Flat Jaws for Lathe Chuck

[ZeroContent]

I have a WoodRiver 4 Jaw chuck for my lathe but all the jaws on the market seem to be rounded. Any idea where I could get flat so I can chuck briar a little more securely? Also, is there any way to add balance out the spin since the blocks are off centered all the time.

 

[user 3779]

The jaws I have are rounded jaws, I have used them with very good success. There are a couple little tricks here and there to make em work better. If something is out of balance try slowing down the lathe until you have removed a good amount of material so there is less rotational force.

 

[RDPipes]

I have a WoodRiver 4 Jaw chuck for my lathe but all the jaws on the market seem to be rounded.  Any idea where I could get flat so I can chuck briar a little more securely? Also, is there any way to add balance out the spin since the blocks are off centered all the time.

There are jaws out there made for pipe turning but, they can be a bit expensive specially if your not sure if this will be a hobby or not. And it's almost impossible when turning and drilling shank on a fairly large pipe to stop it from vibrating. Ya just gotta take any excess off with a band saw or other tools to get it down as close to finished size you can. I've had to reinforce my lathe table to keep it from shaking loose. And then of course there's the speed in which your turn and drill. I try to drill my chambers as slow as possible and turn them around 800-1000 rpm's, now that's just a guesstimate being mine hasn't speed settings. Here's a photo of the jaws like I use, there machined cast aluminum and I've had very good luck with them and they only cost me $80 I think. I can get you in touch with the guy if you feel you want some.

 

[ZeroContent]

i figured they'd have to be custom, which is kinda weird, you figured chucking some this shape would be a common thing. Maybe I'll start making some freehands that don't need matched up stems. My stem making ability is a weakness.

 

[RDPipes]

i figured they'd have to be custom, which is kinda weird, you figured chucking some this shape would be a common thing.  Maybe I'll start making some freehands that don't need matched up stems.  My stem making ability is a weakness.

I used round jaws for quite some time until I could afford those, and if your not good at hand cutting a stem then I think you need to do more of it. Once you've grasped how to do it and do it well it becomes much easier. Check out some videos on it and practice. You'll need some good files and a lot of patience, the patience comes.

Oh! and visit pipemakersforum.com, there's a whole lot of good information there, just search through the threads and you'll find all sorts of info. I still find info there and I expect I will continue to cause you can never know too much or everything about making pipes or anything else for that fact.

 

[user 3779]

Zerocontent..just for fun what kind of lathe do you have? If you can get a set of the rounded jaws fairly cheap I would go for it, there is a lot that can be done with those. When it comes to pipe making I haven't found em to be a big disadvantage, probably lose some time in set up, but don't have problems with em letting go etc while machining.