Nova G3 and Pen Jaws

[jtfoodguy]

I purchased the Nova G3 and the pen jaw set at woodcraft yesturday and when I put it all together it doesn't look right. Their is a gap at the top of the jaws at the top. Is this correct?
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Take a look and see if this looks correct. Thanks in advance.
John

 

[Dalecamino]

John, did you run the jaws together before tightening the screws? I don't have these kind of jaws, so I'm not much help. That just came to mind. Also, are the jaws numbered, and in appropriate location. You might try the help section at teknatool.com.

 

[eharri446]

Just a thought, did you put two screws to each jaw. I have been using my set for almost a year and have never had any issues with them.

I place the blank in the jaws and hold one corner firmly against one of the jaws and then tighten them down. Works great for square, rectangle, or round blanks.

 

[jtfoodguy]

Jaws are numbered and in correct orientation, I did leave them loose and centered them and finished the tightening process afterwards. They hold the blank but gaps form at the top of the blank. Just doesn't seem like they fit correctly. All four screws are in place and tight. I appreciate the comments!

 

[KenV]

The important part that controls the alignment of the blanks is the right angle inside the jaw. The sawing and finishing on the outside edge is aesthetic only.

Look and use an indicator on the inside of the jaws where precision counts especially at the V where the blank corner rests.

Most of my blanks have more variation from a perfect square/rectangle or cylinder anyway.

 

[scotirish]

Going by memory, not good at my age, :frown::frown: they are suppose to have a gap at the opening. The blank should be mounted all the way down inside them. Then they will close and hold the blank straight. I have used them with small, or partial blanks, not long enough to reach the end and have had a problem with wobble. :frown::frown: That is what I have experienced although others may not have that problem. :tongue::tongue:

 

[Curly]

Out of curiosity have you tried them on the other pair of chuck jaws to see if they are any better?

They don't look right to me though so I would send the pictures off to the maker to get their input. They may replace them or the chuck or both.

 

[jttheclockman]

Well now this is not good news. I just bought these jaws and picked them up the other day. I have not installed them yet or had a chance to actually turn a pen yet, but that does not look right at all. Now will they close up when a blank is inserted I am not sure on that one but I ask why would they??? They should be parallel. This is the exact same thing that has happened to my PSI dedicated pen chuck but a little worse. This is what I have been going through with PSI to get new jaws because that is what I am being told will fix it. So far no jaws but that reason is in another thread I posted. The difference in the 2 chucks is that with the PSI chuck the jaws ride in a keyway and it gets deformed after use. The material is not case hardened enough to prevent this. On this chuck there is no such thing and those jaws should lay flat against a machined surface.

The reason that is not right because the blank will now move easily not being clamp tight up front. If there ever was a gap you would accept the gap in the back of the jaw and be tight up front. I suggest trying to see if you can switch them to the opposite position on the chuck and see what happens. Please let us know how you solve this problem but that is not right at all. Good luck and now I have to go try mine one day this week.

 

[SteveG]

I continue the line of reasoning by KenV (Post #5). The visual gap at the front end of the jaws appears to indicate a problem, and probably is a problem. Try a simple test. The key issue is whether the jaws grip a blank uniformly along the entire length of the jaw. This can be checked by gripping a known uniform cylindrical rod and also a known square and straight, square blank. I tested with a stainless, 3/4" rod. You want to check with a rod and blank made of hard material. Soft wood, for example, will simply crush down as pressure is applied by the jaws.

In my case, I did have a similar problem. Nova supplied a second set of jaws, and the problem was decreased but still evident.(I tested on three different chucks, all had the same issue.) In my case, the jaws are left mounted to a chuck dedicated to this purpose, so I used shim stock to "tip" the jaws into proper orientation. I achieved perfect alignment. This is a permanent fix since I do not remove the jaws. That will work for you if you intend to use a dedicated chuck with these jaws. I would request replacement jaws to see if that clears the problem.

 

[Mr Vic]

It looks to me as if the front (inside) of the jaws are riding up on the sliders. Look at the grooved section in picture three. The 4 sliders have two grooves into which the bumps on the jaws sit. If you close all the way the inner raised portion of the jaws will be forced up onto the unused slider bump.

