Versachuck jaw flinging woes

[Vulcan]

Lots of generalisations within the above answers. As this is the Wood Turning & Lathes section we should restrict our answers to wood turning chucks.

In case you were unaware, the current range of wood turning chucks are based on metal turning chucks.
In fact the very first Axminster precision chuck (1980?) was an off the shelf metal turning chuck. There’s very little difference between some of the Axminster wood turning chucks and those used on metal turning lathes.
Axminster (and probably others) noticed that some metal turning chucks had two part Jaws. Chuck or Base Jaws and bolt on Top Jaws. Axminster just had Top Jaws (they sometimes call them Accessory Jaws) made to suit wood turning applications.

Axminster make some longer carriers which means they may possibly protrude safely beyond the chuck body but until I check I don't know whether that is the case. The design may be that the jaws are mounted further out on the carriers so that the carriers have no need to protrude.
One chuck I owned had a (removable) roll pin to stop carrier 4 from being extended too far therefore the carriers had to be entered so that carrier 4 ends up in the right slot. Sorry can't remember which chuck.
I also had another chuck where the carriers were numbered wrong & had to be fitted in the order 1,3,4,2.


The other thing that is confusing for beginners is using different names for the same thing. Chuck jaws & carriers (Axminster's terminology & what I use) are two different items. Jaws are attached to the carriers by means of screws or bolts. The teeth on the underside of the carriers mesh with the scroll on the chuck to move them in & out.

If you have an unnumbered set of carriers, the front tooth on number one will be furthest forward with each front tooth being slightly further back than on the previous carrier.

I agree about confusing terms. Axminster and others frequently make up their own names instead of using more appropriate ones that have been around for over a hundred years.
The Scroll or Self Centering Chuck, on which many wood and metal turning chucks are based, was invented in 1840. The patent holder called the Chuck Jaws “Slides”. Within about ten years others had improved on the concept and in later patents the name changed to “Jaws”. There’s a very obvious reason for this. Each Jaw has several large “teeth” on the back that engage with the Scroll Wheel. Many also have rudimentary “teeth” on the front as well to grip the workpiece. I think it’s fair to say that since about 1850 most machinists have been calling them Jaws, Chuck Jaws or sometimes Jaw slides.

Wood turners, including some professionals have invented or repeated: “Carriers”, Carriages”, Travellers, “Sliders” and probably several others. None of which are exactly descriptive of the component.

One thing is for sure. Whether it’s a metal work Chuck or a wood turning Chuck, they are all *Four Jaw Scroll Chucks.

I have never seen a four Carrier or Traveller Chuck, have you?

*For metal working you can get scroll chucks in 2 Jaw, 3 Jaw, 4 Jaw and 6 Jaw. There may be others.