Craftsman Drill Press Stand 25921 Manual: What to Find and Confirm

You find a Craftsman 25921 in a garage sale box, bring it home, and start searching for a manual before you bolt anything together. Smart move. The 25921 is not what most people picture when they hear “drill press,” and understanding what this stand actually does, and does not do, will save you a trip back to the hardware store for a different tool.

The Craftsman 25921 (also listed as 335.25921) is a drill press stand for handheld electric drills, specifically designed for 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch drills. It is not a drill press. It has no motor, no spindle, no chuck of its own. It is a vertical holder that converts your handheld drill into something that functions in a press-like manner. Knowing that distinction upfront keeps expectations realistic.

What the Craftsman 25921 Actually Is

The full name from Craftsman’s own documentation: “Drill Press Stand for 1/4 and 3/8 Drills.” VintageMachinery.org catalogs the publication as “335.25926, 335.25921 Drill Press Stand for 1/4 and 3/8 drills Operating Instructions.”

The stand consists of a base plate (approximately 7 by 10-1/2 inches), a vertical column (roughly 18-1/4 inches to the top of the post), a head housing that holds the drill, and a plunge mechanism that lets you lower the drill vertically into the workpiece. There is a depth stop for repeatable drilling depth. The drill clamps into the head housing; you pull down on the feed handle to plunge the bit into your workpiece, then release to return.

Compatible drills, per the original documentation: 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch handheld electric drills. If your drill has a body diameter that fits the head housing, it will work.

Where to Find the Manual

The Craftsman 25921 manual is a three-page document. Here are the confirmed sources:

ManualsLib has the complete operating instructions online at no charge: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1753421/Sears-Craftsman-25921.html. The manual covers assembly, depth stop adjustment, and a parts diagram.

VintageMachinery.org catalogs the original publication with a parts diagram added by community contributor Kevin Crofton. The publication ID is 5719 on their site. Access is free.

Sears PartsDirect (searspartsdirect.com) lists the model 25921 drill press stand in its parts database with a unit parts diagram.

RouterForums.com has a PDF of the combined 335.25921 and 335.25926 instructions attached to a thread.

For any vintage Craftsman model where you cannot find the specific manual: search Sears PartsDirect by model number, then try ManualsLib, then VintageMachinery.org. Between those three sources, the overwhelming majority of Craftsman tool documentation from the 1960s through 2000s is findable.

What the Manual Covers

The three-page manual covers:

1. Assembly: Column into base (setscrew tightening), head housing onto column (head lock arm), drill mounting in the housing.
2. Depth stop adjustment: Setting the stop rod for consistent hole depth across multiple workpieces.
3. Feed handle operation: The plunge mechanism for controlled downward drilling.
4. Parts diagram: Labeled exploded view with part numbers.

The manual does not cover bit selection, speed guidance, or material compatibility in any serious depth. These are addressed by the drill’s own manual, which varies by which drill you use with the stand.

The Honest Flaw: This Is Not a Real Drill Press

I want to be direct here: the 25921 stand improves the repeatability of handheld drilling, but it is not a substitute for a real benchtop drill press. The drill motor hangs in a housing that is not engineered to the same runout tolerances as a dedicated drill press spindle. Lateral play exists in the plunge mechanism that a real drill press column does not have. The second limitation is drill compatibility: the stand was designed for 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch handheld drills from a specific era. Modern cordless drills, larger corded drills, and anything with a non-round body profile may not clamp correctly in the head housing.

Who should skip this: Anyone who needs genuine vertical accuracy for joinery, metal work, or any task where hole perpendicularity matters more than convenience. If you are drilling occasional shelf pin holes in softwood, the 25921 is functional. If you are mortising, drilling for dowels, or doing precision metalwork, get a real bench press.

Better Option: A Real Benchtop Drill Press

If the 25921 is not enough machine for your work, the WEN 4208T is the natural step up. It is an 8-inch benchtop drill press with its own 2.3-amp induction motor, five speeds from 740 to 3140 RPM, a 1/2-inch keyed chuck with onboard storage, and a 6.5-by-6.5-inch tilting table.

WEN 4208T 8-inch Benchtop Drill Press

FAQ

What is the Craftsman 25921? A drill press stand for 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch handheld electric drills. It holds the drill vertically and provides a plunge mechanism and depth stop. It is not a drill press with its own motor or spindle.

Where can I find the Craftsman 25921 manual? ManualsLib (https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1753421/Sears-Craftsman-25921.html) has the complete three-page manual free. VintageMachinery.org (publication ID 5719) also carries it. Sears PartsDirect has the parts diagram.

Is the 335.25921 the same as the 25921? Yes. The full Craftsman/Sears model number is 335.25921. The 25921 is the shortened version. They refer to the same stand.

What drills fit the Craftsman 25921? The stand was designed for 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch handheld electric drills. Fit depends on the body diameter of your drill.

Can the Craftsman 25921 replace a real drill press? No. It improves freehand accuracy but does not match the spindle precision, runout, or rigidity of a dedicated benchtop drill press.

What is the depth stop for? It sets a repeatable lower limit on the plunge mechanism so you can drill holes to a consistent depth across multiple workpieces without measuring each time.

Where do I get parts for the Craftsman 25921? Sears PartsDirect (searspartsdirect.com) lists the model and its parts diagram. eBay is a secondary source for older hardware.

References

• Sears/Craftsman, 335.25921 Drill Press Stand Operating Instructions: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1753421/Sears-Craftsman-25921.html
• VintageMachinery.org, Publication ID 5719: http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=5719
• Sears PartsDirect, Craftsman 25921 Drill Press Stand Parts: https://www.searspartsdirect.com
• WEN Drill Press FAQs: https://wenproducts.com/pages/drill-press-faqs
• OSHA Woodworking Drill Press eTool: https://www.osha.gov/etools/woodworking/production/machines-tools/drill-press
• CCOHS, Drill Presses: https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/safety_haz/metalworking/drillpresses.html