Low cost chucks?

I have one of the Barracuda's from PSI.. it's a good chuck and I use it constantly.. when I bought it on sale, I think it was about $69.. came with 3 sets of jaws, "tommy" bars, adapter nuts to fit a 1 x 8 tpi, 3/4 x 16 tpi and by leaving the adapter off, it'll fit a 1 1/4 x 12 tpi... wish now I had bought two.. it is somewhat of a pain to work with the two bars... one of them keeps jumping off the chuck and rolling behind or under the lathe... it's difficult sometimes to mount a piece squarely with the chuck on the lathe, almost need a 3rd hand... would opt for the one handed key if possible.
 
p.s. I'm not considering the Grizzly chucks. Seems most times they are mentioned, those with experience with them start cussing. I already have a big Griz three-jaw chuck and am just waiting for the day I buy a boat so I can use it for an anchor. :(


Frank there isn't anything wrong with the Grizzly $99 chuck. I have 3 of them with Vicmarc jaws on them and they work just great. I am thinking of getting a 4th one for my cole jaws. I have the small Vicmarc which I love and bought several jaws for it so got the Grizzly's so I wouldn't be changing all the time. I hate changing jaws on chucks.
 
I am looking at getting a low cost Chunck to start making bowls and such.

Not an answer to your question but a comment on the wording. There is no such thing as a low cost Chuck. Oh sure you can get a bargain from time to time and especially from Grizzly or Penn State but once you make the initial purchase, There is where the expense begins, Hours standing in front of that spinning addiction. searching wood storage, firewood stacks, yard waste dumps, See a tree on the side of the road and wish it would fall, meeting strangers and asking for chunks of the the tree that they just felled, lusting for the fodder that the utility guys leave behind when they trim trees from under power lines, It goes on and on & on , it will never end......don't do it! save yourself and your loved ones the plight of the never ending array of bowls and boxes and wierd looking things, those hidious NE things from a log,

MY GOD MAN, :eek: Get a griip! :eek: Stop now while you have a chance to get that monkey off your back.

IMHO
 
Neal, that is a four jaw Independant Chuck and in the hands of a skillful user it is quite useful and in some incidents the only way to go.

The thing to remember is that it requires some understanding of how it works and respect for care when setting up. It is a most common chuck on a machine lathe (for which it was originally intended) Long before there were self centering chucks, machinists have been doing safe work because they understood the principles and developed the skills necessary to work with the tool and its limits as well as its advantages.

It can be a cheap starter chuck but the user needs to understand the principles. BTW I have seen them other places for half that much. I have one and I use it almost as much as the four jaw self centering chuck
They have the advantage of being able to set up off center for some amazing turning projects.

Me thinks you over react :eek:
 
I wouldn't say overreaction, Bill. As I said, just a word of caution to new (i.e. inexperienced) turners who might be drawn to the low price. I can see someone without turning experience buying it and trying to mount a large blank on it thinking it will hold. Under those conditions I'd be scared for them.

I agree that in the hands of an experienced turner it can be useful.

"What chuck do I buy?" is one of the most common questions we see on any forum. $49 makes this one all too appealing, and I know a couple of folks who have jumped on it and soon realized that they should have spent their money on a better chuck.
 
Hey Al, I use the Barracuda 2. For 4? years now...not one issuse or complaint. The little higher price just means you get more...4 jaw sets...screw chuck...extra screws...so on. The only complaint I've heard is that the back is open. One blast from my compressor and it's clean. I won't be upgrading when I get my 1642 in a few months. It will grow with you.
 
Neal, that is a four jaw Independant Chuck and in the hands of a skillful user it is quite useful and in some incidents the only way to go.

The thing to remember is that it requires some understanding of how it works and respect for care when setting up. It is a most common chuck on a machine lathe (for which it was originally intended) Long before there were self centering chucks, machinists have been doing safe work because they understood the principles and developed the skills necessary to work with the tool and its limits as well as its advantages.

It can be a cheap starter chuck but the user needs to understand the principles. BTW I have seen them other places for half that much. I have one and I use it almost as much as the four jaw self centering chuck
They have the advantage of being able to set up off center for some amazing turning projects.

Me thinks you over react :eek:

I've used them on a machine lathe fine for that.

Not on a wood lathe on a bet.
 
I am looking at getting a low cost Chunck to start making bowls and such. I have seen many of them and not sure which on would be a good starter one that will not cost alot. Maybe less then $100 or am I dreaming? I have seven different chisels and a live center, but not sure if what else is needed.

Gonna have to keep looking. I maybe low class but low cost I am not.:thumb::rofl::rofl::rofl:
 
I am looking at getting a low cost Chunck to start making bowls and such. I have seen many of them and not sure which on would be a good starter one that will not cost alot. Maybe less then $100 or am I dreaming? I have seven different chisels and a live center, but not sure if what else is needed.


Al,
Vaughn mentioned the Barracuda II from PSI... I have 3 chucks from PSI and they work very well for me... I've also been looking at Grizzly's chucks... they have one that looks very similar to the Barracuda II at about 1/2 the price of the Barracuda. I ordered one last week, but it was out of stock until May, so I canceled the order for a bit.
 
I've got the grizzly vicmarc clone, and it's a good chuck for the money. The jaw slides have got a little slop in them that I don't notice on my talon chuck, but for the money, it's hard to beat. It must be popular since they don't have them in stock.
 
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