Gary,

As far as overhang is concerned, my ER32 chuck is slightly shorter than
the Clarkson, so from that point of view at least, it is slightly better.
The friend who uses MT collets is better off though; his collets don't
protrude from the spindle so there is no overhang at all. He does,
though, need to release the drawbar (and tap it out) every time he
changes a collet. And being that much longer than ER collets he needs
more space below the spindle.

My first fiddling session with an ER32 went well. The spindle to nut
space is very acceptable, and the collet changing is indeed much more
agreeable than changing R8 collets.

As for ER32 vs. 25 or 16, using a 3/32 bit has put my slight doubts
aside; 32 was the right choice. That bit is pretty small and I like the
range of the 32.

Figuring that drill bits would be the trouble spot, I started drilling
holes in some scrap steel slotted angle. A 1/4 bit slipped on me once,
but some additional tightening took care of that. I got it right on a
later second attempt, probably using a little more care with the start
and break-through and being a little more forceful with the spanner. To
my pleasant surprise, the bit appeared undamaged by the slipping; it is
a little harder to see whether the collet suffered any ill effects, but
I doubt it. I get the sense that it will work at least well enough to
drill starter holes in the correct places, and will probably handle most
of my drilling.

In the (re)indexing discussions I've read, I have not seen mention of
using short/stubby drill bits. It occured to me when I noticed the
length of my 1/2 bits. Of course I would drill a starter hole, so
lining back up would not be a big deal, but it raises the question of
whether one could get a short bit, or just use an appropriate endmill to
drill shallow but wide holes? I recall reading that endmill is not the
correct type of cutter because it does not cut to the center, but my
"endmills" do have flutes that cut from the center line outward. Is
there any problem with drilling with them?

I paid mid-range based on prices people report. The collets seem to be
quite nice, and were the bulk of the cost. I might have been able to
save a few bucks elsewhere, but was getting good technical info and
decided to take the guy's advice since the price was reasonable. The
chuck bothered me a little at first. It felt like it might be trying to
cross-thread, but I think some of that was operator error and some that
the threads were a little sharp. Having run the nut over them a few
times, it's getting easier to use. I am also catching on to how to
release the collets from the nut. It was interesting that I did it
correctly by accident a couple of times, and then started having some
trouble.

How do you recommend storing the collets? They are in a plastic box,
relying on lack of movement to avoid collisions. Can I safely make a
wood rack, or is that asking for rust?

The DTI is definitely a winner for vice alignment; much simpler than the
contraption I rigged up using a plunge indicator. Next will be to
figure out how to get it in position to sweep holes.

Bill