I'll double check on mine when I get home..

 

[jtfoodguy]

I've tried everything besides shimming them. They have to be really heavily cranked down to hold the blank in position. You can tell it's out of alignment. It's not making contact at the top until you really crank it down, but still hardly any pressure applied at the top.


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[jttheclockman]

Being this thread started and I just got mine last week I had to go try them. I too wind up with the same amount of gap and no it does not grip the front of the blank at all. I tried on 2 different chucks because I have multiples. I also tried both sets of positions 1&3 and 2&4 on both chucks. cleaned the chuck well and there are no burrs. I did everything I possibly could think of and even read the instructions

But what i will do is dedicate this chuck to these jaws and I will go to Harbor Freight and pick up a set of feeler gauges and just shim the jaws. It will not take much. I can zero dead on with feeler gauges. Unless someone can suggest something else other than returning which I may look into. I may call the company after the holidays and see what they say to do and see if they have other complaints. Too much of a coincidence for 2 people here to see this. If others have them I would appreciate if you check your setup and report back.

I went under the recommendation of others here that they have them and they work but 2 for 2 on pen dedicated chucks for not working. I can at least say the PSI chuck did start out working but poor design and poor quality metal has defeated that chuck over time. Now I do have shorter jaws for that chuck which I will take a good look at too. But they are a 4 jaw set-up but I maybe able to use just two. Have to investigate.

I thank the op for bringing this to light.

 

[MTViper]

Has anyone contacted Nova to ask them about this issue? It's possible they got a bad batch of jaws.

 

[EBorraga]

I'll check mine tonight. I have a full size chuck not the G3

 

[jtfoodguy]

I filled out a customer service form with Nova yesterday at 8 am with pictures. No response yet.


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[Warren White]

I just checked my G3 Pens Plus....

...when fully 'closed' there is a .050 gap at the top of the jaws and a .028 gap at the bottom. Totally unacceptable. I will be calling Teknatool in just a minute and will update this post when i hear from them.

 

[jttheclockman]

...when fully 'closed' there is a .050 gap at the top of the jaws and a .028 gap at the bottom. Totally unacceptable. I will be calling Teknatool in just a minute and will update this post when i hear from them.

Add another to the list. This is not good. I will be watching what transpires from the calls. As I said I too will call after Christmas.

 

[Warren White]

Just called and talked to Andrew....

....VERY helpful. He is sending out a replacement set of jaws, and I directed him to this website. He has already brought it up and will be contacting those with issues.

EXCELLENT customer service!

 

[jttheclockman]

....VERY helpful. He is sending out a replacement set of jaws, and I directed him to this website. He has already brought it up and will be contacting those with issues.

EXCELLENT customer service!

Now that my friend is how you do it. Thank you Warren for kicking this in motion. Being you are one of the first and will get yours first please let us know if that corrected the problem. Do you have a name you spoke with??? Hope to talk to the same person. I just saw the name in your title. Sorry.

 

[duncsuss]

I've had my pen jaws for a couple of years and didn't think to check the alignment till now.

I have had some problems with drill bits wandering, entrance holes becoming elliptical and suchlike, but I'd always attributed it to "maybe the blank isn't square".

Now I'm wondering if the times I had no problem it was because the blanks weren't square and compensated for the jaws being out of whack :biggrin:

Guess I have to measure up when I get back in the workshop ...

 

[lhowell]

I have this same setup and have not noticed the widening gap on the pen jaws. I'll check tonight though.

 

[Rockytime]

My Nova G3 Pen Jaws align perfectly. No I won't tell how the ends got boogered!

 

[Warren White]

Further update.....

.... received an email at 1:35 this afternoon with tracking information for the shipment of my replacement jaws.

Once again, Andrew, EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE!

