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Drill Chuck for 1/4 Hex Driver

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gungatim

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I have one like that but I use it for my little drill bits (#50, etc.) for drilling jets. I use it in my big drill press because the 5/8 chuck won't close on the little drills. It has a hex shank just like a screwdriver bits. I think it was about $5 at Menards.

Agree though that an impact is not the way to go when drilling unless using concrete bits...
 
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redmed

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The one that I have is the same make (from Amazon) but has a chuck key. Works well. Gets a better grip on small bits than the keyless chuck.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0051AE85W/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Have you used the Neiko keyless chuck? I know I would not use the keyed chuck much. When they came out with the keyless chucks my drills with the keyed chuck just gathered dust. I worry that the Neiko keyless chuck is a small diameter and would be hard to tighten. Some other chucks I found have reviews stating that they wobble.

Was looking at the Dewalt
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000KKWLE8/?tag=atomicindus08-20
but some say it breaks easily. Read the same thing about the Makita.
 
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uart

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Some other chucks I found have reviews stating that they wobble.
I haven't used one, but isn't the hex shank going to be inherently a bit wobbly? I don't think the hex slot on any impact drivers is going to hold a chuck tightly the way a taper would.

What do you see as being the main type of job you'll be using it for redmed? If it's just pilot holes for starting screws then you can get a small set of hex shank drill bit fairly cheap. It's a valid alternative.
 

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redmed

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I haven't used one, but isn't the hex shank going to be inherently a bit wobbly? I don't think the hex slot on any impact drivers is going to hold a chuck tightly the way a taper would.

What do you see as being the main type of job you'll be using it for redmed? If it's just pilot holes for starting screws then you can get a small set of hex shank drill bit fairly cheap. It's a valid alternative.

When I build something, like a cabinet, I drill one piece of wood so the screw is only screwing into the second piece of wood. I have two drills I use one to pre drill and the second drill I use to screw in the screws. Sometimes I also use a different size screw. I'd like to use the Hex impact driver to drill a different size hole for the different size screw. I know everyone uses the hex driver to screw in screws. I hate using the Hex impact driver to drive screws. Many times I drive the screw in too deep with the hex driver. With the drill I can use the clutch to set the screws just right.

I have a set of hex shank drills but sometimes I need to use a drill that is a different size than is in my hex drill set.
 

Voi

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When I build something, like a cabinet, I drill one piece of wood so the screw is only screwing into the second piece of wood. I have two drills I use one to pre drill and the second drill I use to screw in the screws. Sometimes I also use a different size screw. I'd like to use the Hex impact driver to drill a different size hole for the different size screw. I know everyone uses the hex driver to screw in screws. I hate using the Hex impact driver to drive screws. Many times I drive the screw in too deep with the hex driver. With the drill I can use the clutch to set the screws just right.

I have a set of hex shank drills but sometimes I need to use a drill that is a different size than is in my hex drill set.

I have used my 1/4" chuck to do exactly this. Set it up with a counter sink bit in my impact and leave my drill set up with the bit I'm using to drive the screw and at the clutch setting I want.

I just went and looked for mine to see what brand it is and I can't seem to find it. I bought it because I was running some 1.5" conduit or so through a soffit and used the 1/4" hex chuck at the end of an extension to drill out some plywood blocking my way.

At any rate, I picked mine because it had the smallest diameter of any I could find locally. I needed it to be smaller than the diameter of the hole saw I was using in the chuck. I didn't look into it any further than that. It's been useful but evidently not useful enough for me to keep track of where it is, lol. I do have a Bosch pocket driver with a clutch that I use for driving screws when I don't need an impact so the hex chuck hasn't been needed as much. I've used it in the pocket driver as well when I needed to use it as a drill.
 
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DeliveryGuy

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http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000O3I5GY/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Well worth it to me. Works great, and well made.

I have this one, as well. It works very well. It doesn't wobble, and it hasn't broken yet in over two years of regular use. I use it mainly for pre drilling wood, and 5/16 holes through 10-12 gauge steel. I've drilled 3/8 holes through 1/4 steel with it, but the driver impacts so much that the rpm's drop, and the bit cuts way slower than if you just pulled out a regular drill.
 

bob from indiana

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Mcmaster-Carr has the 1/4" chuck with hex drive. I have one that came with a Milwaukei screwdriver. Home Depot has a Makita with a 3/8" chuck. Mine is a keyed Jacobs chuck and does a fine job.
 

uart

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I have this one, as well. It works very well. It doesn't wobble

Putting hex shaft drill bits into a impact is terrible for any kind of precision work!

Lot and lots of wobble, and prone to breaking if drilling into steel.

Ok I haven't used a hex shank chuck, so obviously I stand to be corrected. But I really seem to be missing something here. Why exactly does a hex shanked chuck wobble any less than a hex shank drill?

Is the hex shank oversized or tapered or something to make it fit tighter than a normal hex shank, or is there something else going on the I don't know about?

This is a serious question, can someone please explain.
 

uart

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Just bumping this because I'm still wondering.

Am I misreading this thread or is there some reason why the hex shank on a chuck would wobble any less (in a hex impact driver) than would the hex shank of a drill?
 

franzdom

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Just bumping this because I'm still wondering.

Am I misreading this thread or is there some reason why the hex shank on a chuck would wobble any less (in a hex impact driver) than would the hex shank of a drill?

No, there are of course variabilities but they should all have a given amount of slop. It depends much more on the 1/4" hex chuck than the drill or adapter chuck.
 

uart

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Thanks franzdom. Yeah, I was pretty sure that there'd be no difference but some people here seemed to be implying otherwise.

So no matter whether you use a hex adaptor chuck or just hex shank drill bits you're going to get something a bit substandard if you need accurate holes or are trying to drill steel. That's been my experience with using hex shanks drill bits in an impact driver anyway.

So not ideal, but still ok for a quick starter hole or countersink. I sometimes use my impact driver with one of these (hex countersink).
 

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uart

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When I build something, like a cabinet, I drill one piece of wood so the screw is only screwing into the second piece of wood. I have two drills I use one to pre drill and the second drill I use to screw in the screws. Sometimes I also use a different size screw. I'd like to use the Hex impact driver to drill a different size hole for the different size screw. I know everyone uses the hex driver to screw in screws. I hate using the Hex impact driver to drive screws.
Yeah I'm exactly that same. With anything delicate like cabinet work I much prefer using a drill/driver with precise clutch control rather than an impact. Like I mentioned above, if I'm going to use the impact driver at all it's usually just running a hex shanked countersink.
 
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