Teknatool chucks not suitable to woodturning.

[Jon Rista]

I don't believe the G3 chucks have ever had a sealed back. The other Nova chuck I have, SuperNova, does have a sealed back. I would guess sealed or not sealed would be at least a big part of the problem. However, I have to say that I have 2 G3 chucks, one I got with my first Nova midi lathe and the other in a special deal on a set and I've had zero problems with them. Maybe you just do more turning than I do. I don't believe that Nova's chucks are the best available, but they have been very reliable for me. The only time a blank has come off has been when I didn't get the face quite right or the tenon larger than I'd like and those were when I first started turning. I do clean out the back once in awhile on my G3 chucks but don't remember ever dissaembling them to clean.

My G3 are not sealed. The Record Power SC4 is, but the G3 are not.

I haven't had a blank come out of the chuck unless I had a bad catch. The main problem I have had, is the chuck functionality being impaired by captured compacted dust. Its happened repeatedly since I've owned them, and its a pain to deal with. I've had other bad experiences with Nova/Teknatool, and I'm just at a point where I need to be done with them. The annoyance factor is just too high. I like tools that don't get in the way and just work. Its been that way for my photography, my astrophotography, my computer work, and now...inevitably...my woodworking. I don't need "the best", but, I do prefer to work with "better" and anything that doesn't get in the way or hamper what I'm there to do.

 

[Rusty Nesmith]

That is interesting Jon. I have 3- SN2’s, 1- G3, 1- with Tommy bars, 1- SC-4 and 1- SC3. Never had one get clogged or gummed up. I have never used any kind of oil or lube on them. I just blow them out with air now and then.

 

[R Henrickson]

I've never had to disassemble a chuck for cleaning. This includes my oldest -- a 15-year old Stronghold and an equally old G3, used for both wet and dry wood. When they get a bit resistant or show some dust buildup, I remove the jaws and give the chuck a good dose of WD40, wind the jaws in and out a few times, let them sit overnight with the WD40, then wipe off what may remain and give them a brief spin on the lathe, using some scrap cardboard to catch any spray. I've never had problems from the WD40 getting on wood after a treatment. No lubricant. They're then fine for months of use.

 

[John K Jordan]

The Nova G3 and original Nova Supernova (1) have open backs with exposed gears and use geared pinion keys. The G3 uses a rigid key but the SN uses a key with a pivoting pinion gear. I know the reason for the pivot but I strongly dislike those. The two types of geared pinion keys are not interchangeable.

The SN2 and TItan have internal pinion gears, back plates, and use hex keys. I had some G3s and currently have SNs, SN2s, and one Titan2. I love these except for that ball on the end of the key, which I cut off.

To get any of these chucks full of dust would require doing something very different from the way I work. Every few years I might take some apart to clean out but I don't remember there being anything to clean, certainly not loaded with dust. Maybe some are power sanding without dust collectors and working in clouds of dust.

A time or two I applied a tiny bit of dry lube to the gears but the last time was years ago.

For the record, I'm very happy with the Novas. They are precise, strong, and I don't remember anything "flying" off any jaws. I have at least 20 Nova chucks but haven't counted lately. I keep duplicates of the most-used jaws on some, other jaws on others. I almost never change jaws.

I've bought some Nova chucks used and had to repair a couple that had been abused. I might be willing to buy any Nova chucks from those unhappy with them. Maybe I could "tune" them up and give them to a youth turning program our club supports.

JKJ

 

[Bill Alston]

My first chuck 20 years was an Axminster SK100, I sold it with the lathe. When I got a new lathe I bought another SK100 for it. The SK100 is an open back design and I’ve never had any issues with dust or dirt interfering with its operation. With an open back there’s really nowhere for the dust to get trapped.

I now have an SC2 and and SC3 and I’m not expecting any issues with those.





I have had to disassemble and clean metal work chucks before. Metal swarf can and does get into the front workings of the chuck between the front of the scroll wheel and the teeth on the back of the jaws.

One thing I never do is to clean off stuff with compressed air. I was warned against doing this on a training course. Compressed air can force dirt and dust into places on equipment that it normally wouldn’t go. Obvious when you think about it.

.

