the all plastic Dremel Workstation.
6) At the top position the plunger's handle is completely loose, rattles, with considerable play and makes you think it has not been put together properly. I may have to open it to see.
7) The rack and pinion action is terrible. It is anything but "smooth" and there is a spring that attempts to return the drill to the top position, but the spring is too weak, so the action feels kind of jerky, incosistent, and most importantly the drill does not return to the top. Applying generous grease did not improve matters. The "solution" is to set the drill higher so that the spring is well tensioned at the bottom position.
I bought special Proxxon collets to use with my carbide steel drill bits (and other bits). The Proxxon broke two 1.2mm drill bits in two holes. Just like the Dremel did, as soon as the drill bit is 1 mm or more past the hole, you can feel the vibrations of the tip, and milliseconds later it snaps. This might also indicate that the drill bits are not straight in which case it is neither the Dremel's or the Proxxon's fault.
9) I replaced the carbide steel bits with the more common HSS or whatever drill bits, and used the appropriate Proxxon collets. I was able to drill two PCBs that way. Compared to the Dremel Workstation the base is so narrow and the assembly feels so light.
All in all I am not that impressed with the Micromot MB 200 drill stand.
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