As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.


many thanks in advance, and happy turning


One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or Sup
with the Devil. :-)

In message , brian white
writes
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.

I'm not seasoned, only been playing a little longer than yourself

I would also recommend looking at the Axminster chucks.
Specifically this package
http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-A...uck-Package-36
3274.htm

I would have got it instead of their K10 if I had known more at the time

One thing to consider is that it takes time to change jaws, unscrewing,
alignment etc. So you may want to consider the price of jaw carriers in
the overall equation, as its wind them out and wind in the new ones with
the alternate jaws pre fitted and aligned. ( that's what I did)

In some ways I am lucky 4 miles that way and I have Axminster, 4 miles
the other I have Poolewood

Two very bad reasons to spend money !
--
John

I would also highly recommend the Axminster chucks.

Vicmark gets my vote every time.I've got others, the vicmark leaves them for
dead.A good chuck lasts a long time. You soon regret a cheap copy.
cleshe
xx
"John" wrote in message
...
In message , brian white
writes
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck.
I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned
morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There
is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of
course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox
FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash
as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.

I'm not seasoned, only been playing a little longer than yourself

I would also recommend looking at the Axminster chucks.
Specifically this package
http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-A...uck-Package-36
3274.htm

I would have got it instead of their K10 if I had known more at the time

One thing to consider is that it takes time to change jaws, unscrewing,
alignment etc. So you may want to consider the price of jaw carriers in
the overall equation, as its wind them out and wind in the new ones with
the alternate jaws pre fitted and aligned. ( that's what I did)

In some ways I am lucky 4 miles that way and I have Axminster, 4 miles
the other I have Poolewood

Two very bad reasons to spend money !
--
John

In article ,
"brian white" wrote:

As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.


many thanks in advance, and happy turning


One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or Sup
with the Devil. :-)

I afraid I'm not much help as I only recognize the SN2, the other two
must be UK brands that never make it across the pond. I like my SN2's
but the Canadian Oneway and Ausy Vicmarc are great too (SN2 will take
any jaw that Teknatool makes, well, except for the Titan Power jaw,
something not true in most lines)

--
--------------------------------------------------------
Personal e-mail is the n7bsn but at amsat.org
This posting address is a spam-trap and seldom read
RV and Camping FAQ can be found at
http://www.ralphandellen.us/rv

I use both the Supanova and Vicmarc chucks and find them both excellent,
although to tighten the Supanova you will be turning the chuck key
anti-clockwise to tighten it and that may feel odd. Another excellent chuck
would be the Versachuck available from the Toolpost www.toolpost.co.uk .
The beauty of that one is that you can buy carrier jaws for fitting jaws
from other manufacturers. It is also a very solid substantial chuck that is
well built. I hope these notes will be of help. Good chucks aren't cheap,
but will be long lasting and accurate in their workholding.

Charlie

--

"brian white" wrote in message
...
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago ) I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a
chuck. I have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with
turned morse Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood
Cataloge There is a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and
others. Yes of course I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot
@£126 ) or the SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better
than the Fox FX4000 @ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the
same amount of cash as a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.


many thanks in advance, and happy turning


One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or
Sup with the Devil. :-)

"Charles Jones" wrote in message
...
I use both the Supanova and Vicmarc chucks and find them both excellent,
although to tighten the Supanova you will be turning the chuck key
anti-clockwise to tighten it and that may feel odd.

Well, it "tightens" on a mortise when turned clockwise. Of course the left
end of your grinder and the nut on the arbor of your left tilt tablesaw,
etc. tighten that way too.

"Lefty Lucy doesn't spread 'em for Chuck" is a useful NOVA mnemonic.

