Grizzly Lathe Chucks

[gzig5]

Those of you that have the 4003G or other Grizzly lathe, what are you impressions of the three jaw and four jaw chucks that come with the lathe? Any problems with balance or excessive runout (more than .003")?

Greg

 

[Steelhead1]

IMHO, and as one machinist friend told me, they are junk! He told me to invest in a Bison and I did and am very happy with it. I have an independent 4 jaw Bison.

 

[Chisolm]

Greg,
No problems at all with the 3 jaw, unless you count the one time I didn't clean up well enough when switching and got a small chip behind the chuck which put it off center. The 4 jaw however is poorly balanced running at faster speeds causes vibration. I rarely run the 4 jaw above 360 rpm so it hasn't been a problem.
I am sure had I complained Grizzly would have taken care of it, they have been very good to work with.

James

 

[ultramagmed]

I have had about the same experience as James. My four jaw does cause a small vibration at higher rpm also. It seems like my three jaw averaged about .003-.006 run out, but it has been awhile since I have checked it.

Med.

 

[Shiraz Balolia]

Those of you that have the 4003G or other Grizzly lathe, what are you impressions of the three jaw and four jaw chucks that come with the lathe? Any problems with balance or excessive runout (more than .003")?

Greg

Greg - before you go out and buy a new chuck, do the following:

1) Check the preload on the bearings. I believe that our tech writers have included the procedure with the manual. If not call and request the procedure.
2) Remove the chuck from the backplate. Leave the backplate attached to the spindle, or remount the backplate by itself after the chuck is off.
3) Remove all the jaws from the three jaw and clean the scroll.
4) Take a skim cut off your backplate and the shoulder making sure that the fit is tight for the chuck being remounted. There should be a matching shoulder on the chuck. Loose shoulder will result in bad runout, so easy to correct while making the skim cut.

Remount the chuck and test with a proper test bar. You should be within .002" easy. Every machine we have checked like this has come through just fine with the factory chuck.

 

[Shiraz Balolia]

My four jaw does cause a small vibration at higher rpm also.

Med.

Med - 4 jaw chucks that are generally supplied with lathes are not self centering chucks. Each jaw is independantly adjusted. As such, almost always, they are off balance, depending on what you are holding. Lighter lathes, under 2000 lbs and sometimes even under 3000 lbs, will have a slight vibration at faster speeds because you are running something off center. Nature of the beast. Even a Buck 4 jaw chuck will do the same thing, under similar circumstances.

 

[gzig5]

Hello Shiraz,

My question was to gather information. At this time I don't have a Grizzly but am strongly considering one and this is an area of interest. The chucks are one area that I hadn't seen much discussion about. I don't expect the three jaw to hold much better than .003" runout for various diamters, but it would be nice. I would expect no vibration from a three jaw. For a four jaw, if I am using it to dial in a barrel or other cylindrical stock to "zero" runout, I expect no vibration because the jaws should be concetric to the chuck and spindle. If there is vibration then I would suspect that the chuck is not concentric to the spindle (backplate issue) or it is out of balance. Obviously if something is being held off center, there will be vibration at higher speeds.

Currently I have an Atlas 6x18, Craftsman 12x36, and a Rockwell 14x40 all of which have their little issues that need to be dealt with each time I use them. I would like to thin the herd and have one good lathe that I can count on. I have been impressed with what you have done to support the hobby with the introduction of these gunsmith lathes, as well as your company's customer support reputation.

Thanks,
Greg

Greg - before you go out and buy a new chuck, do the following:

1) Check the preload on the bearings. I believe that our tech writers have included the procedure with the manual. If not call and request the procedure.
2) Remove the chuck from the backplate. Leave the backplate attached to the spindle, or remount the backplate by itself after the chuck is off.
3) Remove all the jaws from the three jaw and clean the scroll.
4) Take a skim cut off your backplate and the shoulder making sure that the fit is tight for the chuck being remounted. There should be a matching shoulder on the chuck. Loose shoulder will result in bad runout, so easy to correct while making the skim cut.

Remount the chuck and test with a proper test bar. You should be within .002" easy. Every machine we have checked like this has come through just fine with the factory chuck.

 

[jackie schmidt]

Greg

The best money you could spend is to invest in Quality 3-jaw "set-true" chuck. That is all I ever use when doing barrels. Or just about anything else, for that matter. It solves all of the problems of "hoping" a 3-jaw will run true.

Aloris Tool Holders and Set-True Chucks. Who ever came up with these deserves a special place in Heaven........jackie

 

[Clark]

My small Grizzly 3 jaw lathe chuck looks cheap, but is very accurate.
My big PM 3 jaw lathe chuck [Same chuck as is on Grizzly lathes] looks cheap, but is very accurate.

Better than my old worn 10" 6 jaw Buck Chuck.

 

[Zebra13]

The best money you could spend is to invest in Quality 3-jaw "set-true" chuck. That is all I ever use when doing barrels. Or just about anything else, for that matter. It solves all of the problems of "hoping" a 3-jaw will run true.

Aloris Tool Holders and Set-True Chucks. Who ever came up with these deserves a special place in Heaven........jackie

Greg,

Big dittos on what Jackie says. Set-Thru chucks are the best things since bottled bourban. I have a Bison 6 jaw Set-Thru on my big machine and have never regretted shelling out the bucks for it. You can dial barrels down to Zip Point Sh!t with ease, and mine repeats under .0005. I don't have one for my small lathe (yet) and had to resort to the 4 jaw the other day. While not brain surgery, it is a colossal pain the arse as compared to using a Set-Thru chuck.

Justin

 

[eww1350]

Shiraz...I have the same vibration when using my 4-jaw chuck..will anti-vibration pads under the base resolve the problem.???
I was advised to do so by a vetran machinist..

Your thoughts..?