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Lathe chuck stuck

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GarryinNC

03-21-2008 20:31:29




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Need some help on how to get 3 jaw chuck off my lathe. It has been on there about 15 years,in fact I have never been able to get it off.

10" South Bend tool room lathe.

2 1/4x 8 threaded spindle'

3 jaw South Bend(I think) chuck.

How to hold spindle. Locking in back gear makes me nervous if much torque is applied to chuck.

How to apply torque to chuck. Tried strap wrench,no good. Have chucked a piece of hex (1") in jaws and tried to turn it with wrench.

Any ideas? My machining skills and lathe operations are modest at best.

Also I may try to post this question on the Home Shop Machinist or a related forum,but so far this is the only forum I have ever been on. I enjoy it a lot though.

Thanks,Garry

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GarryinNC

03-27-2008 18:31:16




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to rgvtx, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
I finally got the chuck loose today! I ran the jaws out about 3/8 of an inch beyond the outside of the chuck and used a welding tip on the oxy/acetlyene torch to apply gentle heat to the chuck backing plate,then used an oak block and about a 4 pound hammer and it came loose.

Screwed it off with my hands then.The spindle threads were oily and I guess it was tight on the spindle face.

Thanks for all of the advice. I enjoy reading the posts on this site and learn something every day here.

Thanks again, Garry

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Pycoed

03-23-2008 16:57:52




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to Joe Krisher, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
DONT lock up the backgear - you WILL break teeth as others have said. Use the lowest reduction & take up any slack in the gear train. Chuck some 1 " or larger HEX bar & put a ring spanner (longer the better) on that. Use plenty of penetrating oil (not WD40), protect the front of the ways with some timber or ply, & give the end of the spanner a sharp smack downwards with a 2 pound or heavier hammer. If that fails use a propane torch to heat around the backplate (not too much) & try again. If that fails don't keep trying, put some more PlusGas/Kroil on & try again tomorrow, with & without heat. Don't rush it. It'll come in the end.

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GarryinNC

03-22-2008 19:17:21




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
[quote="john d"](reply to post at 19:48:01 03/22/08) [/quote

Thanks for all of the ideas. I will have to ponder this for a while longer. I have never had the chuck off and would like to use the colletts and learn to use a 4 jaw chuck as well.

I think it is probably friction between the chuck back plate and the face of the spindle and not thread interference. I figure if it ever moves a little bit it should screw on off.

Thanks, Garry

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Ford Man

03-22-2008 22:41:37




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-22-2008 19:17:21  
Put lathe in back gear and put chuck key in chuck.

Give chuck key a few hard raps with a hammer ( deadblow prefered ).

Should loosen her up.

Just make sure you hit it the right way ! ( hit towards front of lathe)

It will work.


Ford Man



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36 coupe

03-27-2008 12:59:46




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to Ford Man, 03-22-2008 22:41:37  
A lead hammer, in spite of the bunny and tree huggers BS does good work.



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john d

03-22-2008 16:48:01




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
I once loosened a stuck one by putting a 12" adjustable wrench on one jaw of the chuck and hitting the end of the wrench HARD with a BIG hammer. The lathe was in direct drive at the time, not back gear.



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J dub

03-22-2008 11:08:53




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
Take a real decent hammer and give it several whacks. I'll bet that'll loosener er up. If that don't work have a few beers and hit it a few more times.



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benny2

03-22-2008 10:36:06




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 Pounding??? Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  

Pounding repetitively just wont do the spindle ANY good.
This can seriously damage the spindle, bearings and break the back gears. No matter how it comes off this is a bad situation in any case. There are still options though. Pounding using the back gear can, as you fear break the teeth off it. Most of these back gears are cast iron and while strong dynamically DO NOT take impact force well.

You can dismantle the chuck in place leaving only the threaded part on the lathe. Hopefully this chuck does not have an integral threaded mounting plate.

Apply heat to the face of this mounting plate, keep it low so as not to transmit heat into the spindle. Many SB lathes have plain babbitt bearings and will melt.
By applying heat this will expand the faceplate and hopefully break it loose from the threads.

Another option is to put a long 5 to 6 ft 2x4 in the chuck apply your, Kroil to the chuck, hang a weight on the end of the 2x4 (50 ++ lbs) then just just give it time.

The last option and least desirable option, again hoping this is just a plain back is just to machine the back off. If it is not a plain back this will scrap the chuck. But the loss of a chuck is better than ruining gears, spindles or bearings. There are no good options for stuck chuck! ;((

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Gerald J.

03-22-2008 08:54:19




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
Kroil it, don't spoil it.

Get some Kroil soaked to the spindle nose threads.

Gerald J.



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dr sportster

03-22-2008 06:28:16




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
The different types are shown in the MSC catalog if that helps.



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easyout

03-21-2008 23:59:58




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
Use the biggest hammer that you think it will take. start with a small hammer and keep getting a bigger and bigger hammer. keep track of the weight of the hammer that breaks it loose so as next time you dont have to wonder which hammer did the business, like put it in you notes or some then, cause you might forget.



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dlplost

03-21-2008 22:27:09




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
I allways use the lock gear, and open the jaws all the way, 2x4 and a hammer, comes off with just 1 or 2 hits, never broken enything.
I have both 3 jaw and 4 jaw.



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oldhousehugger25

03-21-2008 21:23:45




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 Re: Lathe chuck stuck in reply to GarryinNC, 03-21-2008 20:31:29  
I wouldn't lock up your gears. Just set your belts to max reduction and turn your jaws out so you have something to smack with your rubber hammer. If it doesn't budge with the rubber mallet use a wooden block and a bigger hammer. It can't be on there any tighter than the worst torque applied to it when in use. Again use the shock of a hammer blow to jar it loose. No amount of wrenching with hex stock is going to free it and you might screw up the jaws.

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