On Feb 4, 4:20 am, "brian white" wrote:
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or Sup
with the Devil. :-)


Hello Brian,

I own a dozen or more chucks, most of them Teknatool, and one Vicmarc.
I believe the Partiot is made by Robert Sorby and is likely a very
good chuck because Robert Sorby produces quality tools. I purchased
two SuperNova2 chucks when they first came out, one for myself and one
for my wife, they are excellent chucks and well worth the money. No
chuck on the market except the Nova Chucks have the greatest
interchange of jaws from one chuck to the next. Even the Titan Chuck
from Teknatool uses all of the jaws manufactured for all of their
other chucks. I suspect that the Fox FX4000 is a Chinese made rip-off
of someone elses chuck and likely not worth what they are selling for.
As someone else mentioned the Vicmarc chucks are hard to beat when it
comes to quality.

Just remember, you get what you pay for, and this is especially true
when it comes to turning tools and woodturning chucks.

Fred Holder
http://www.fholder.com

"brian white" wrote in message
...
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago ) I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a
chuck. I have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with
turned morse Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood
Cataloge There is a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and
others. Yes of course I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot
@£126 ) or the SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better
than the Fox FX4000 @ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the
same amount of cash as a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.


many thanks in advance, and happy turning


One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or
Sup with the Devil. :-)



The Nova G3 is another one. I heard that Nova jaws will go on a Patriot.
I have 2 Supernovas, a G3 and a Versa. The Versa I find is heavy so it only
gets used when
I want the jaws that are on it. Enjoy the addiction

I do know that the Nova chucks are good. I have the Vicmarc, and have
abused them severely. They hold up well. I have a friend who is a
professional turner (since the first scroll chucks came out) and he
has all Oneway chucks. He told me that the only reason he doesn't have
the Vicmarc is because a friend of his stopped turning and sold all
his Oneway chucks for very cheap. I don't have any experience with the
Axminster is also considered a heavy duty chuck, but I don't think it
is available in the US any more.
robo hippy

On Feb 4, 8:35*am, "Boru" wrote:
"brian white" wrote in message

...



As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago ) I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a
chuck. I have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with
turned morse Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood
Cataloge There is a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and
others. *Yes of course I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot
@£126 ) *or the SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better
than the Fox FX4000 @ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). *for which, for the
same amount of cash as a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend *? *Price of course is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning *- Ride the Bevel, or
Sup with the Devil. :-)

The Nova G3 is another one. I heard that Nova jaws will go on a Patriot.
I have 2 Supernovas, a G3 and a Versa. The Versa I find is heavy so it only
gets used when
I want the jaws that are on it. Enjoy the addiction

On Feb 4, 12:36*pm, robo hippy wrote:
I do know that the Nova chucks are good. I have the Vicmarc, and have
abused them severely. They hold up well. I have a friend who is a
professional turner (since the first scroll chucks came out) and he
has all Oneway chucks. He told me that the only reason he doesn't have
the Vicmarc is because a friend of his stopped turning and sold all
his Oneway chucks for very cheap. I don't have any experience with the
Axminster is also considered a heavy duty chuck, but I don't think it
is available in the US any more.
robo hippy

Hi Reed
Was it you that had the gears break 3 times, on your chuck, twice the
pinions and once the main gear ?????

That's what I was talking about in the other post, as why won't people
tell that there equipment failed on them ??
Oh well so much for it "hold up well"
Have fun and take care
Leo Van Der Loo

On Mon, 04 Feb 2008 12:20:09 GMT, "brian white"
wrote:

As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.


many thanks in advance, and happy turning


One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or Sup
with the Devil. :-)

Sort of like asking what brand of truck is best.. ;-]

My personal choice is Oneway.. For most lathes, the Talon, for larger projects,
the Stronghold..

I've had a Talon for about 5 years and like it so much that I'd buy it again..
As a matter of fact, I DID buy it again, 2 years later when I wanted a 2nd
chuck..
I've done a few hundred pieces with it and it's still working great..
It's pricey, but good things usually are..

I'd also look at the Super Nova.. no personal experience, just gleaned from
comments here..


