Drill chuck lube?

Monafly · Oct 23, 2015

I recently disassembled and cleaned an old Albrecht drill chuck but don't know what lube(s) to use when I reassemble it. Oil, grease, ??. Others that I have appear have grease in them, but I'd like to confirm that this is what I should use.

Thanks.

Mike C. · Oct 23, 2015

I have never taken apart an Albrecht, but any other chucks I have taken apart and put back together or serviced get way lube. I also regularly shoot a few drops of way lube in the works.

JRIowa · Oct 24, 2015

Way lube works if you don't mind the horizontal stripe on your shirt.

Almost all chuck makers call for grease. Most of them have their own grease that they want you to purchase. For drill chucks, I like Lubriplate 105. You can find online or in auto parts stores for less than $15 for a large tube.
JR

Monafly · Oct 24, 2015

Thanks for the replies.

Hadn't thought about oil getting flung out, so I'll go with grease. I've got lubriplate around the shop, so should be all set.

DMF_TomB · Oct 24, 2015

Monafly said:
I recently disassembled and cleaned an old Albrecht drill chuck but don't know what lube(s) to use when I reassemble it. Oil, grease, ??. Others that I have appear have grease in them, but I'd like to confirm that this is what I should use.

Thanks.

.
every drill chuck i have used when hard to turn by hand i spray electrical non residue contact cleaner spray solvent into chuck working it back and forth letting stuff inside chuck jaws drip out. always frees up stiff hard to turn chucks for me.
.
been my experience the tighter the tolerance of chuck the harder it is to turn by hand when lubricated. lubricants have thickness

Big B · Oct 24, 2015

I have had many Albrecht chucks apart for cleaning and replacing jaws. I found that grease made them stiff to turn so I started using light spindle oil. It only comes out for a short time and then it leaves a film. In fact, if you leave it sit overnight the oil runs out of them. When I used the grease there was a lot of complaints from the guys about the chucks turning hard. My 2 cents worth.

DMF_TomB · Oct 24, 2015

Big B said:
I have had many Albrecht chucks apart for cleaning and replacing jaws. I found that grease made them stiff to turn so I started using light spindle oil. It only comes out for a short time and then it leaves a film. In fact, if you leave it sit overnight the oil runs out of them. When I used the grease there was a lot of complaints from the guys about the chucks turning hard. My 2 cents worth.

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electrical contact cleaner is just a fast drying no residue spray solvent that washes out thick grease, cutting oil, etc if you let it drip out.
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i always keep a can around. it helps with sticky indicators too.
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it is usually faster than taking stuff apart. often takes 30 seconds to make chuck turn a lot easier

laminar-flow · Oct 24, 2015

Well, I can definitely help here. Long time ago, I cleaned and lubed an Albrecht chuck, after which it was harder to lock. I called the tech at Albrecht and he said, "did you lube it"? "Yes". He said, "take it apart, clean it, put it together, no lube". "Really"? "Yes".

So there you have it. They want it dry.

I guess they should have an option on the phone... "Press 5 if you lubed your Albrecht and it no long grips".

ExMachina161 · Oct 5, 2016

I own several Albrecht SBF drill chucks. From the smallest to the largest. I really admire the craftsmanship and design that go into building these great drill chucks. ( also own several USA vintage Jacobs Super Chucks).
I contacted Albrecht Germany and they told me that they use a blue dyed lith based grease called Divinol 3 Fett.
Divinol is not easy to source, so I use SuperLube grease and oil. On Albrecht chucks, you only use chuck grease, of whatever you decide to use, on only certain parts of the chuck. I made special aluminum clamps to service my Albrechts. I always take them apart, inspect then re-tighten with a bit less torque. Good luck.

redlee · Oct 6, 2016

JRIowa said:
Way lube works if you don't mind the horizontal stripe on your shirt.

