What Chuck to buy for new Record CL4

[Cordy]

Fairly new to wood-working and enjoy it very much
Planning to buy a new Record CL4 and stand -- going rate about £1K delivered

Not owned a lathe before and looking forward to having a go
Recently joined my local woodturning group at Wigan

Not sure what general purpose chuck to buy; hence this post
Most likely general spindle work and modest sized bowls etc - not pens or similar small items

I know it's possible to turn without a chuck but they seem a very useful tool to have

Buying chisels, sharpening gear and loads of other extras will come in time
Any advice much appreciated

 

[dcmguy]

I’m no expert, so I can only offer a layman’s opinion. After lathe, wood and tools I find sharpening to be the most important, next priorities being dust management kit and a chuck. But that’s just me ...more experienced folk will prolly be along and give their opinions too.

 

[pickledegg]

Fairly new to wood-working and enjoy it very much
Planning to buy a new Record CL4 and stand -- going rate about £1K delivered

Not owned a lathe before and looking forward to having a go
Recently joined my local woodturning group at Wigan

Not sure what general purpose chuck to buy; hence this post
Most likely general spindle work and modest sized bowls etc - not pens or similar small items

I know it's possible to turn without a chuck but they seem a very useful tool to have

Buying chisels, sharpening gear and loads of other extras will come in time
Any advice much appreciated

I can only offer my own experience - got a Record Power SC3 with my lathe and have been very happy with it. It seemed to be the best priced chuck I could find for the money too, there were some cheaper options but the SC3 seems to be compatible with the bulk of jaws etc. on the market and from what I gather is just a slightly tweaked Nova G3.

I looked used but couldn't find any good deals at the time, since then of course I've seen things pop up on ebay though so I would suggest maybe looking around a bit on the off chance.

I did buy everything else at the same time as the lathe though, I suppose it could be argued that the ability to sharpen tools properly is more important than a chuck but I knew for the turning I wanted to do that it was all necessary.

 

[hawkeyefxr]

I have a record DML305 and use a Record SC4 chuck, i admit i bought this as it was about the cheapest at the time and the biggest though it is a very good chuck. you will get a set of jaws with it. I was very confused on this, i have an engineering back ground and lathe chuck jaws ( that's the bit's that go in and out when you use the chuck key) are not the same on a wood tuning chuck. They are called jaw carriers. There are different jaws for different things, these bolt to the jaw carriers.
I have the standard set that came with the chuck and have turned a 12 inch bowl and did not lose it. I have since bought a set of pen blank jaws because i want to make some light cord pulls out of pieces of odd wood rather that keep burning my left over. I also bought the reverse holding jaws that allow me to hold a bowl so that i can turn away the spigot that was clamped in the jaws at the start of a bowl project. The 12 inch bowl i started on a face plate, much safer.

hope i haven't waffled on to much.

 

[Dalboy]

Have a look at Axminster chucks as they can expand with extra jaws as needed as your turning does. Also Robert Sorby Patriot.
I have three Patriot chucks set up with different jaws and other jaw sizes which are not used as much as those fitted

 

[Fire_frogs]

I use the RP sc4 chuck. It's great and the sorby patriot jaws fit too so I've been told. I can't say anything bad about it, it's great.

 

[yorkshirepudding]

I second the RP SC4. I have 3 and with the various jaws available they do all that I require.

 

[Cordy]

Thanks for all your replies

Something similar to this would apparently be a good bet ?

 

[Hornbeam]

Have a look at what jaws/accessories are available with each different model. As your turning develops you will want different types of holding capability so check this out. Also look at the cost of diffenentt jaw sets as these can vary from about £25 to £60 for similar jaws for different makes of chuck

 

[Duncan A]

I would be very surprised if a Record Power dealer didn't give you a deal to include a RP SC4 chuck at a reduced price. The SC4 is good value at it's usual £120 - £130, depending on offers, and may well be discounted down to £100 at the Harrogate Show in November. Ask your dealer to see if he can match that, or wait until November and go along to the show - you may get the lathe cheaper as well!
SC4's are jaw compatible with the Sorby Patriot and Nova chucks, but not with the Axminster chucks.
Duncan

 

[Cordy]

Thanks for advice Duncan
Bivens will be showing at Harrogate

Probably not go there myself -- but I will phone Bivens in a couple of weeks time and ask if they have show deals

 

[Duncan A]

My experience of Bivens is that they are a good bunch and open to sensible discussion over deals.
I may be at Harrogate myself, not certain just yet.
Duncan

 

[marcros]

I think that all of the branded chucks are of a similar minimum standard. some may be better quality than others, but I dont think that there is one that is below acceptable.

I have a record power chuck which has been good. It is a small one for my jet mini, so not really relevant to you. I am now looking for a second, and am going to buy the versachuck. This allows me to buy any jaws of my choosing (i may have to buy some different jaw carriers for some makes of jaws). By this, i mean that i can choose the best jaws available for the job in hand. The versachuck may be worth considering.

 

[Mal]

I've got a CL4 and bought a Record SC4 chuck to go with it, very pleased with it!

 

[Robbo3]

I posted a chuck summary (2014.01.02)
- woodturning-chucks-some-info-for-those-new-to-the-hobby-t76139.html

It's a bit out of date now.