jaws that will hold smaller than 3/8 inch

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WoodWizard

WoodWizard

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Racine,Wisconsin
I need to know if they make jaws for the nova mini...that will go smaller than 3/8 inch? I have a set that goes to 3/8 inch...but a 3/8 inch dowel rod wont hold tight in it. Anyone know if the nova soft jaws are able to be made to go down that small? Or am I going to need to make some jaws out of wood?

Any help, or suggestions would be much appreciated...:biggrin:
 
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The hole on the inside of my set of nova soft jaws is more like 5/8".

What i commonly do is just take the jaws off of the chuck and use the sleds as jaws. wouldn't try to chuck anything of size this way, but a dowel should be no problem..

I often use this technique to drill my blanks. I turn the blanks to round, then cut them a little longer than the tube, and mount it in my chuck with no jaws. works great. It also gets the jaws out of the way completely. Don't know if it is "right", but i am cheap and lazy so it beats buying a collet chuck, and it also keeps me from having to make jaws.


Hope that helps.
 
I just looked at my chuck...and my sleds wont go in that far...so i guess im stuck having to make a set of wooden jaws that will close smaller than 3/8....or maybe line the inside of the jaws that close to 3/8 with rubber of some sort
 
Round up a 1 inch piece, drill a 3/8 hole, cut slots with the bs to form a "collet", then insert your dowel and chuck it in.
 
Back some time ago, PSI sold an aluminum 4-jawed chuck that held 0"-2" or so. you may want to call PSI and see if they still offer it or where you can get it. It used 2 small diameter tommy bars.
 
PTownSubbie said:
Any reason you can't use a drill chuck to hold it?
Click to expand...
The main reason is that the jaws will crush the wood as you tighten it but the more important reason is that unless your drill chuck can take a draw bolt you could stand a chance of getting seriously hurt if the chuck comes loose from the headstock and gets flung across your shop at high speed .
NEVER use anything in the headstock MT taper without either a "Draw bolt" or support from your tailstock .


Keith , don't they make a set of "Step jaws" for the Nova chucks , They should close to less then 1/4" . I use my PSI Baracuda 2 with the step jaws to hold my mandrel once and awhile .
 
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Guessing this is for a bottle stopper mandrel. If you have a Jacobs that uses a draw bar you can do this. W/O a draw bar, you will have to use the tailstock to do the turning.

Take a short 1/4" lag bolt. Drill a hole in the end of a 1x1x2 block of wood, screw in the lag bolt, leaving the smooth part visible. Cut the head off of the lag bolt, mount the lag bolt in a Jacobs chuck. Place between centers and turn to 1" diameter dowel. Then turn the tailstock end to the 3/8" diameter dowel.

Looking at the finished product, from left to right, your Jacobs chuck, the lag bolt in it, the block of wood, turned to 1" for 1" then the 3/8" tenon/dowel for the bottle stopper.
 
ldb and Wood wizard.

I agree having had a drill press chuck let go, no physical damage but change of underware fright.

I have been an advocate of draw bars also using the 22 dollar collet chuck mandrel as well. Seems to draw a lot of yawns however these 2 morse taper units are ready tapped for a 3/8 inch draw bar through the head stock. This maintains alignment after full cleaning and insertion, simple means defy unsafe practices especially when I see 2 morse taper shafts with buffing set ups (sure recipe for problems)

If you live in the US adapters can be purchased to fit most lathe shafts to small chucks also Mr Beall has answers for most situations re holding accurately most anything.

Notice with interest in our enlightened era the shaft thread sizes regarded as standard in the US are not the same as here even with metric conversion.

Have good fortune and success. Peter.
 
dogcatcher said:
Guessing this is for a bottle stopper mandrel. If you have a Jacobs that uses a draw bar you can do this. W/O a draw bar, you will have to use the tailstock to do the turning.

Take a short 1/4" lag bolt. Drill a hole in the end of a 1x1x2 block of wood, screw in the lag bolt, leaving the smooth part visible. Cut the head off of the lag bolt, mount the lag bolt in a Jacobs chuck. Place between centers and turn to 1" diameter dowel. Then turn the tailstock end to the 3/8" diameter dowel.

Looking at the finished product, from left to right, your Jacobs chuck, the lag bolt in it, the block of wood, turned to 1" for 1" then the 3/8" tenon/dowel for the bottle stopper.
Click to expand...
Bottle stopper no....its for making what is called a drop spindle......here is a picture of some....i need away to be able to sand and finish the round section...thats why i need to beable to clamp the 3/8 inch dowel part of it....
SCdropspindle.jpg
 
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My wife is a spinner/knitter/weaver and I make those kinds if things --

You want a collet chuck arrangement and you want fair precision - probably more than you are going to get with a Nova scroll chuck. You need to be able to adjust the feed easily through the headstock. Shopbuild chuck can work but need some careful fitting and consistent alignment. I use small square stock with the edges planed off in the collet and turn only a few inches at a time near the headstock - pull out a bit more and turn some more. Think of the thin shaft on a long goblet - and I do not want to use heavy stock to provide the stiffness to turn between centers.

David Reed Smith has a article in a past WoodTurning Design that shows good technique of using a collet chuck for turning knitting needles -- long thin shaft with pointy ends.

You can turn spindles for weeks and never make two alike - there are that many different kinds/styles/approaches and weights. Drop spinners tend to have collections too.
 
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