New Toys for the Mini Lathe

Stuart Ablett

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Tokyo Japan
I finally got round to getting a chuck for the Geetech Mini lathe, it is a Vicmarc copy, made in China, by Vicmarc, I think :huh:

mini_lathe_vic_copy.jpg mini_lathe_new_toys.jpg
For here, it was a good price, the extra "Real" Vicmarc jaws were almost as much as the chuck :doh: Teh pin jaws and such will be used for small stuff, it is a mini lathe :D

I was told that the Waterlox is a better product for bowls etc than the usual Watco, so I thought I'd give that a try too.

Cheers!
 
Sweet Stuart.

I just took advantage of the sale at Craft Supplies:

Teknatool SuperNova2 ~ $169.99
Teknatool Threaded Insert 1"-8 TPI ~ $21.99
Set of 4 Teknatool Jaws (1", 4", Step Jaw, and 1 3/8" Spigot Jaw):
Teknatool Bowl Jaws 1" ~ $0.00
Teknatool Bowl Jaws 4" ~ $0.00
Teknatool Spigot Jaws 1 3/8" ~ $0.00
Teknatool Step Jaws ~ $0.00​

Who you calling "Sweet" :eek:
;) :D :rofl: :rofl:

Yeah that is a good deal for sure, the G3 would have been perfect for this lathe, but, I do NOT like the "Pin" jaws on the Nova, the Vicmarc pin jaws use two screws, which means you can grip things in the center of the chuck. With the single screw type, you cannot, the jaws lift off the face of the chuck.

nova_pin_jaws.jpg
Nova Pin Jaws

vicmarc_pinjaws.jpg
Vicmarc Pin Jaws

Oh, and I figured out that my Vicmarc copy is the Grizzly H6265 Chuck.......
grizzly_h6265_chuck.jpg

it makes sense, as my Geetech mini lathe is the Grizzly G0657 lathe....

grizzly_g0657_lathe.jpg
Well at least it is not green! ;) :D :wave:
 
Sweet Stuart.

I just took advantage of the sale at Craft Supplies:

Teknatool SuperNova2 ~ $169.99
Teknatool Threaded Insert 1"-8 TPI ~ $21.99
Set of 4 Teknatool Jaws (1", 4", Step Jaw, and 1 3/8" Spigot Jaw):
Teknatool Bowl Jaws 1" ~ $0.00
Teknatool Bowl Jaws 4" ~ $0.00
Teknatool Spigot Jaws 1 3/8" ~ $0.00
Teknatool Step Jaws ~ $0.00​

Frank,
What is the big difference between the G3 and the SN2? I have the SN2 but looks like the G3 comes with the threaded insert already. I was thinking to get the G3 and save some bucks. Do they use the same key for tightening/loosening?
 
Dewey, I'm not Frank, but I have both chucks, the SN2 is a larger, stronger chuck, the G3 is smaller, it is still a good chuck, in fact, I'd say great chuck, but it is smaller and lighter weight.

The "key" on the G3 is like something you would use on a drill chuck, but larger, works well!

here is a comparo between the chucks I have (without the newest one in this thread)

chucks_comparo.jpg

Cheers!
 
Dewey, I'm not Frank

A good thing for you, you'd have to pay my bills. Thank you for answering Dewey's question.

I will say I am in the dark about most things turning related but are learning. I have a PSI mini and Woodcraft's standard chuck, but of which are fine.

I bought the SN2 because it gets good press and with Craft Supplies offer it looks like agood deal.

Very interesting point Stuart about the Pin Jaws. I'll have to see if it becomes an issue.

Thank you again Stuart!
 
Neither do the pin jaws for the NOVA, they use one. Not sure what Stu means about the one screw config preventing gripping in the center. The one screw is plenty of holding to grip the center...what did I miss?

Dewey I think he means in compression mode vs. expansion mode.

Either would allow you to hold a blank where the jaws are expanded to catch on an internally turned spigot. But the Nova jaws (with one screw) would not work in compression mode on a turned tenon. They would rotate as you tightened them.
 
...But the Nova jaws (with one screw) would not work in compression mode on a turned tenon. They would rotate as you tightened them.

I respectfully disagree. :) I've used my Nova pin jaws quite a bit to grip tenons on small pieces. The groves that the jaw bases seat in prevent them from rotating. I've only used them in expansion mode once. The little walnut root hollow form I recently posted is one example of a piece I held in compression mode with the Nova pin jaws. Dunno if that's what they're designed to do, but they do it.

I agree that two screws would be better, but if a person is cranking down the chuck so tightly that it's causing the jaw to lift off the face of the chuck, then they probably need either less pressure or bigger jaws.
 
I respectfully disagree. :) I've used my Nova pin jaws quite a bit to grip tenons on small pieces. The groves that the jaw bases seat in prevent them from rotating. I've only used them in expansion mode once. The little walnut root hollow form I recently posted is one example of a piece I held in compression mode with the Nova pin jaws. Dunno if that's what they're designed to do, but they do it.