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

On Feb 4, 7:20*am, "brian white" wrote:
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. *Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) *or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). *for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend *? *Price of course is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning *- Ride the Bevel, or Sup
with the Devil. :-)

I don't know what your face is worth, but for me the best holding
chuck is just barely good enough, and yes last time I looked in the
mirror, I think Im seasoned very well, maybe overdone ;-))
Oh that best chuck you want to know ?? or the cheapest that's going to
bite you ??
I have and use Oneway Stronghold and Oneway Talon chucks, for more
that 10 years at least, and yes the Patented jaws that hold the wood,
are only available on a Oneway, sorry.
Have fun and take care
Leo Van Der Loo

On Feb 4, 7:20 am, "brian white" wrote:
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or Sup
with the Devil. :-)


There's a 1 page review of the Patriot chuck in this month's Woodturner
magazine which you should be able to pick up (or just read the relevant
article) in WHSmiths.

The review recommends the chuck - well built, does the job, uses design
features from other chucks but adds it's own touches (like the rubber
band safety feature). A typically well made Sorby product.

The Versachuck was also reviewed several months back and this was
recommended as well. The big selling point of it is that with the
purchase of extra jaw slides it can take jaws from other manufacturers.

I've never used or even seen either of these chucks so can't personally
recommend them.

I have a SuperNova and SuperNova Deluxe chucks and have not had any
problem with them. They're the only ones that I've used so can't compare
to others.

As for the Fox chuck - as others have said, you usually get what you pay
for. I've just done a quick search for the Fox and didn't get many
relevant hits, which may suggest that they aren't well supported in this
country. Try to find someone selling jaws for it and see how many are
available. You may not think that you need many right now but who knows
what you'll be wanting to turn in the future.

Where abouts are you in the UK? If you're anywhere near Newcastle then
feel free to contact me and you can call round to check out my chucks.
Wherever you are there's likely to be a local club where you'll find
years worth of turning experience to draw on.
The Association of Woodturners of GB (http://www.woodturners.co.uk/)
should have a list of clubs

Hope that helps

Duncan

"Duncan Hoyle" wrote in message
. uk...

On Feb 4, 7:20 am, "brian white" wrote:
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a chuck.
I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned
morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge
There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of
course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox
FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of
cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or
Sup
with the Devil. :-)


Um No - Im down in Southampton too cold for me in Newcastle although I was
born n bred in Middlesbrough. I have joined a local woodturning club and
have posed the question, some lively debate followed, and basically it comes
down to a matter of personal preferance, the ease of obtaining and changing
jaw sets, and Durability .

Thanks for all the splended info folks - Im going to The Woodworking Show at
Alexandria Palace this coming weekend, cash in hand !!
I shall probably go for the Patriot ( unless someone else has a real
tempting "show offer" ! ) It Will, Be Mine !

Brian

Brian
Nice spot. One of the ladies from my church is from Southamptom (war bride)
and my daughter did here first year of University near there. My wife, on
the other hand, is from Lytham St Anne's in the Lake District. We had a
great time when we were in England but never made it down that way since we
visited my wife's relatives near Durham (I got to stand in the pulpit at
Durham Cathedral!!!). Next time we hope.

Let us know how the chuck works. I have the One Way and love it.

--
God bless and safe turning
Darrell Feltmate
Truro, NS Canada
http://aroundthewoods.com
http://roundopinions.blogspot.com
"brian white" wrote in message
news

"Duncan Hoyle" wrote in message
. uk...

On Feb 4, 7:20 am, "brian white" wrote:
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a
chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned
morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge
There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. Yes of
course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox
FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). for which, for the same amount of
cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend ? Price of course
is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning - Ride the Bevel, or
Sup
with the Devil. :-)


Um No - Im down in Southampton too cold for me in Newcastle although I
was born n bred in Middlesbrough. I have joined a local woodturning club
and have posed the question, some lively debate followed, and basically it
comes down to a matter of personal preferance, the ease of obtaining and
changing jaw sets, and Durability .

Thanks for all the splended info folks - Im going to The Woodworking Show
at Alexandria Palace this coming weekend, cash in hand !!
I shall probably go for the Patriot ( unless someone else has a real
tempting "show offer" ! ) It Will, Be Mine !

