PSI MANDREL

[Drcal]

Does anyone use PSI's Keyless Pen Mandrel System? It does not use wrenches for adjusting the length. I wanted to get one but wanted to make sure no one had problems with the tighening the collet or having it loosen up while turning.

Carmen
Tampa Bay

 

[penfancy]

I haven't tried the keyless mandrel , but I have used adjustable ones before. just ordered the drill chuck and they carry a mandrel for it. This should give me much more opportunities in the shop. i.e...Drilling on the lathe, closed end pens, etc.

 

[Ruby pen turning]

I have the keyless pen mandrel #PKM-FSM.
I like it alot and it has knurled tightning surfaces, but I have found that I cannot get it tight enough and the blanks spin freely sometimes or when I tighten the brass nut it just pulls the mandrel rod out of the collet. It comes with 2 steel tightening bars also and I use those.

 

[ed4copies]

I have the keyless pen mandrel #PKM-FSM.
I like it alot and it has knurled tightning surfaces, but I have found that I cannot get it tight enough and the blanks spin freely sometimes or when I tighten the brass nut it just pulls the mandrel rod out of the collet. It comes with 2 steel tightening bars also and I use those.

I would be very surprised if they could overcome this problem. When you tighten the knurled nut at the tailstock end, I suspect you will pull the mandrel out of the collet, making it loose and your blanks will spin if you try to take off much material.

This COULD be GOOD. It will prevent nasty "catches".

For ME, it would make me stop using that mandrel.

 

[jskeen]

I haven't tried that particular version, but it works on the same principal as the regular adjustable mandrels that use a pair of wrenches to tighten. On all of them you can tighten by hand to a degree but need tools to really cinch it down. it's just a question of would a pair of tommy bars be easier to keep up with and use than the wrenches. for some it might be, especially if the tommy bars happened to be the same size as the ones for their scroll chuck. Personally I went down to the local pawn shop and picked up a pair of 7/8 inch wrenches for a buck each and tied them to a string hanging from the front of the lathe bench. Never get lost that way, and don't have to walk across the shop and pull a set off the pegboard, then remember to put them back every time.

But I definitely do recommend an adjustable mandrel of some sort over the fixed length ones. and the collet version, either knurled or hex nuts seems like it would do a better job of keeping the shaft centered than the ones that tighten from the side with a set screw (don't know that for a fact, just seems logical to me)