I agree that two screws would be better, but if a person is cranking down the chuck so tightly that it's causing the jaw to lift off the face of the chuck, then they probably need either less pressure or bigger jaws.

I should have started with "I think Stuart means..."

I haven't used them, I was giving an educated guess. Thanks for the clarification Vaughn.
 
I respectfully disagree. :) I've used my Nova pin jaws quite a bit to grip tenons on small pieces. The groves that the jaw bases seat in prevent them from rotating. I've only used them in expansion mode once. The little walnut root hollow form I recently posted is one example of a piece I held in compression mode with the Nova pin jaws. Dunno if that's what they're designed to do, but they do it.

I agree that two screws would be better, but if a person is cranking down the chuck so tightly that it's causing the jaw to lift off the face of the chuck, then they probably need either less pressure or bigger jaws.

Boy I'm sure glad that was "Respectful", I was going to have to hit you with a wet noodle :D

The jaws do lift off, in certain circumstances, I watched Eli Avisera turn a lady pen, he used the Vicmarc chuck with the pin jaws with the pin jaws he could turn a lady pen off center, no problem, but I tried it at home that night, with the Nova Pin jaws, there as just too much give in the jaws, I the darn thing kept popping out of the jaws. The next day, I mentioned this to Eli, and he said "What kind of chuck are you using..?" I told him the Nova, and he said "Oh, only one screw, that won't work the jaws lift and the pen goes flying"

Carol, sorry for being unclear, you are correct, these Grizzly pin jaws do NOT take a second screw........
h6268.jpg

But these 35mm pin jaws, from Vicmarc do...........
pinjaw.jpg

The 25mm pin jaws from Vicmarc are the same as the Grizzly ones, no second screw either.

Again, this is something that I felt lacked in the Nova jaws, so this time around I went Non-Nova, specifically for this set of jaws :)

BTW, the new "Patriot Chuck" made by Robert Sorby, has two screw pin jaws, both 25mm, in a long and a short version....

RSJ1.jpg RSJP.jpg

Cheers!
 
Congratulations on your new chuck and jaws. I have always thought that my next chuck would be the Vermec because you can use Nova or Vicmarc jaws. They are nice chucks and not a bad deal except you have to order them from Australia.

That SN2 deal at Craft Supplies is such a smoking deal I sure could use one but right now I need so many other things. I have both a G3 and a SN2 and like them both but for a mini lathe I still like the G3 best.

Again nice chuck Stu.:thumb:

Alan
 
No worries, Frank. Actually, you and Stu were correct in the statement that they're really meant to be used in expansion mode. Here's what Teknatool has to say about it:

http://www.teknatool.com/products/Chuck_Accessories/Pin.htm

They do mention the capacities for both the expanding and contracting actions n the specs, but the write-up is pretty clear about the fact that the jaws are designed for expansion into a recess or hole.

I should add that I've only used them in contraction mode on small pieces, using light cuts. I also don't use them for roughing out a bowl or hollow form blank. They don't have a lot of interior jaw surface, so I don't rely on them to hold under much stress. They do pretty good on small square stock, though.

[Edited to add...] Dang Stu, you and Alan type fast. :p
 
...I thought you did this editing thing for a living, is part of being a good editor being a slow typist? :eek:

Actually, I could see how that could help.... :rolleyes: :wave:

Bingo! I'm a six-digit typist, but I'm blazing fast with a red pen. :D The faster I type, the more editing I have to do. :eek: I must have been typing REAL fast on my earlier post. ;)
 
Just for you guys, I've taken some pics, I hope you can see what I'm talking about.

nova_pin1.jpg nova_pin2.jpg
Here are the Nova Pin jaws, first, empty, then with a dowel in them, I tightened down fairly hard, and I could quite easily take the dowel out of the jaws, the dowel is only about 3" long.

vicmarc_25mm_pin_2.jpg vicmarc_25mm_pin_1.jpg
Vicmarc 25mm pin jaws (these would be very similar to the Grizzly 25mm pin jaws) As you can see, the same problem exists, having only one screw on the outer part of the jaw, lets the jaws pivot off the face of the chuck. On this example I could also easily remove the 3" long dowel.

vicmarc_35mm_1.jpg vicmarc_35mm_2.jpg
Here are the Vicmarc 35mm pin jaws, these have two screws on each jaw, holding them to the chuck, I think you can see that the jaws are much straighter, and I had a real time removing the dowel from the jaws, I have to twists it back and forwards several times to get it to let go.

I know I'm only grabbing the end of the dowel, if the dowel was inserted deeper into each set of jaws, the holding power would be better, but for the application I have in mind, I would be only using the end 1/2" or so for holding the workpiece.

Here is the item I wish to turn, a "Lady Pen"......
lady_pen1.jpg lady_pen5.jpg lady_pen3.jpg lady_pen4.jpg

I think I have a video of a Lady pen being turned, I'll have to look.

Cheers!
 
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