 

[Joel Daniels]

So I’ve been reading and watching this thread since the beginning. And the associated thread. I have to say, I really can’t understand the source of the issue with the Nova G3 chucks. Here’s my chucks. All are Nova G3 chucks. I purchased the first one from Rockler when I bought my lathe (Laguna 12/16). All the rest I bought direct from Teknatool. I buy my jaws separately. As you can see, I do not like changing jaws. I’ve had most for over a year and have not once had any issues - with either loose slides or dust build up. As you can see, I’m negligent in cleaning them. I guess in the end, each to their own. I’m happy with my G3’s.

 

[Jon Rista]

That is interesting Jon. I have 3- SN2’s, 1- G3, 1- with Tommy bars, 1- SC-4 and 1- SC3. Never had one get clogged or gummed up. I have never used any kind of oil or lube on them. I just blow them out with air now and then.

I think the SN2s are basically the same as the SC4, maybe with minor differences. I have never had any problems with my other chucks, and I have one with tommy bars as well. Its just the G3s. I actually spent more time this time, cleaning the channels for the slides with some steel wool. They did not have the smoothest surface, and I am wondering if maybe that played a role in how they captured dust in the channels for the slides...? In any case. I have been quite happy with the SC4, and I think I'll probably pick up another one of those for now. The one I have has never had issues in...I'd say about four years now (maybe just shy). Long term, I'll probably add an Axminster to gain access to their range of jaws, but the one I want plus the set of jaws I most need is a bit more than I can afford at the current moment.

 

[Jon Rista]

So I’ve been reading and watching this thread since the beginning. And the associated thread. I have to say, I really can’t understand the source of the issue with the Nova G3 chucks. Here’s my chucks. All are Nova G3 chucks. I purchased the first one from Rockler when I bought my lathe (Laguna 12/16). All the rest I bought direct from Teknatool. I buy my jaws separately. As you can see, I do not like changing jaws. I’ve had most for over a year and have not once had any issues - with either loose slides or dust build up. As you can see, I’m negligent in cleaning them. I guess in the end, each to their own. I’m happy with my G3’s.
View attachment 76553

FWIW, yours look cleaner than mine usually do. If I don't break them down and scrub them clean, they pick up and pack on a lot more dust than yours are showing. It is not humid here, its Colorado so quite dry. I honestly don't know the cause of the problem, all I know is that I have to clean these things out, or spend a heck of a lot more time blowing them out, than my other chucks. But even after say a month of use with nothing but blowing them out, mine will usually show a lot more dust than yours currently do...

I would love to have enough chucks so that I did not have to change jaws! That would be wonderful!

 

[Bill Blasic]

If there is one thing I know about woodturners it is, if they own it it is the best! As I have stated many many times I have and use all the major brands of chucks. I have never found that one brand is better than the others, they all do the same thing and they do it well. That is to hold a piece for turning on the lathe. The main difference is what each brand costs. Spending a 100 dollars more for one brand does not make it better than another. As I have also stated I don't go to the cupboard and choose a chuck by brand, I choose a chuck for which jaws are on it that I need. I have no dirty chucks and for 24+ years my chucks have just been blown out with the air hose. Wet wood/dry wood it has made no difference. I have never lubricated a name brand chuck, I can't state that for sure with a number of off brands that I have tried but none of those have stayed in my possession very long. And again I have more Nova chucks not because they are better but they are a better deal than the other brands. I like all my chucks!

 

[Doug Freeman]

I've come to the possible conclusion that the back seal on some chucks seal in the dust while not letting it escape on its own. Does that make any sense at all?

I think it makes sense. Any chuck will get some dust in it through the jaw slide area. I dont have experience with any rear sealed chucks, so I can’t attest to whether it becomes a problem.

The Nova G3’s and OW Stronghold I have are open back, and a few time some chips made their way into the scroll sometimes air blasts remove them, sometimes they need disassembly. Same thing would happen with a sealed back. Dust getting in the back side of the chuck is easily blown out.

 

[Bill Alston]

I think the SN2s are basically the same as the SC4, maybe with minor differences.

Differences I’ve noticed seem to be: RP chucks are plain steel, the Supernova 2 is Nickel plated. The RP chucks have wider chuck jaws. The RP SC4 has 48 hole indexing whilst the Supernova 2 is only 24. There may be other differences?

 

[Jon Rista]

Differences I’ve noticed seem to be: RP chucks are plain steel, the Supernova 2 is Nickel plated. The RP chucks have wider chuck jaws. The RP SC4 has 48 hole indexing whilst the Supernova 2 is only 24. There may be other differences?

I think there are some differences. Someone mentioned they were the same thing, but somewhere along the line I think RP took over the design of their own and the nature of the two has drifted a bit.

