Advise: Miller Falls 2-A Chuck Jaw allignment

[Assaf Oppenheimer]

Hi all,

Hoping for advise, I recently got my hands on a vintage Miller Falls 2-A hand drill. Overall I am pleased with its condition but there is one issue that bugs me. when I close the jaws tight they don't align completely. I am not sure how to fix it. any pointers would be welcome

471301471302471303
471304471305471306

Appreciated,
Assaf

[Rafael Herrera]

The interior may be dirty. There are three springs keeping the jaws evenly spaced. They could also be dislodged and or damaged.

To disassemble, find two drill bits or nails that fit those two holes in the chuck, place them in a vice or a piece of wood and unscrew that cap. Make sure you loosen the screw on the side of the chuck also.

After unscrewing the base of the chuck carefully remove the jaw assembly, making sure the springs don't go flying.

471313

[Assaf Oppenheimer]

Thanks!

but I'm not sure I understand. the springs should be responsible for opening up the jaws, and the chucks center screw (I don't know the name) determine the closure.

If it were an issue with the springs, wouldn't it open asymmetrically? I think there might be some gunk in there.

either way great idea with the drill bits

[Jim Koepke]

As Rafael said it could be dirt or the springs could be damaged.

Another possibility is someone tried replacing the springs before and the springs are a bit too long.

Disposable cigarette lighters have springs that are small enough to use in drill chucks if there isn't a local source.

They will need to be cut. They are a bit harder metal and will fly a mile if you aren't careful when cutting them.

BIC lighters have two different springs. One is under the spark wheel and one is under the valve lever.

jtk

[Rafael Herrera]

Unless the jaws are misaligned, don't bother disassembling, just pour some penetrating oil in there to clean up. Sometimes that cap is really tight in there and one can end up marring the metal trying to take it appart.

My no. 2 jaws close similarly to yours. I've been trying the trick I mentioned above with nails and they're bending. I'll either will need to try with drill bits or apply heat to chuck. I might not bother to do that. 471343

[Jim Koepke]

When one strolls down the path of rust hunting and rehabilitating old tools it is very helpful to have a good metal bench vise.

For situations like taking apart an eggbeater chuck a few other tools help:

471375

Search > pin spanner wrench < to find other options.

To protect the chuck if using a vise, put a few layers of cloth between the chuck and the vise jaws. Also use cloth between the jaws of large slip jaw pliers and the other part of the chuck.

One can also make sacrificial jaws from wood to hold the chuck. Bore a hole the same size as the chuck. Rip saw through the center of the hole. Insert the chuck and then hold it together in a vise.

jtk

[steven c newman]

Sometimes..it is not the jaws, nor the springs.....The inside of the "cone" can get a bit on the rough side, from dirt and rust....and not allow the jaws to slide in and out smoothly. IF you are able to remove the cone/shell....clean and smooth the inside of it. Maybe find a wire brush ( used to use a chamber brush from a 7.62mm M60..) set into a drill...add in a bit of RBC ( Rifle Bore Cleaner) and give it a spin until nice and clean and smooth inside...Mainly right where the cone forms..up to the opening where the drill bits come in. And..to help out the next time..clean the threads and oil them a bit.

BTW: I do have the Millers Falls No. 2-01......
471379
These are not small drills...

[Robert Hartmann]

I've restored numerous hand drills. I never thought of using drill bits to get the case apart. I use a couple punches with a large pair of vise grips. Wrap the chuck with some old leather and clamp that in a vise. I always soak the chuck in Evaporust first. I had a pin spanner, but it bent. I then went with the punches. I've only had a hard time with one chuck using this method. I've found no matter how much you try you just can't clean the chuck out without taking it apart. If you do take it apart do some light sanding of the inside of the chuck to smooth it along with the jaws. It doesn't take much, but makes a difference.

As for the slight gap you have, as long as they clamp the bit it's not an issue with function. Of course I'm pretty anal myself, so understand :)

[Jim Koepke]

Holy cow, Mea Culpa and a few other things that shouldn’t be said in public. It has been a long time since my last foray in to a Millers Falls #2 eggbeater’s chuck.

