Help

Getting a Grip on Four-Jaw Lathe Chucks

Share
Print
Comments (4)

Pages in this Story:

Turning a bowl with a four-jaw chuck

With its exterior shaped, this partially
formed bowl was cut in half to show
how the screw center secures it to
the chuck.

Turning a bowl with a four-jaw chuck

Start on the outside
For mounting side-grain bowl blanks, many chucks come with a screw center. To use this center, install it in the chuck by gripping it with the jaws. Drill a hole equal in diameter to the root of the screw and slightly deeper than its length, centered on the top face of the blank. Then thread the blank onto the screw. Engage the lathe tail center for additional support while turning the rough shape of the bowl. Now turn the outside of the bowl, shaping its bottom to be held by the chuck jaws, as shown in the photo. Screw-center mounting allows for easy removal and remounting of the blank while maintaining its centered position.

Continued on page 6: Shape the bottom

Free Year + Free Gift! Order NOW and get 1 FREE YEAR of Wood® Magazine! PLUS you'll get our Great Projects for Your Shop guide instantly! That's 2 full years (14 issues) for the 1-year-rate – just $28.00. This is a limited-time offer, so HURRY! (U.S. orders only) (Click here for Canadian orders)

First Name:

Last Name:

Address:

City:

State:

Zip Code:

Email Address:

100% Money-Back Guarantee: You must be pleased, or you may cancel any time during the life of your subscription and receive a refund on any unserved issues – no questions asked. Wood® Magazine is currently published 7 times annually – subject to change without notice. Double issues may be published, which count as 2 issues. Applicable sales tax will be added. E-mail address required to access your account and member benefits online. We will not share your e-mail address with anyone. Click here to view our privacy policy.

Comments (4)

rwm50 wrote:

myplace i have the same unit, you need a 1" + 10 tpi thread type chuck

4/3/2013 05:31:05 PM Report Abuse

christopher_sta wrote:

I have a 4 Jaw chuck ordered at Busy Bee Tools for my Craftsman lathe. 3/4 X 16 TPI tread pattern.

11/27/2011 10:09:28 AM Report Abuse

mcplace wrote:

I need a 4jaw chuck for a Sears Craftsman wood lathe model# 351.217150 where can I find one. Sears says this model is obsolete any brand might as lon as the thread pattern match.Can some one help

4/23/2011 12:50:03 PM Report Abuse

helmich1 wrote:

Very informative! Metalworking 4 jaw chucks work differently, but that is another ballgame.

3/24/2011 10:38:22 AM Report Abuse