What is the difference between the chucks used on the mill and those used on the lathe?

Drill chucks, which are used on a mill, hold the cutting tool (a drill bit). Meanwhile, lathe chucks hold the part. They are easily differentiable by their appearance.

• A lathe chuck will be a stout cylinder with three to six jaws that grip the part.

• A drill chuck can be keyed or keyless. A keyed drill chuck will have gear teeth along its circumference and a hole that fits the chuck key to tighten its jaws. Keyless chucks will lack these gears and are instead identifiable by a bullet-like shape with a tapered body and a wider back collar.

It is important to note that although a drill chuck is used on a mill, it should not be used to hold an end mill. A drill chuck is only meant to handle the axial forces of drilling, and the tangential forces of an end mill will permanently disassemble it!

When using a keyed chuck, never leave the key in the chuck!!!