Brian

One thing to consider is the changing of the jaws. I don't think there
is any easy way to do it, and rather than change jaws (I have found
that I use only about 3 different jaw sets) get a chuck for each set
of jaws.
robo hippy

On Feb 5, 8:39*am, "Darrell Feltmate"
wrote:
Brian
Nice spot. One of the ladies from my church is from Southamptom (war bride)
and my daughter did here first year of University near there. My wife, on
the other hand, is from Lytham St Anne's in the Lake District. We had a
great time when we were in England but never made it down that way since we
visited my wife's relatives near Durham (I got to stand in the pulpit at
Durham Cathedral!!!). Next time we hope.

Let us know how the chuck works. I have the One Way and love it.

--
God bless and safe turning
Darrell Feltmate
Truro, NS Canadahttp://aroundthewoods.comhttp://roundopinions.blogspot.com"brian white" wrote in message

news


"Duncan Hoyle" wrote in message
.uk...

On Feb 4, 7:20 am, "brian white" wrote:
As a relative noob to woodturning ( I acquired my first lathe 3 Months
ago )
I feel that I am now restricted in my creations for the lack of a
chuck. I
have made all kinds of Jam chucks, fixing to the headstock with turned
morse
Tapers. but its hard going !. Looking through the Polewood Cataloge
There is
a choice of the Patriot, SuperNova2, Fox FX4000, and others. *Yes of
course
I would probably like the most expensive, ( Patriot @£126 ) *or the
SuperNova @ £114.00 , are these chucks that much better than the Fox
FX4000
@ 68.83 ( including delivery ! ). *for which, for the same amount of
cash as
a Patriot I could also get a couple of sets of Jaws

What would you "seasoned" ! woodturners recommend *? *Price of course
is
always an issue.

many thanks in advance, and happy turning

One thing I have learnt in my 3 months of turning *- Ride the Bevel, or
Sup
with the Devil. :-)

Um No - *Im down in Southampton too cold for me in Newcastle although I
was born n bred in Middlesbrough. I have joined a local woodturning club
and have posed the question, some lively debate followed, and basically it
comes down to a matter of personal preferance, the ease of obtaining and
changing jaw sets, and Durability .

Thanks for all the splended info folks - Im going to The Woodworking Show
at Alexandria Palace this coming weekend, cash in hand !!
I shall probably go for the Patriot ( unless someone else has a real
tempting "show offer" *! *) *It Will, Be Mine !

Brian

On Tue, 05 Feb 2008 15:52:52 GMT, "brian white"
wrote:


Um No - Im down in Southampton too cold for me in Newcastle although I was
born n bred in Middlesbrough. I have joined a local woodturning club and
have posed the question, some lively debate followed, and basically it comes
down to a matter of personal preferance, the ease of obtaining and changing
jaw sets, and Durability .

Thanks for all the splended info folks - Im going to The Woodworking Show at
Alexandria Palace this coming weekend, cash in hand !!
I shall probably go for the Patriot ( unless someone else has a real
tempting "show offer" ! ) It Will, Be Mine !

Brian


Well, Brian.. the bottom line is that once you get a chuck, a whole world of
turning opens up to you..

I've gotten so use to using a chuck that I bought a stub center for the chuck so
I don't have to take it off the lathe when I need to work between centers..

Have fun!


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Once again, late to a thread.

Things to look into when considering a chuck

1. Mechanism for tightening and loosening the jaws

TWO tomy bars means there's no hand to hold the
part being chucked while the jaws are snugged to
it and then tightened. If you have a spindle lock
on your lathe then you only need to use one
tomy bar and have another to hold the piece in
which case this isn't an issue.

A jacobs chuck key (either a short one like used
on a drill press or on the end of a long T-handle)
permits one hand tightening and loosening of the
jaws - without the need for a spindle lock. BUT -
and there always seems to be a "but" - this type
of key only works when the long axis of the key
goes in square to the long axis of the chuck - on
a jacobs chuck or a lathe chuck. There are
times - on some forms - where that isn't possible.
THAT is a limiting factor for chuck keys.

