I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

My machine came with a 0-5/8" chuck. It appears that if I want such a
chuck I have the choice of a 0-1/2" or a 1/8"-5/8" but there is no
0-5/8". Now I'd rather not lose the low end and I have no clue what
things anyone sells that have a shaft over 1/2". What would I be
missing out on if I put in a 1/2" chuck? (I could, of course, keep
the existing chuck in reserve.)

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message news:3RLxc.12596
I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What is it you think you might be drilling that would require a bit that
big? The standard 1/16" to 32/64" drill sets almost always have a maximum
shaft diameter of 3/8" and it's not too often that the home woodworker is
going to use anything bigger than that. I'd say you'll be fine with what
you've got. Unless you're planning on drilling something pretty esoteric, I
wouldn't worry about anything bigger until you need it.

99.9% of everything you will ever want to use has 1/2" shank or under. Go
with the 1/2", you will never miss the extra capacity. If you want a Jacobs,
their heavy duty ball bearing models are very good. Advantages are they run
true and last.
"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:3RLxc.12596$ye1.5635@lakeread05...
I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

My machine came with a 0-5/8" chuck. It appears that if I want such a
chuck I have the choice of a 0-1/2" or a 1/8"-5/8" but there is no
0-5/8". Now I'd rather not lose the low end and I have no clue what
things anyone sells that have a shaft over 1/2". What would I be
missing out on if I put in a 1/2" chuck? (I could, of course, keep
the existing chuck in reserve.)

"Upscale" wrote in message news:PnMxc.150051 What is
it you think you might be drilling that would require a bit that
big? The standard 1/16" to 32/64" drill sets almost always have a maximum
shaft diameter of 3/8" and it's not too often that the home woodworker is
going to use anything bigger than that. I'd say you'll be fine with what
you've got. Unless you're planning on drilling something pretty esoteric,
I
wouldn't worry about anything bigger until you need it.


He's already got a 0-5/8. He wasn't looking for anything bigger.

What don't you like about the one you have?

Tom Dacon

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:3RLxc.12596$ye1.5635@lakeread05...
I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

My machine came with a 0-5/8" chuck. It appears that if I want such a
chuck I have the choice of a 0-1/2" or a 1/8"-5/8" but there is no
0-5/8". Now I'd rather not lose the low end and I have no clue what
things anyone sells that have a shaft over 1/2". What would I be
missing out on if I put in a 1/2" chuck? (I could, of course, keep
the existing chuck in reserve.)

What is it you think you might be drilling that would require a bit that
big? The standard 1/16" to 32/64" drill sets almost always have a maximum
shaft diameter of 3/8" and it's not too often that the home woodworker is
going to use anything bigger than that. I'd say you'll be fine with what
you've got. Unless you're planning on drilling something pretty esoteric, I
wouldn't worry about anything bigger until you need it.


I have forsner bits with a larger then 1/2" shaft. but for the most part I never
use over a 1/2" shaft.

--
Knight-Toolworks & Custom Planes
Custom made wooden planes at reasonable prices
See http://www.knight-toolworks.com For prices and ordering instructions.

kin we quote you on that

Rob

--


http://www.robswoodworking.com

"Steve Knight" wrote in message
...


snipped


"...... but for the most part I never use over a 1/2" shaft. "

--
Knight-Toolworks & Custom Planes
Custom made wooden planes at reasonable prices
See http://www.knight-toolworks.com For prices and ordering instructions.

Well, I haven't used it enough to get a good feel for it. I was
asking because from reading this group, it seems that lots of people
eventually end up upgrading, either because their chuck dies or
because it's somehow unacceptable. If I have an idea of what to look
for or what benefit an upgrade would offer I'll be better positioned
to decide if I should do it. I did find it very difficult to get a
1/16" drill bit positioned in the thing straight. I don't know if
this is universal for a chuck of this size, though.

So far the major annoyance is the lawyer inspired chuck key that pops
off the chuck. And while chuck keys aren't pricey, the money would be
wasted if I'm going to buy a keyless chuck in the future. I had
originally thought that keyless chucks were inherently inferior to the
keyed variety, but posts here seem to claim this isn't true. (My
dewalt corded hand drill has a keyless chuck and it slips.) But the
whole drill cost (much) less than an Albrecht. Do you really need to
use two hands to tighten/loosen a keyless chuck? Because I'd rather
use a key than deal with that. But if the chuck recommended by Jim
Wilson
http://www.penntoolco.com/catalog/pr...categoryID=310
is good, for only $34, it makes upgrading more affordable. The other
chuck people seem to recommend is the Bison chuck.


"Tom Dacon" writes:

What don't you like about the one you have?

Tom Dacon

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:3RLxc.12596$ye1.5635@lakeread05...
I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

My machine came with a 0-5/8" chuck. It appears that if I want such a
chuck I have the choice of a 0-1/2" or a 1/8"-5/8" but there is no
0-5/8". Now I'd rather not lose the low end and I have no clue what
things anyone sells that have a shaft over 1/2". What would I be
missing out on if I put in a 1/2" chuck? (I could, of course, keep
the existing chuck in reserve.)

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:7f4yc.1191$qg.390@lakeread06...
whole drill cost (much) less than an Albrecht. Do you really need to
use two hands to tighten/loosen a keyless chuck? Because I'd rather

The only experience I have with a keyless chuck is my cordless Milwaukee
drill and it needs two hands to properly tighten and loosen the chuck. If
loosing a chuck key is of concern to you, then you might try something like
Lee Valley Tools' magnetic key holder.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...urrency=1&SID=

"Upscale" writes:

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:7f4yc.1191$qg.390@lakeread06...
whole drill cost (much) less than an Albrecht. Do you really need to
use two hands to tighten/loosen a keyless chuck? Because I'd rather

The only experience I have with a keyless chuck is my cordless Milwaukee
drill and it needs two hands to properly tighten and loosen the chuck. If
loosing a chuck key is of concern to you, then you might try something like
Lee Valley Tools' magnetic key holder.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...urrency=1&SID=

I have one of those in use right now to hold the chuck key. I'm
really trying to figure out the relative merits of possible chuck
upgrades. There seem to be a lot more keyless chucks out there than
keyed chucks to upgrade to.

