How to Remove the Chuck from a Shop Fox Drill Press: A Workshop Troubleshooting Guide

The bit walked off your center punch again. You cranked the chuck tight, and it still wobbled. At that point the chuck is the suspect, and you need to get it off, which is why you are here trying to figure out how to remove the chuck from a Shop Fox drill press without wrecking the spindle behind it.

Good news: on the Shop Fox W1668 this is a ten-minute job once you know what you are looking at. Bad news: half the advice online tells you to knock out an arbor with a drift, and this machine does not have one. The JT33 taper is cut into the spindle nose, so you pull the chuck straight off that fixed taper.

A drill-press chuck is the three-jaw clamp that grips your bit. On this press it seats on a JT33 Jacobs taper by friction alone, no threads and no set screw. That friction is strong enough to drill all day, and it is also why a stuck chuck feels like it was welded on.

The short answer

Unplug the press, lower and lock the quill, and place two JT33 chuck-removal wedges into the gap between the back of the chuck and the spindle shoulder. Squeeze or lightly tap the wedges toward each other until the taper releases and the chuck drops. That is the whole method on a W1668. There is no arbor to drift, no threaded collar to spin, just wedges working the taper apart.

First, figure out which kind of chuck you have

Before you force anything, open the jaws fully and look down inside.

If you see a screw head or Allen socket at the bottom of the bore, the chuck is retained by a fastener. Back that out first. Many of these are left-hand thread, so you turn clockwise to loosen. Once it is out, the chuck pulls off the taper.

If you see nothing but the smooth end of the taper, you have a plain taper-mount chuck. That is the standard W1668 setup, and wedges are the tool.

If your machine has a collar with a spanner hole just above the chuck, you own an older-style threaded-collar spindle (common on some vintage presses, not the W1668). Unscrewing that collar forces the chuck off. Match the method to what you actually see, not to a video shot on a different press.

Tools worth having on the bench

The clean way to pop a JT33 chuck is a matched pair of wedges. A set like this JT6 and JT33 drill chuck removal wedge set is built for exactly this taper and pushes the chuck off square. The honest catch worth repeating: these wedges are thick, so you want close to a half inch of open gap between the chuck and the shoulder for them to seat. If your fit is tight, tap the jaws down or start the thin edge first.

Round out the kit with a dead-blow or rubber mallet, a block of wood to protect the table and to seat the chuck later, and a rag with a little penetrating oil for stubborn tapers. Keep a real drift key on hand only if you also run a floor press with a Morse-taper arbor. It has no job on the W1668.

Step by step

1. Unplug the machine. The W1668 will not run with the cover open, but pull the plug regardless.

2. Lower the quill with the feed handle and lock it so it cannot ride up while you push on it.

3. Put a wood block or folded towel on the table under the chuck to catch it. This chuck has mass and will mark cast iron.

4. Seat both wedges in the shoulder gap, one per side, and press them in by hand until they bite.

5. Bring the wedges together with steady pressure or gentle alternating taps. Keep it even so the chuck leaves the taper straight, not cocked. It releases with a distinct crack.

6. Wipe the JT33 taper on the spindle clean and dry, then inspect it for a polished ring, rust, or burrs.

Troubleshooting a chuck that will not let go

Seized tapers are the number one reason this job goes sideways. Work through this in order.

Penetrating oil and patience: put a drop at the seam, wait several minutes, then tap the wedges again. Heat cycling: a stuck taper sometimes frees after the parts warm from a bit of use and then cool. Even pressure: if you have been hammering one side, stop and balance it, because a cocked chuck jams harder.

Last resort: if the chuck is scrap anyway, open the jaws, drill carefully through the back of the chuck body, and press the taper out from behind. This ruins the chuck but saves the spindle. Only do this once you are certain the chuck is trash.

Picking a replacement chuck

If runout was your reason for removal, do not just reinstall the same worn chuck. A quality keyed JT33 chuck restores grip and concentricity, and it is a bolt-on match for the W1668 taper. A drill-press vise and a set of quick clamps are the accessories most owners add next, since a chuck can only grip round shanks well and your workpiece still needs to be held down to the table. Shop Fox lists the factory chuck as a JT33 unit sized 3 to 16 mm, so any reputable JT33 chuck in that range drops right in.

Shop Fox against Grizzly and JET on this job

If you are still cross-shopping, the removal experience is a fair tiebreaker. Shop Fox and Grizzly come from the same parent, so their tapers, manuals, and parts lists line up, and a replacement chuck or spindle is easy to source. On the bench-model Shop Fox you accept wedge-only chuck removal because the taper is integral. Many JET floor presses instead use a Morse-taper arbor with a drift slot, which some people find quicker for frequent tool changes. For a compact press that also converts to an oscillating spindle sander, the W1668 earns its spot; if you swap chucks constantly, a drift-slot machine has the edge.

Conclusion

Removing a chuck from a Shop Fox W1668 comes down to reading the fit first, then using wedges with even, patient pressure.

• Look inside the chuck before you start, since a hidden retaining screw changes everything.
• Use JT33 wedges, not a drift, on the integral-taper W1668.
• Support the chuck and keep force balanced so it leaves the taper square.
• Clean and dry both tapers before reinstalling, and reseat with a wood block, never the motor.

FAQ

How do I know if my Shop Fox chuck is threaded or taper-mounted? Open the jaws fully and look into the bore. A screw head or Allen socket means it is retained by a fastener you remove first. A smooth taper with no fastener means it pulls off with wedges. The W1668 uses the plain taper style.

Which wedges fit the Shop Fox W1668? JT33 wedges, which usually come in a combined JT6 and JT33 set. Measure the gap between the chuck and the spindle shoulder before buying, because thick wedges need roughly a half inch of clearance.

Can I remove the chuck without any special tool? Sometimes. If there is a retaining screw, removing it and driving the taper out from the top can work. For a plain taper fit, wedges give you the cleanest, safest removal, and improvising with screwdrivers tends to damage the chuck and spindle.

My chuck is stuck solid. What should I try first? Penetrating oil at the seam, a few minutes of patience, then even taps on balanced wedges. If it is truly seized and the chuck is disposable, drilling through the chuck body and pressing the taper out is the accepted last resort.

Do I need to remove the chuck to use the oscillating sander? No. The oscillating spindle motion is driven through the quill and belt setup, so the sanding conversion does not require pulling the chuck.

Will a drill-press vise or quick clamps help after I swap the chuck? Yes. A better chuck fixes grip on the bit, but your workpiece still needs holding. A drill-press vise or quick clamps keep the part from spinning and let the fresh chuck do its job.

Is the Shop Fox chuck a standard size I can replace easily? Yes. The factory chuck is a JT33 unit rated 3 to 16 mm (up to 5/8 inch), so any quality JT33 chuck in that capacity fits the spindle taper.

References

• Shop Fox W1668 Owner’s Manual, Woodstock International / Grizzly Industrial: https://cdn0.grizzly.com/manuals/w1668_m.pdf
• Shop Fox W1668 Parts List, Grizzly Industrial: https://cdn0.grizzly.com/partslists/w1668_pl.pdf
• Shop Fox W1668 Product Page and Specifications, Grizzly Industrial: https://www.grizzly.com/products/shop-fox-13-1-4-benchtop-oscillating-drill-press/w1668
• Jacobs Chuck Manufacturing, Mounting and Removing Chucks: http://www.jacobschuck.com/uploads/ueditor/file/20200604/1591240204146153.pdf