Morse taper is a system for attaching drill bits to the chuck of a drill press. It uses tapered shanks to hold the tool in place with friction. The system has eight sizes identified by numbers 0-7, with 2MT being the most commonly used. Tang end of the shank fits into a slot in the socket to secure the bit during heavy drilling. The system also allows for socket extensions and sleeve adapters. Morse taper was invented by Charles A. Morse in 1860 and has been adopted as ISO 296 standard and DIN228-1.
A Morse taper is a standard system for securely attaching drill bit tools to the drill press chuck. During rotation, the workpiece is held in place by the friction of the tapered shanks against the hollow mandrel which holds the tool. Taper shank accessories can be fitted and removed quickly and easily so that the user can have a greater variety of bit sizes at their disposal.
There are many families of drill bits that differ from other tapered drill bits in the degree of taper from large to small end. Morse tapers shrink approximately 5/8 inches (1.5 centimeters) per foot (30.4 centimeters). Each of the eight sizes is identified by a number between 0 and 7, the most commonly used being size 2, or 2MT. Small numbers correspond to smaller diameter parts and large numbers to larger diameters.
Drill press accessories have a shank, or end, that allows the bit to fit snugly into the slot in the machine’s chuck. The cone positions and holds the tip in place with friction. During light drilling, there is enough friction to hold the tool in place. Drilling heavier with greater forces can cause the bit to spin in the hole instead of drilling through.
To more securely fix the bit, the tang end of the Morse taper shank fits into a slot in the socket. This will keep the drill bit rotating even when the drill encounters heavy resistance. Once the drill bit has been manually inserted into the drill press socket, it is rotated until the tab snaps into place. The entire assembly is then pressed against a block of wood or metal to secure it tightly in the socket so it will not rotate during use. The tip can also be tapped with a brass or lead hammer until it fits snugly.
Despite the variety of sizes, sometimes a longer or wider diameter shank is needed to drive the accessory into the machine. Socket extensions will increase the bit length. Sleeve adapters add width to the drill bit so it fits into a larger socket.
The Morse taper was invented by Charles A. Morse, a machinist in 1860. Its taper has been adopted as ISO 296 standard by the International Organization for Standardization and as DIN228-1 by the German Institute for Standardization. A Morse taper fits both antique drill presses and a modern drill press.
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