I rescued a nice old DeWalt 2 speed hammer drill from a dumpster a while ago. I was actually after the cord that I saw hanging over the edge of the dumpster. When I pulled the cord out of the dumpster, the drill was attached. Kind of like fishing, not knowing for sure what is pulling so hard on your line, then getting a nice surprise.

I asked myself why would someone throw it away. I soon discovered why. It was stuck in neutral, between low and high gear. That as an easy fix. Also the chuck has really been abused, remnants of concrete make jaws are very difficult to open and close. A concrete contractor was the only trade on the site that day. The teeth on the "gear" that engage the chuck key are damaged, like they have been banged on to tighten or loosen the chuck. It just needs to be replaced. This is the type of chuck that screws on the spindle. The problem now is, the left hand thread, socket head screw down in the center of the chuck has been damaged. I imagine over time bits have been "banging" against it while drilling. The internal hex has been ruined, so I cannot get the screw out. The only option I have come up with is to mount my angle grinder with a cut-off wheel to a concrete block, then run the drill chuck against the wheel to cut of the front of the chuck so I can get a grip on the outside of the screw head.

Unless anyone has another suggestion....?

Thanks,

John