Four jaw chuck strip down

I'm trying to strip this Chinese chuck down for cleaning but the back looks like the stubs holding the jaw screws in are a press fit. I don't want to wail on them with a crowbar if I'm going to break something.

Am I missing something or does this not come apart?

Edited By Drew Northcott on 18/03/2023 16:24:34

It's likely you'll need to bop them out from the front of the chuck - first remove the jaws. You'll need to take care not to damage the screws, so perhaps use a brass punch shaped to fit over the screw and just hit the screw retaining pegs, which I expect are a firm push fit and should drop out on the backplate side. May be a good idea to mark them with felt tip to get them back in the same holes.

It might be easier just to swill the whole thing in paraffin or something and attack it with an old toothbrush rather than removing the pegs unless you really need to.

A small dab of grease before refitting the jaws would be an idea.

Unless I'm very much mistaken, that's a 4-jaw independent chuck, so you can start by winding each of the jaws fully out until they disengage from the screws and give it a jolly good clean with a suitable solvent/de-greaser. Then you should be able to see how to remove the screws themselves. I would think it will be unlikely need any further strip down, however, just a good quality lube with some oil and you ought to be back in business. Unless there's some hidden damage we can't see.

John

Nigel - first prize for faster typing!!

Edited By John Hinkley on 18/03/2023 16:41:18

The plugs which have the fork to retain the jaw screws should knock out from the front. This can be necessary if the socket of the screw has been damaged and requires repair or replacement. The screws are available as a spare part for the likes of Pratt Burnerd chucks but probably not easy to find for an import from the far east. When reinserting it is important to get the fork end correctly aligned before pressing in.

Mike

Thanks all, based on this I knocked one out _just_ enough to get the screw out, just to see how much extra access it got me. Not really enough to be worth it I think, so I've attacked it with a toothbrush and I'll oil them and reassemble.

Thanks folks, much appreciated.

-Drew

IF all else fails, break the rules and blow the swarf out with compressed air, covering the job with a large heavy rag to catch the flying debris. (And safety glasses on of course.)

Edited By Hopper on 19/03/2023 01:34:02