I know that the sealing on the RP SC4 is pretty good, and I don't think any dust will get in from the slides. The back is sealed, but additionally the RP has a part that connects a hex keyhole to the pin and ring. So that seals off the large holes that might have otherwise allowed dust into that area. Dust will get in, but the rate is dramatically slowed. The slides themselves, of course, operate in a channel and dust can get in there. That is actually where I've had most of the problems with the G3. I've never had a problem with the RP there. I don't know why its been an issue with the G3. The G3 ring in the back sometimes gets enough dust packed in it that I need to use solvent to clean the ring, but I thankfully don't have to disassemble for that. Q-tips do.

 

[William Rogers]

@Bill Blasic I agree with many things you say, but not all. At one time I owned 7 Nova and 2 Record chucks. They all held the wood. However I had that many chucks because I didn’t like changing the jaws messing with the screws and likely would have bought more. Several times the screw heads would be stuck or would strip out. I made the decision to sell all those chucks and switch to the Axminster brand. All of my Nova and Record chucks were insert version and most had 0.002” runout with one 0.005”. Useable. My Axminster are all direct thread and runout is 0.001” or less. I think Nova now offers a direct thread, but that didnt do me any good. I buy the jaw slides when I buy jaws instead of buying another chuck. I also have the Axminster O’Donnell jaws that I use a lot. Therefore the higher price Axminster is much cheaper than the Nova chuck in the long run for me. I also hated the left tighten on the Nova chucks I had. They have since changed. Their ball on the key only wears out the pinion, and I ended up cutting the ball off mine. While the Nova chucks serve you well, they don’t work for me and just because the Nova cost less doesn't mean it is equal to more costly chucks.

A friend was in both Rockler and Woodcraft and was told they were not going to carry the Nova chucks any longer. He said in store the discount was 40%. Looking on line Rockler web site doesn’t have much available, but not the 40% discount and same with Woodcraft. They didn’t say why.

 

[Mark Jundanian]

friend was in both Rockler and Woodcraft and was told they were not going to carry the Nova chucks any longer.

Teknatools is changing from a retail store business model to an online only model. So disappointing, but I guess no surprise.
Maybe they will use the shelf space for another name brand chuck.

 

[John K Jordan]

Several times the screw heads would be stuck or would strip out.

Yikes, we are obviously doing something different. In 20+ years with numerous Nova chucks from my first two to over 20, three models, I have never had a screw get stuck or strip out. I have watched another person mount jaws and thought he was using way too much force. I wonder what torque specs would be on those screws.

 

[William Rogers]

Yikes, we are obviously doing something different. In 20+ years with numerous Nova chucks from my first two to over 20, three models, I have never had a screw get stuck or strip out. I have watched another person mount jaws and thought he was using way too much force. I wonder what torque specs would be on those screws.

I have only had two strip in 5 years some stuck, but eventually freed up. That was enough to know I didn’t want to change jaws. thus kept buying chucks to avoid that, but not completely. That was only one reason I switched to the Axminster brand. Much, Much easier to change jaws and don’t need a bunch of chucks that just sit around taking up space. Much happier with the Axminster brand.

Maybe due to wet wood

 

[John K Jordan]

and don’t need a bunch of chucks that just sit around taking up space.

Makes sense.

The way I often work, especially with students, I often have multiple chucks holding partially finished pieces. They can stay in the chucks until finished.
Also, sometimes I'll need to switch back and forth between different jaws on the same project. On what I'm working on now, I have to switch between three chucks with different jaws multiple times. (this one is a bit unusual, but it happens.) I keep all the chucks not being used in a couple of drawers.

 

[Bill Alston]

Yikes, we are obviously doing something different. In 20+ years with numerous Nova chucks from my first two to over 20, three models, I have never had a screw get stuck or strip out. I have watched another person mount jaws and thought he was using way too much force. I wonder what torque specs would be on those screws.

The problem with countersunk screws (used on many wood chucks) is that the hex socket is smaller than that used on a cap head screw of the same size. Countersunk screws can also self tighten due to vibration. I’ve stripped out the socket on countersunk screws before. My Supernova 2 chuck thankfully came supplied with Torx screws so I’m not expecting any issues with them. Axminster Tools use High Tensile Cap Head Screws on their chucks which are in my opinion less likely to strip out.
I’ve made lots of tools and jigs in my workshop and I avoid Countersunk screws if at all possible on my projects unless I can get Torx versions.

