well OK, I should have a new chuck, got a supernova arriving this week (should have been here already). I have never used a chuck before, I have seen one used in demonstrations, but that is it. Can you give me hints on what I should do and not do with it?
Basically,
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I too have a 'Super Nova chuck. I got mine from KMS Tools along with 4 sets of jaws. It is a very nice chuck. It may not measure up to a Talon or a Stronghold, but I don't have either of those and can't compare, I had problems with the 2" jaws not closing properly. Had to swap them out twice before I got a good set. When installing the jaws, make sure # 1 jaw goes on # 1 slide, # 2 jaw on # 2 slide and so on. Make sure your jaws are sequentially numbered 1 thru 4. (Mine weren't!) If yours aren't, exchange them. Read the instructions. Until you get a feel for the chuck's capabilities, keep RPM's low. When you form a dovetail tenon on the blank, make sure the angle matches the angle of the chuck jaws. Stop from time to time to make sure the blank is still held firmly in the jaws. Above all, have fun and be careful.
Barry
Read the instruction booklet carefully. As I recall, you have to be careful the first time you get the jaws on. Don't force them on. Also
- don't tighten them up all the way until all four are on, and you snug up the 4 jaws until they mesh. Then tighten them.
Also - as others said - make sure the numbers on the jaws match the chuck.
In short - read the instructions twice.
One book - Raffan(?) - suggests you make gauges (piece of flat brass with a cut-out) for each jaw, so you know the min and max jaw opening easily.
be particularly careful of the jaws when open and spinning.
they would be happy to take a piece of you with them if they had the chance. trust me, i know.
Rob
Find a rainbow hair scrunchy and keep it on the chuck. The bright spinning colors will keep you reminded where your fingers shouldn't be.
/vic
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Even if they don't take a piece of you along with, it can give you a knuckle rap that you will remember long after the bruise is gone.
Ken Moon Webberville, TX
KMS must be famous for that. I thought I was the only one who got two mismatched sets. Ended up fettling to fit.
Well, I sent directions to my page for you last time you were discussing chucks. My advice is to follow the others' (and the directions), and keep things stable until the piece is at its lightest and balanced.
As to the dovetail. Basic misconception running around on that one, I believe. It is not an outward-gripping method, it is a wedge-gripping method. The recess should be less than the depth of the wedge-shaped section on the jaws so that the opening will wedge the face of the chuck tightly against the bottom of the recess. This is the actual bearing surface, not the sides of the tapered sections. Means you should pay attention to that recess to get a quality surface to bear against, and, especially with damp wood, the wedge will have to be retightened a couple of times if the fibers compress. I like to take some water-thin CA glue and squirt some in the fresh recess, rotating slowly by hand until it soaks in. Provides a firm wedging surface. You can use this on damp cross-grain spigots as well, but if you have the serrated type jaws, which are just plain grippers, they will often deform the spigot even if it is reinforced. Never tighten a grip spigot unless you have the piece firmly pressing against the face - I use the tailstock - as they don't naturally wedge themselves true and tight against the bottom of the piece.
I got the impression (from them) I was the only one with mismatched jaws! They were very nice to work with, but it took two tries to get it right.
Barry
George, I think that your discussion is important enough that you should repost it as a thread so its subject can be found in the archives. A few new turners might make the spigot too long or dovetail too deep and the bottom untrue. All the while carefully checking that the chuck insert mates perfectly against the spindle collar, but they don't see the analogy. :(
I agree that the faces of the jaws should drive the wood and the dovetails of the chuck jaws and the wood help to push the jaw faces against the wood's bottom. I've thought about filing some serrations in my Nova chuck jaw faces, sort of like a Steb center, but I'm afraid that might make for a bad register. ?? Arch
Fortiter,
Wouldn't help in the case of a bottom you don't have to reverse to finish, and since the dovetail automatically centers even if you dismount the piece, shouldn't be necessary. Snug and go, and don't be so heavy on your inside cuts, and you should have no problem. Too aggressive....
Seriously, if you want to try something, spray a bit of 3M 77 or some other rubber cement stuff on the end of the chuck.
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