Tight jaws on drill press chuck

[Aram]

I have a Steel City 17" drill press. It's a great machine, but the chuck jaws are extremely hard to open and close by hand. I don't know why I didn't call them about it when I had the chance, but here I am. Do you think there's anything I can do? Or am I stuck on the tight end of tolerances?

Thanks.

[ez-duzit]

Replace with a quality chuck.

[Aram]

Replace with a quality chuck.

Thanks. I love an inexpensive solution. 


Any recommendations?

[Roly]

Thanks. I love an inexpensive solution. 


Any recommendations? I've heard of Jacobs. That's all I know.

Did you try cleaning it ?   May just be hardened grease/wax, cosmoline.   Suggest removing chuck and cleaning with something like brake clean or carb cleaner then a little WD 40 to see if it loosens up before replacing.  Roly

[Aram]

Did you try cleaning it ?   May just be hardened grease/wax, cosmoline.   Suggest removing chuck and cleaning with something like brake clean or carb cleaner then a little WD 40 to see if it loosens up before replacing.  Roly

Thanks. I have brake cleaner. I'll give it a shot.

[MichaelMouse]

Did you try cleaning it ?   May just be hardened grease/wax, cosmoline.   Suggest removing chuck and cleaning with something like brake clean or carb cleaner then a little WD 40 to see if it loosens up before replacing.  Roly

This ^^^, because the jaws may be sticking to that shipping stuff or crud you've added to the cone or threads over time.  The cone itself may be damaged, which would lead me to a new chuck.  

My current DP is also a Steel City.

[Phil Thien]

REMEMBER when you're done cleaning, that if you remove the chuck and want to reinstall, you NEED the tapered surfaces to be clean of all oil before re-seating.

I use lacquer thinner on a rag to clean the male end and same on cotton swaps to clean the female end.  I do this 2-3 times and let the solvent flash-off then re-assemble.

[Stwood_]

Top side of the chuck, where the outside meets the inside, spray some lube of weyhh (what ever you have handy) in there and work it back and forth by hand.
That may/may not clean the crud out and loosen it up.

[daddo]

Badly hardened metals (Too hard or soft) can deform or break when used and cause this. In this case it is probably a cheap chuck or shall we say...less than quality. Try oiling it first.

Probably, commonly, a broken or deformed tooth on a jaw.

I'd just replace it.

[fredhargis]

My Delta DP chuck did that. I tried to repair it, and it didn't work. You should try the oil/cleaner/etc. solutions and if that doesn't work buy a new one. I'll recommend a non Asian chuck, and the one I picked was an LFA. Made in France, they are very good quality and not as expensive as a Jacobs. BTW, if you seach for a Jacobs chuck...you get all the pretenders, and then some. So be careful. The other thing to consider if you buy new is whether you want to convert to keyless. A lot of guys love them, they weren't right for me but may be worth considering. A good one will cost a little more than a good keyed model.