lens wrote:
My MT2 drill chuck got stuck in my lathe tailstock. I did not want to
crank *too too* hard trying to push the arbor out for fear of damaging
feed threads. I finally got it out by taking apart the tailstock and
heating the ram (if that's the right term) with a little propane torch.
Tapping a rod thru the ram then popped the chuck out. Tapping the rod
did not work until I added the heat.

My question is how do I prevent the chuck (or other arbors) from
sticking (that much) in the first place?

You didn't mention what kind of lathe it is. On my South Bend, when I retract
the tailstock ram, when it gets almost fully in the tapered tool is ejected if
the ram is withdrawn sharply enough.

GWE