The chuck in the link you posted is an Albrecht clone. I have not used this
particular one but have used other quality clones and the perform well. A
quick snap of the wrist is all it takes to tighten them. May want to use a
second hand to tighten in a light spindle machine like a drill press (I'm
used to them in milling machines) but probably isn't necessary. Yes, getting
small drill bits misaligned in large drill chucks is normal. Just have to be
a bit more careful. If a key doesn't bother you and there is no obvious
problems with your chuck, I really don't see the need to change.

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:7f4yc.1191$qg.390@lakeread06...
Well, I haven't used it enough to get a good feel for it. I was
asking because from reading this group, it seems that lots of people
eventually end up upgrading, either because their chuck dies or
because it's somehow unacceptable. If I have an idea of what to look
for or what benefit an upgrade would offer I'll be better positioned
to decide if I should do it. I did find it very difficult to get a
1/16" drill bit positioned in the thing straight. I don't know if
this is universal for a chuck of this size, though.

So far the major annoyance is the lawyer inspired chuck key that pops
off the chuck. And while chuck keys aren't pricey, the money would be
wasted if I'm going to buy a keyless chuck in the future. I had
originally thought that keyless chucks were inherently inferior to the
keyed variety, but posts here seem to claim this isn't true. (My
dewalt corded hand drill has a keyless chuck and it slips.) But the
whole drill cost (much) less than an Albrecht. Do you really need to
use two hands to tighten/loosen a keyless chuck? Because I'd rather
use a key than deal with that. But if the chuck recommended by Jim
Wilson
http://www.penntoolco.com/catalog/pr...categoryID=310
is good, for only $34, it makes upgrading more affordable. The other
chuck people seem to recommend is the Bison chuck.


"Tom Dacon" writes:

What don't you like about the one you have?

Tom Dacon

"Adrian Mariano" wrote in message
news:3RLxc.12596$ye1.5635@lakeread05...
I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

My machine came with a 0-5/8" chuck. It appears that if I want such a
chuck I have the choice of a 0-1/2" or a 1/8"-5/8" but there is no
0-5/8". Now I'd rather not lose the low end and I have no clue what
things anyone sells that have a shaft over 1/2". What would I be
missing out on if I put in a 1/2" chuck? (I could, of course, keep
the existing chuck in reserve.)

In article 3RLxc.12596$ye1.5635@lakeread05,
(Adrian Mariano) wrote:

I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

Check out the following link to a thread on this topic a little more
than a week ago:

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=e...8859-1&frame=r
ight&th=c84bd8607ac5d829&seekm=t0zvc.38872%24eU6.9 379918%40news4.srv.hcvl
ny.cv.net#link1

--
Owen Lowe and his Fly-by-Night Copper Company
Offering a shim for the Porter-Cable 557 type 2 fence design.
http://www.flybynightcoppercompany.com
http://www.easystreet.com/~onlnlowe/index.html

These are the drill chucks you want. http://www.albrechtchucks.com/

I updated my 17" Jet drill press with a 5/8" chuck. The original chuck
did not run very true when brand new. Then I spun a 1/2" drill in the
chuck and it (the chuck) never ran true again. Evidently the jaws of
the chuck are very soft and they were galled by the drill shank. This
drill chuck is a joy to use, it's keyless, grips the tools extreemly
well and the run-out is less than .001" .

On Sat, 12 Jun 2004 07:26:56 -0700, Buck Wheat
wrote:

These are the drill chucks you want. http://www.albrechtchucks.com/

I updated my 17" Jet drill press with a 5/8" chuck. The original chuck
did not run very true when brand new. Then I spun a 1/2" drill in the
chuck and it (the chuck) never ran true again. Evidently the jaws of
the chuck are very soft and they were galled by the drill shank. This
drill chuck is a joy to use, it's keyless, grips the tools extreemly
well and the run-out is less than .001" .



drill chucks can be rebuilt. it's a bit fussy to do, but can be
accomplished with nothing more than a dremel and a bench grinder.

Adrian Mariano asks:

I recently got a Grizzly drill press and am wondering whether it's
worth upgrading the chuck.

What advantages would a Jacobs chuck give me? They are rather
costly. Are they worth the price? Heavy duty or medium duty?

My machine came with a 0-5/8" chuck. It appears that if I want such a
chuck I have the choice of a 0-1/2" or a 1/8"-5/8" but there is no
0-5/8". Now I'd rather not lose the low end and I have no clue what
things anyone sells that have a shaft over 1/2". What would I be
missing out on if I put in a 1/2" chuck? (I could, of course, keep
the existing chuck in reserve.)


Chuck changeovers are easy enough that your idea is practical. The Jacobs chuck
will do two things for you: you'll be able to grab really small bit shafts more
securely; you'll get less runout than with a no-name chuck, all else being
equal (if the quill runout is too great, nothing will help). That means you can
drill more accurate holes.

There isn't all that much that an amateur woodworker is likely to want to do
that will require a bit over 1/2", though there are times when 5/8" is handy
(and even a few when 3/4" might work). These usually have to do with special
cutters and with larger Forstner bits. I wouldn't worry about it.


Charlie Self
"The test and the use of man's education is that he finds pleasure in the
exercise of his mind." Jacques Barzun