Don’t go looking for cigarette lighters to fix these, that must have been my Goodell Pratt. Looking at my two it seems my main user (the one on the left) could be a little bit better:

471398

There isn’t a lot to grip on the bottom of the chuck. This is where a good vise and a little care comes into play:

471396

Without a pin spanner this may be the easiest way to take apart an eggbeater chuck. The old tee shirt material is folded over a few times.

Be careful to keep the parts from falling on the floor or flying behind the bench:

471395

The jaws look like someone cranked them down on the threads of a hard bolt:

471397

A little honing on a soft Arkansas stone removed the deformed metal between the flats of the jaws.

This made the jaws close up a bit better:

471393

The same chuck after & Before:

471394

After is on the left, before is on the right.

Hope this helps,

jtk

[Rafael Herrera]

Well, I couldn't leave it well enough after seeing that the chuck jaws are not kept apart by springs. That was the design of another drill I restored a while ago and I assumed it was similar in this case.

Since the bottom of my chuck was stuck and I was marring the holes with the nails I decided to use heat to loosen it up. A few moments under a plumber's torch was enough to get it unstuck, this is what I found:

471413471414471415

I really like the simplicity and the superior manufacturing quality of the chuck mechanism.

Damage to the chuck bottom (a pin spanner is really the way to go) and after filing, which I don't like to do, but I couldn't leave it alone:

471416471420

After the wire wheel:

471417

Before and after:

471419471418

It pretty much looks the same.

[Jim Koepke]

Interesting, neither of mine has the locking screw through the side of the shell.

jtk

[steven c newman]

Had to go down and get mine out of the till.....no locking bolt in the chuck. Also, instead of those pin holes, mine has a slot. Mine is a No. 2 by Millers Falls, but it is a No. 2-01...a much "newer" Model, maybe? Also, has zero gaps between the jaws,

It also makes my Goodell Pratt No. 329 look like a toy....

[Rafael Herrera]

Interesting, neither of mine has the locking screw through the side of the shell.


I just chanced on this no. 2 a few weeks ago, haven't had a chance to give it a proper clean and date it

What's really impressive about this model is that the bottom of the chuck screws into the shell and it bottoms out aligning the hole in the sell and the threaded hole in the bottom of the chuck piece. I imagine they assembled these two pieces together and then drilled and tapped hole to implement this feature.

[steven c newman]

Ok..not sure IF this was an Improvement by Millers Falls....when they went from a No. 2A to the No. 2-01 about 1955..
471447
14-1/2" long end to end...
471448
These things are just a (small) step down from being a Breast Drill...will hold up to 3/8" shanked drill bits.

[Jim Koepke]

These things are just a (small) step down from being a Breast Drill...

The pages on Millers Falls at > https://oldtoolheaven.com/hand_drills/drill2.htm < say something about that in the type study:


1899 — as above, but head is now flat-topped to allow for use as a breast drill

Another site mentions the side handle being added to facilitate the #2's use as a breast drill.

The ability to use 3/8" bits came with a different chuck in 1907. This chuck used a different spring set up than the chucks shown by Rafael and me. Our chuck's design (Ryther's spring chuck) came around in ~1922-1923.

Another source of information > http://www.wktools.com/y_MillersFalls/tools/millersFalls-tools.asp < for those who may be interested.

jtk

[Rob Luter]

Hi all,

Hoping for advise, I recently got my hands on a vintage Miller Falls 2-A hand drill. Overall I am pleased with its condition but there is one issue that bugs me. when I close the jaws tight they don't align completely. I am not sure how to fix it. any pointers would be welcome

471301471302471303
471304471305471306

Appreciated,
Assaf

This alignment looks pretty good to me and the drill is in fine condition. Unless you are using bits at 1/32" or less, it shouldn't have an impact on function. There might be a small burr or bit of debris preventing it from being perfect and as others have suggested you could disassemble and clean it out. I have one just like it (but more beat up) and it's a great drill. I use it all the time.