What Is the Morse Taper?
A Morse taper is a standard system for securely attaching drill bit tools to the drill press machine spindle. During rotation, the part is held in place by friction of tapered shanks against the hollow spindle that holds the tool. Attachments with a tapered shank can be fitted and removed quickly and easily so the user can have a greater variety of bit sizes available. There are many families of drill bits in existence that are distinguished from other tapered drill bits in the degree that they taper from wide to small end. Morse tapers will narrow approximately 5/8 inch (1.5 centimeters) per foot (30.4 centimeters). Each of the eight sizes is identified by a number between 0 and 7, with the most commonly used being size 2, or 2MT. Small numbers correspond to smaller diameter parts and large numbers to larger diameters.