A normal straight T-handled allen wrench mechanism
has the same problem as the T-handled chuck key.
However, a "ball end" allen wrench lets you tighten
the jaws with the wrench angled back some towards
the back of the chuck. This capability may not
ever be used, but having it and not needing it is
better than needing it and not having it.

2. Lathes don't all have the same spindle size or
threading. A chuck that has spindle adapters
available to fit it and adapt to various spindle
diameters and threads will allow you to buy
just one adapter and keep using your chuck
on any lathe you may get later.

3. Jaw Sets - How many and what gripping size ranges
are available.

If you really want to bang your head on the wall,
turn a nice form with a tenon on the end to hold
it in your chuck - and then find that none of your
jaw sets will hold it for hollowing. Ideally, having
sets that cover the full range, min to max - with
NO GAPS - is REALLY nice to have.

4. Jaw Sets - how easy are they to change?

On the "borrowed from a metal lathe" chuck
you have to scroll one set of jaws off then
scroll another set on - and starting from
the right location and in the right order.
Make a mistake on either and the jaws
either won't close on center or won't close
at all. THAT is a real PITA

On the "designed specifically for a wood lathe"
chuck, the jaws attach to the chuck with allen
head screws - one or two screws depending
on the type of jaw. Makes changing jaws
a bit easier, faster and a little more idiot proof
(the latter very important if you sometimes
fall into Idiot Mode - ok, so I'm the only one
who does dumb things -occassionaly)

5. Jaw Sets - can you put them on anywhere
or does Jaw #1 HAVE TO GO ON IN POSITION
#1 ON THE CHUCK

Don't know about other chucks, but the
SuperNova2 jaws are each numbered and
have to be put on their right location. Note
that at least one set of jaws I have have
simple center punch marks to indicate the
jaw number - one dot for #1, two dots for
#2 and so on. THAT is a minor PITA. All
the other jaw sets have their number
stamped in the underside of the jaw.

6. Jaw Sets - are most if not all the jaws you
have for this chuck fit the other chucks
the manufacturer/company makes?

You WILL get additional jaw sets over time
and may end up with ALL the jaw sets
available for your first chuck. While
the price of the original chuck seems
like the big ticket item, the price of
all the additional jaw sets will equal or
exceed the initial chuck price.

7. Does ANYTHING protrude from the outside
of the chuck? If so, anything that does
WILL wack you on the knuckles - at least
once.

8. Are there ANY sharp edges or sharp corners
ANYWHERE that can (and will) make contact
with any part of your body - while installing,
removing or using the chuck?

9. Are the interior moving parts protected
from dust, dirt, oils, waxes, blood, insects,
pitch, sap, . . . A chuck that works
smooth and flawless when right out of the
box - but binds and chunks in use is nice
to look at but a PITA to use over time.

10. Does the chuck have built in Indexing?

Being able to index the chuck, even if you
don't think you need that capability now,
will give you the option later.

Some chucks have indexing holes or slots
on the rear outside of the chuck and some
have them on the back face of the chuck.
Being able to get to them from the top
makes it easier to add an indexing pin
to your lathe than adding one from behind
the chuck.

11. The quality of the steel in the moving
parts and the precision of their machining.

Good steel holds up - crappy steel doesn't.
If the mechanism is machined steel rather
than cast iron and then machined, it will
hold up, trouble free for year and years.
Machined cast iron won't.

Some of these things you can see, some you can't.
It's the reputation of the company that tell
you something about parts you can't see.
If you've never heard of the maker, or the
outfit that carries it won't stand behind the
chuck you're screwed if anything is wrong
or goes wrong with the chuck.

Just what you needed right - more decisons to
make. Sorry - but knowledge is power.

charlie b

Disclosu I have two SN2 chucks and ALL the
jaw sets for that chuck. I have no financial
connection to the maker, wholesaler or
retailer of the SuperNova2 and paid the
store price for the chucks and jaw sets.
I use them on a JET mini/midi and haven't
turned anything bigger than 9" in diameter
nor taller than about 6 inches.