Almost all chuck makers call for grease. Most of them have their own grease that they want you to purchase. For drill chucks, I like Lubriplate 105. You can find online or in auto parts stores for less than $15 for a large tube.
JR

And here I thought you were supposed to soak them in 10 year old coolant,store away till seized then use a pipe wrench.

crossthread · Oct 6, 2016

I dip mine in graphite as I reassemble it. Doesn't sling stuff out and I think it is better then grease as it does not get crud stuck in the grease over time. I'm sort of in the no grease camp when it comes to the scroll in my chuck as well. Graphite seems to work quite well.

msimard · Oct 6, 2016

Oil getting flung out is a good thing, it means bad things get flung out too.
Squirt some way oil in, run it at speed with an absorbent surround for a combination cleaning/lube film application. No coolant sealed in to corrode and no grease to act as a debris black hole.

The only chucks I use grease on are small lathe/grinder scroll chucks that get dismantled for regular cleanings, the scroll sees a lot of friction and needs something like moly grease.

gadget73 · Oct 7, 2016

Maybe stick the chuck down in a box or can or something after re-assembly for initial "sling-off" to get rid of extra lube. I've done that with lathe chucks before, rather have the stripe of lube inside a box than on my shirt.

Conrad Hoffman · Oct 7, 2016

This gives me a great idea for a product- shop shirts with a nice stripe and vertical lettering that says "Machinist" from the left shoulder down to the waist. Maybe a horizontal one for the mill guys.

strokersix · Oct 7, 2016

Second the dry recommendation for an Albrecht. I bought a nice looking used one on ebay years ago that would not stay tightened. Took it apart and cleaned the fresh grease out of it and now it works properly. Maybe something lighter than grease would be ok I don't know.

apoc_101 · Oct 7, 2016

air tool oil is what I went with after last cleaning... just a little bit. works fine! (it's on a lathe so its not actually spinning)

EPAIII · Oct 7, 2016

Interesting. I wonder why lubrication inside a chuck would cause it to loose it's grip. I can see a problem if the tips of the jaws are lubricated, but not the internal parts.

I would think that the first thing an oil or grease for a drill chuck should have is high pressure properties. But then, you do not want it on the tips of the jaws. So, I guess anything you use is going to be a compromise.

I have never had a drill chuck throw oil at me. Lathe chucks, YES! Drill chucks, NO! And I have used them up to 7500 RPM or more. Perhaps you guys have a too heavy hand with the oil can.

laminar-flow said:
Well, I can definitely help here. Long time ago, I cleaned and lubed an Albrecht chuck, after which it was harder to lock. I called the tech at Albrecht and he said, "did you lube it"? "Yes". He said, "take it apart, clean it, put it together, no lube". "Really"? "Yes".

So there you have it. They want it dry.

I guess they should have an option on the phone... "Press 5 if you lubed your Albrecht and it no long grips".

capital7 · Oct 7, 2016

EPAIII said:
Interesting. I wonder why lubrication inside a chuck would cause it to loose it's grip. I can see a problem if the tips of the jaws are lubricated, but not the internal parts.

The lubrication allows the internals to move more freely, therefore when tightened up, it requires less force to loosen them, and they can become loose on their own from vibration.

parmstr · May 5, 2021

try solven first!

capital7 said:
The lubrication allows the internals to move more freely, therefore when tightened up, it requires less force to loosen them, and they can become loose on their own from vibration.

Porter-Cable drill chuck. Point it skyward, open chuck fully, fill with ~1cc acetone (hexane, contact cleaner, kerosene probably equally effective); close chuck then dump remaining solvent. Repeat 4 times or until solvent comes out clean. Well this is just a sample of one but...in this case I can now open or close end to end in a couple of spins!

boslab · May 6, 2021

Old guy I worked with insisted lock graphite was the best for drill chucks, doesn’t pick up grit and turn to grinding paste, makes a lot of sense, am currently trying it on one Chuck and it seems successful, nice and smooth with no oil to get on the drill to cause slip, suppose these old fellows been round the block a few times so worth listening to
Mark

Drill chuck lube?

Aluminum

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Diamond

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