Edit: Another issue with countersunk screws used in wood chucks is that the head sizes vary sometimes. As a result you may need to buy new screws if you’re fitting a different brand of accessory jaws.
From the Charnwood site:

 

[Asher Langton]

Teknatools is changing from a retail store business model to an online only model. So disappointing, but I guess no surprise.
Maybe they will use the shelf space for another name brand chuck.

Woodcraft seems to have filled the space with Rikon's clone of the Nova chuck.

 

[Jon Rista]

Teknatools is changing from a retail store business model to an online only model. So disappointing, but I guess no surprise.
Maybe they will use the shelf space for another name brand chuck.

The local woodcraft here in colorado used to carry Record Power regularly. I guess they are in the process of selling the store, so they have been reducing inventory a lot across classes, especially wood but a lot of other things. So I don't think they have carried RP here for a couple years. It would be nice if they did, though, as they are good chucks, and priced well too (and also compatible with Nova jaws, if you have a big collection of them already!)

 

[Jon Rista]

@Bill Blasic I agree with many things you say, but not all. At one time I owned 7 Nova and 2 Record chucks. They all held the wood. However I had that many chucks because I didn’t like changing the jaws messing with the screws and likely would have bought more. Several times the screw heads would be stuck or would strip out. I made the decision to sell all those chucks and switch to the Axminster brand. All of my Nova and Record chucks were insert version and most had 0.002” runout with one 0.005”. Useable. My Axminster are all direct thread and runout is 0.001” or less. I think Nova now offers a direct thread, but that didnt do me any good. I buy the jaw slides when I buy jaws instead of buying another chuck. I also have the Axminster O’Donnell jaws that I use a lot. Therefore the higher price Axminster is much cheaper than the Nova chuck in the long run for me. I also hated the left tighten on the Nova chucks I had. They have since changed. Their ball on the key only wears out the pinion, and I ended up cutting the ball off mine. While the Nova chucks serve you well, they don’t work for me and just because the Nova cost less doesn't mean it is equal to more costly chucks.

A friend was in both Rockler and Woodcraft and was told they were not going to carry the Nova chucks any longer. He said in store the discount was 40%. Looking on line Rockler web site doesn’t have much available, but not the 40% discount and same with Woodcraft. They didn’t say why.

I'm curious about the new G-series Axminsters. They have replacable backplates, IIUC, rather than inserts. Do you think this would maintain that minor 0.001" runout? I'm going to have to test mine again, see how it is with my RP SC4. It uses inserts, and they use a SINGLE set screw to lock in into place. I tested it years ago, and at the time, I think it was acceptable for my use cases at the time. I need to test again, see how it is today. I have never quite liked the fact that it uses just the single set screw...would prefer three.

I keep hearing good things about Axminster chucks, though, and I suspect I'll be adding some to my collection soon enough here. Hoping their machined backplate approach will limit any runout that you might otherwise get with an insert.

 

[Lennart Delin]

I'm curious about the new G-series Axminsters. They have replacable backplates, IIUC, rather than inserts. Do you think this would maintain that minor 0.001" runout? I'm going to have to test mine again, see how it is with my RP SC4. It uses inserts, and they use a SINGLE set screw to lock in into place. I tested it years ago, and at the time, I think it was acceptable for my use cases at the time. I need to test again, see how it is today. I have never quite liked the fact that it uses just the single set screw...would prefer three.

I keep hearing good things about Axminster chucks, though, and I suspect I'll be adding some to my collection soon enough here. Hoping their machined backplate approach will limit any runout that you might otherwise get with an insert.

I think you should not exaggerate the importance of extreme accuracy. When you grip wood there will always be some compression and wood is not homogeneous. Also as soon as you start turning down the thickness of the wood inbuilt tensions will also make it deform. Some
years ago I did a test of three chucks, including Axminster Evolution, to check what I could expect.

The roundness accuracy was measured with an indicator dial with a resolution of 0.01 mm. In general I can say that the roundness accuracy was very good, in all cases within +-0.1 mm. However, when clamping the bowl blank, you must observe a certain accuracy and carefully tighten and turn the bowl slightly before final clamping, you may need to try a couple of times. In one case it was +-0.27 mm, but it was clearly visible and after a little adjustment it came down to +-0.08 mm.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to make sensible tables on FB, but if you want, I can make a table of the detailed results and post it as a file.
The conclusion was that the runout accuracy of all the chucks, including the bowl blanks that have been gripped in the chuck, is completely satisfactory. Since it is quite common to experience poor runout accuracy, I conclude that it is essentially due to the blank warping as you turn away material. This is also a big reason to reduce the material thickness to the final thickness in one step and not go back when turning the bowl. First turn the outermost 2-3 cm to the final material thickness. Then continue with another couple of cm and so on. In addition to the outermost part warping so that you cannot go back, it is also unstable, so you cannot turn without getting vibrations and wave patterns.