 

[jtfoodguy]

Warren what number did you call? I haven't got a response in 48 hours. Thanks


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[Mr Vic]

I haven't had an issue I'm aware of drilling but on my jaws, when fully closed there is a slight gap at the top on 1 side and a gap all the way up on the other. If I open them far enough to slip in a square piece of 1/8" of steel it appears to be pretty even all the way down... Now ya got me scratching my head. Freezing fog out right now so I'll make a trip to the shop[ in the daylight.

 

[Warren White]

From the web....

...teknatool.com, the number is 1-866-748-3025.

 

[duncsuss]

I just chucked a piece of 3/4" round brass rod in the pen jaws on my SuperNova2.

When it's clamped tight at the bottom, there's some movement at the open end of the jaws. I measured with digital calipers, it's 0.015" -- not as bad as Warren's but it's clearly not correct.

 

[mmayo]

I use these pens jaws exclusively and yes I saw the same gap. It can be reduced through some adjustment to minimum. I worried just like you guys (gals), but in the real every day world - they work. Pen blanks are held tightly, seam rippers tightly, razors held tightly, short blanks tightly and even 1-3/8" shave brushes all work well. I drill on the lathe, flush sand the blanks on the lathe and of course turn and finish on the lathe using these jaws. Enjoy them in use as they hold your stuff well. Just my opinion of course.

 

[jttheclockman]

I use these pens jaws exclusively and yes I saw the same gap. It can be reduced through some adjustment to minimum. I worried just like you guys (gals), but in the real every day world - they work. Pen blanks are held tightly, seam rippers tightly, razors held tightly, short blanks tightly and even 1-3/8" shave brushes all work well. I drill on the lathe, flush sand the blanks on the lathe and of course turn and finish on the lathe using these jaws. Enjoy them in use as they hold your stuff well. Just my opinion of course.

Well Mark, sorry have to disagree with you . Maybe yours are closer gap wise than what we are showing. Believe me when I say I have tried all combinations and if that blank is not held tight in the front then there is no way you are getting dead on center drilling. Maybe good enough for you but when segmenting it means the world. I wish you lots of luck with yours but i will pursue other avenues till I do get it true. Good enough does not count in this situation at all. My opinion.

 

[jtfoodguy]

jttheclockman I agree with you the only way I can get the blank to stay in place is to crank it down so hard it leaves deep indentions in the bottom part of the blank. I'm hoping Warren has the answer in getting corrected jaws from teknatool. By the way thanks for the number Warren!


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[Warren White]

Follow up with Teknatool

OK. I have to say that I have never had customer service like this before! I am so impressed.

I received a new set of Pen Jaws from Teknatool over the holiday. Because it was the holiday, I had until last night to try to figure this whole thing out and contact Andrew at Teknatool again this morning.

When I tried the new jaws in my G3 the result was just the same as before. The jaws were out of alignment; splayed out, with a larger gap at the end.

I decided to do a bit of kitchen-counter research. I put both of the Pen Jaw sets on the kitchen counter and looked to see if there was a gap when they were on a flat surface. There wasn't. (I have added pictures to show what I was seeing. The first is the new jaws on my G3; the second is the new jaws removed and sitting on the kitchen counter; the third is my original jaws sitting on the counter.)

To me, that pointed to the jaw slides on the G3; somehow they must not be parallel across the slides, resulting in a surface that will not allow the jaws to align at a 90 degree angle.

I tried to determine if the jaw slides on my G3 were uneven, but measuring that was difficult.

I called Andrew at Teknatool and discussed my findings with him. I sent him an email with pictures to show what I had done and what my conclusions were. He was most appreciative. He called back in a couple of minutes and asked what model G3 I had. I just received a notice they are sending me a new G3 chuck.

I probably can't show the pictures in the right order on this response. I hope you can figure out what I did. I just did a preview and see that my pictures are rotated which will bother some folks. They aren't rotated like this on my desktop, and I don't know what to do about it. Sorry.

Their commitment to my satisfaction with their products is amazing!

