Question: Charnwood Nexus 3 chuck?

[stateit]

I'm almost a couple of months in with woodturning. I bought a long bed Record Power No 3 (CL3) with three chucks and a wide spread of gouges, scrapers and skews. And I'm really enjoying the journey.

The chucks I received, while working fine and having a good range of jaws, are the older Masterchuck style where you need two tommy bars/C spanners to open/close them, and this is a real bugbear in the workflow. I've got on with it so far, but can obviously see the benefit of single handed operation.

I'm finding few reviews of the Charnwood Nexus 3 chuck, and plenty of reviews of lots of other makes. Before investing in a new chuck and jaws, does anyone have experience of the Nexus 3, and be able to compare to some of the other options? Vicmarc don't do a 3/4" 16 insert, so I'm ruling Vicmarc out until I move onto another lathe, which may not happen for a long time...

TIA

 

[Will Dutson]

I'm almost a couple of months in with woodturning. I bought a long bed Record Power No 3 (CL3) with three chucks and a wide spread of gouges, scrapers and skews. And I'm really enjoying the journey.

The chucks I received, while working fine and having a good range of jaws, are the older Masterchuck style where you need two tommy bars/C spanners to open/close them, and this is a real bugbear in the workflow. I've got on with it so far, but can obviously see the benefit of single handed operation.

I'm finding few reviews of the Charnwood Nexus 3 chuck, and plenty of reviews of lots of other makes. Before investing in a new chuck and jaws, does anyone have experience of the Nexus 3, and be able to compare to some of the other options? Vicmarc don't do a 3/4" 16 insert, so I'm ruling Vicmarc out until I move onto another lathe, which may not happen for a long time...

TIA

I've been using a Nexus 3 for a few years, and have also used it on someone's CL3. Both lathes have 3/4" 16tpi and I've used the Charnwood adaptor successfully (chuck is threaded as M33 3.5tpi). For the price it's fine. It's prone to corrosion, so needs cleaning and protecting. I made the mistake of leaving an oak bowl blank (green) in situ, which resulted in very crusty jaws. The Axminster stainless steel chucks are well made, but somewhat more expensive. There are plenty of thread adaptors available, so you don't need to limit yourself to brands. At the budget end, Rutland often have deals on their check sets.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Have a look at these, the backplate allows you use existing chucks and jaws on another lathe with a different thread, just replace it with another one.
I have two.
https://www.beaufortink.co.uk/toolpost-versachuck-wood-lathe-chucks

 

[stateit]

... I made the mistake of leaving an oak bowl blank (green) in situ, which resulted in very crusty jaws...

Thanks for that comment. That helps explain the rusty jaws on some used eBay and FB marketplace offerings. Good steel blends aren't a cheap option for manufacturers. Noted.

 

[stateit]

Have a look at these, the backplate allows you use existing chucks and jaws on another lathe with a different thread, just replace it with another one.
I have two.
https://www.beaufortink.co.uk/toolpost-versachuck-wood-lathe-chucks

Thanks. I'm on their 'notify me' when available list for the 3/4" insert, so they are an option for me. I guess another manufacturer's accessories such as spur and steb centres would fit into the jaw carriers?

 

[stateit]

Bumping this up with another question:

Charnwood Viper3 jaws are compatible with Vicmarc VM100 chuck -with the Charnwood V3JS screw set.
Working with engineered things (electrician) I know that the opposite compatibility doesn't always happen.
Does anyone know if Vicmarc jaws can be used on the Charnwood Viper3?

I know the net cost of just buying Vicmarc chuck & jaws is negligible, but I've just been royally shafted financially by someone and the solicitor fees to claw some of it back are making me count every penny at the moment. Woodturning is keeping me gladly sane...

 

[stateit]

Reporting back:

I went with the Viper 3, and kit jaw set, and also have a Vicmarc shark jaw that fits perfectly on it. I have no other 4-jaw scroll chucks to compare it to, but am happy with it.

What I do know is that the Vicmarc jaws fit perfectly on it. And I am loving the 35mm jaw travel (vs 38mm on Vicmarc VM100) is such a joy compared to the maybe 10mm jaw travel on my other 1990s and 2000s vintage chucks. I have been able to remount several pieces I was not happy with and refinish them to a way I prefer.

I realise the Viper 3 chuck and 'kit jaws' are not necessarily engineered to the best fine tolerances. But I imagine my 1990s lathe isn't either. I don know I am having a satisfying time with my new chuck and jaws. I'm hoping to snag a used Viper3 tomorrow, so I can have big jaws on one and sharks on the other. Then I'll be happy until the next wallet-biter comes along. Plus - I'm happy that when I do upgrade my lathe, I'll have an M33 chuck and jaws ready to go...

[edit] And OMG those Vicmarc shark jaws are good...[/edit]