I published the result in a public group on Facebook. It is in Swedish, but you can translate it with Google.
Right click, Translate to English, click Detected Language, click English

Hela Sverige svarvar i trä! | Jag blev inspirerad av chuckdiskussionen att titta på rundgångsnoggrannheten på mina chuckar | Facebook

Jag blev inspirerad av chuckdiskussionen att titta på rundgångsnoggrannheten på mina chuckar. Dels chuckarna i sig och dels hur bra det blir när man spänner upp skålämnet. Som försöksbit valde jag en...

www.facebook.com

 

[Jon Rista]

@Lennart Delin Ok...just to normalize those numbers, since they are in mm, converting to thou, we would have 0.004" == 0.1mm, or 0.003" == 0.08mm. An accuracy of 0.01mm is just 0.00039".

Conversely, runout of 0.01" would be 0.4mm.

So, is it really exaggerating to say that runout of just a few thou is good, but runout of a few hundredths not so much? I mean, three hundredth is over 1.2mm...

 

[Bill Alston]

I'm curious about the new G-series Axminsters. They have replacable backplates, IIUC, rather than inserts. Do you think this would maintain that minor 0.001" runout? I'm going to have to test mine again, see how it is with my RP SC4. It uses inserts, and they use a SINGLE set screw to lock in into place. I tested it years ago, and at the time, I think it was acceptable for my use cases at the time. I need to test again, see how it is today. I have never quite liked the fact that it uses just the single set screw...would prefer three.

I keep hearing good things about Axminster chucks, though, and I suspect I'll be adding some to my collection soon enough here. Hoping their machined backplate approach will limit any runout that you might otherwise get with an insert.

My Axminster Chuck has three set screws to secure the chuck to the spindle if reverse is required.

 

[Lennart Delin]

@Lennart Delin Ok...just to normalize those numbers, since they are in mm, converting to thou, we would have 0.004" == 0.1mm, or 0.003" == 0.08mm. An accuracy of 0.01mm is just 0.00039".

Conversely, runout of 0.01" would be 0.4mm.

So, is it really exaggerating to say that runout of just a few thou is good, but runout of a few hundredths not so much? I mean, three hundredth is over 1.2mm...

Well, 1 inch is defined=25.4 mm 0.01x25.4=0.25 mm. 0.03x25.4=0.76 mm, which is not acceptable. My result was that wood gripped in my chucks were accurate to 0.08 mm or 0.003"

 

[William Rogers]

. Do you think this would maintain that minor 0.001" runout? I

Jon, I do not have any of those chucks, so I don’t really know

 

[Jon Rista]

Well, 1 inch is defined=25.4 mm 0.01x25.4=0.25 mm. 0.03x25.4=0.76 mm, which is not acceptable. My result was that wood gripped in my chucks were accurate to 0.08 mm or 0.003"

Ok, then i think I was in the same ballpark, and 0.001" or 0.003" is a minor difference, and both are plenty acceptable. I have a thread adapter that gives me runout in the several hundredths range, and with longer blanks, its a serious problem. I still have the darn thing...I really need to throw it away as its unusable.

 

[Lennart Delin]

Ok, then i think I was in the same ballpark, and 0.001" or 0.003" is a minor difference, and both are plenty acceptable. I have a thread adapter that gives me runout in the several hundredths range, and with longer blanks, its a serious problem. I still have the darn thing...I really need to throw it away as its unusable.

One possibility could be to true up your jaws. Grip something at the jaw base and depending on your equipment, grind or turn the jaws true.

 

[Graham Dolby]

Lawyers recommendations and woodturners recommendations are evidently not close to each other.

Presumably that applies to the stupid cancer warnings for tools etc in the Craft Supplies catalogue,

 

[Brian Gustin]

Presumably that applies to the stupid cancer warnings for tools etc in the Craft Supplies catalogue,

They'd be better off requiring labels on stuff that DON'T cause cancer...