 

[jttheclockman]

It is funny Warren because I was going to ask you what the results were. I figured with the holiday mail everything was backed up. I was going to call this week but I may now wait to see your results. I did the same thing more or less with mine. When I placed on a flat surface they line up well. I looked at the chuck and as you say it is difficult to measure flatness of any kind. Yes I can shim the jaws but it should not have to be. If the chuck is the answer I may have to go through the same process. I will use your name if you do not mind and explain that this was discovered on this site and there are others interested. I do need a set of pen jaws some how and soon. My attempt to get replacements through PSI has failed twice and instead of spending money for those I rather get an answer here on this chuck. Did he ask you to send the chuck back. ??? Thanks for keeping us informed.

 

[Warren White]

I wasn't asked to return the chuck....

....but I would imagine I will. I expect some communication from them in the shipment. I certainly don't expect them to give me another one. I will let you know what happens.

 

[flyitfast]

I ordered mine right after they came out. I had the same problem. I ended up getting a new set and they did not have the gap. I heard they had a problem with this alignment and that my new set corrected the problem (whatever it was).
Just started a new pen and checked the jaws. They are still in alignment. Been using them for more than 150 pens which is well over a year.
You are right, they have great customer service.
Gordon

 

[Warren White]

When is a "problem"....

...not a problem.

OK, some will disagree with what I am going to post, but it represents my experience accurately.

I got involved in this thread at perhaps the wrong time, but when I noticed the discussion about the Teknatool pen jaws not aligning, I checked mine and they didn't either. I have to confess that I had not at that time tried to drill with them because my pen jaws were new and I had not yet needed to drill a blank.

I mentioned in this forum that I contacted Teknatool and they responded right away with a new set of Pen Jaws. I posted that they were the had the same issue. I also checked to make sure the jaws were orthogonal when they were not attached to the G3. They were.

That led me to believe that the surface they mounted on on the G3 was either not flat and/or parallel. I contacted Teknatool, and they sent me another G3 and another set of Pen Jaws. I mounted the pen jaws on the new G3 and the result was the same; they did not come together in a parallel manner.

OK, I said to myself, why not FINALLY mount my old G3 and my original Pen Jaws and see how they perform. DUHH! You know, the proof of the pudding, etc.

I cut a walnut blank to the size needed for a Slimline pen and mounted it on my lathe.

The hole was PERFECT in every way. Round, not oblong; centered at both ends. Just PERFECT. I did not have to clamp it so tight as to deform the walnut. There were no marks on the blank at all. I did notice that the blank will not go all of the way into the jaws, since it hits the inside screw head. Didn't seem to matter, but I thought it might go down a bit more.

I called Andrew at Teknatool and explained both my findings and my embarrassment at not testing the combination before I called. He and his sales person were both very understanding. I asked if they would provide a return number so I could send the G3, and two sets of Pen Jaws they had sent me (at no charge) back. These are heavy, and although I would have paid for the return postage, I wondered if they would authorize a return at their expense. They said I should keep them with their best wishes. Andrew reminded me that they were guaranteed for 5 years and if I had any problems, to contact them and they would be happy to help in any way.

Teknatool has a customer for life. Absolutely the best customer service I have ever experienced.

 

[jttheclockman]

Warren I personally want to thank you for all the work you put into this. It was a learning experience for some here as well. Yes it does sound like Andrew went above and beyond and that they are a very reputable company. I think I will just shim mine as talked about and just dedicate that chuck to drilling blanks. I have several of them. I am glad you found a favorable working situation. Thanks again and maybe if Andrew happens to pop in on the site and reads the thread I would also like to thank him. Happy turning.

 

[Skie_M]

Well, at least this didn't degenerate into another one of those "Teknatool is a bunch of thieves" threads ...

 

[jtfoodguy]

Warren Thanks again for the help I received my new jaws and they work perfectly!
Very impressed with Teknatool customer service.

 

[jttheclockman]

Warren, just wanted to let you know that I just got off the phone with Andrew at Teknatool. He knew exactly what I was talking about and he remembered your conversation and is sending a replacement set. No hassles, no fuss and a gentleman to speak to. Thank you for doing the leg work on this problem and hopefully this gets me back up and running with them.

 

[Pappi]

I have a set of these same jaws but i did not buy mine from PSI. I bought mine directly from Technatool. I will check mine to see if mine has a gap in them.