flyslinger wrote:I went to Rockler and watched a turning demo Sat. and he had his speed down to about 100 rpm for the rough bowl turnings he was doing, the SS lowest setting is about 750 rpm so the speed reducer would be nice for that, however between the chuck and the reducer thats about $600 dollars . So if I just got the chuck for now, about big can I turn before I would need the reducer (I would want to know I really liked turning bowls before I make that much of an investment)
flyslinger
Start with small 4-6" turnings and work up. As the size of your turnings (bowls) increases you will know when or if you need the reducer. Rockler is in the business of selling large dedicated lathes and in all honesty bigger is not always better.
ldh
As Flyslinger said start small and work your way up. That way you will gain some turning experience before going to large bowl. The larger the piece the more difficult it is to turn. That said how large depends on how balance the wood is. If the lathe is bouncing you are going to fast. Also the larger the piece is the slower you need to turn.
You do not need a chuck to turn. You can use a face plate and and glue a block on to the bowl. When finished turn off the glue block. You should have gotten a face plate with your SS.
If you want the chuck but it first and gain some experience. At a latter time you may want the Speed reducer.
I would like to point out a misconception that was written in an earlier post about size versus difficulty in woodturning.
A large woodturning, such as a large bowl, really isn't any more difficult to turn than a small bowl. All the cuts you make with your lathe chisels are the same. The only difference is the lathe speed and the time it takes to turn the blank into the bowl. A large spindle is not more difficult to turn than a small spindle. Again, it just takes longer and the speed of the lathe is a bit slower for the larger one.
Take this advice from a woodturner with 20-plus years experience.
Also, here are two companies that sell several lathe chucks that with the proper adapter (which they also offer) will fit a Shopsmith:
I have a PSI Barracuda2, which is internally threaded for 1" x 8tpi .. and am REALLY frustrated using the PSI 1" x 8 tpi Shopsmith Spindle Adapter (Item #: L5818) ... the amount of runout is really irritating ..
If I was never going to reverse-turn any object, the runout would not be a big deal, but I have hopes of turning some peppermills and such, so "center" matters.
If anyone knows of a better choice for adapting the Shopsmith spindle to 1"x8tpi, I would be all-ears!
thanks
Jeff Taylor / Bloomington, IN
10-ER (1952) / Mark V (1985) / bandsaw / jointer
Jeff, that looks like a nice chuck... Have you tried contacting PSI about the runout problem and see what they say?
ShopSmith MarkV-520 with Belt Sander, Jointer, Band Saw, Strip Sander, Scroll Saw and Biscuit Jointer SPTs and a DC-3300...
Woodworking Hobbyist (Check out all my Woodworking Plans (http://vbwhiz.isa-geek.net/plans)
Aspiring Sandcarver: Breaking glass one grain at a time.
Black Powder Shooter (love the smell of burning sulfur).
Jeff,
I have to agree with Tom. When I ordered my pin mandel from them the SS version off course. I received the package of the CD with no mandel I called them and they have the mandrel send next day. They are very helpful and good customer service. I'm sure they would be able to help you with this problem. Just a curious question not to be take wrongly please. Are you sure you getting the set screw tightend up against the flat of the SS spindle before threading the the chuck to the adapter. Also if the set screw is loosening after using it a bit try putting some teflon tap around the set screw then tightning it. Just my 2 cents I could be totally wrong since I only have a Talon chuck.
SS 500 upgraded to 510; SS bandsaw; SS jointer
SS Oscillating Drum Sander; Universal Lathe Rest;
lathe duplicatior, shaper fence and shapers; SS Belt
Sander
Jim www.youtube.com/kd6vpe
I personally have the PSI adapter and do not use it and complained to them as the the fit of the setscrew is wrong... I even went as far as giving them the correct information... The one I have the setscrew is a very sloppy loose fit and I'm afraid to use it. I had thought about drilling and adding a second setscrew but never got to it.
However this has come up before and you can get a good one from another company. Please check out this post:
It also could be the chuck itself... either here or one of the other sites a guy mentioned sending back 3 of them before getting one that was right???
Ed
jefftaylor wrote:I have a PSI Barracuda2, which is internally threaded for 1" x 8tpi .. and am REALLY frustrated using the PSI 1" x 8 tpi Shopsmith Spindle Adapter (Item #: L5818) ... the amount of runout is really irritating ..
If I was never going to reverse-turn any object, the runout would not be a big deal, but I have hopes of turning some peppermills and such, so "center" matters.
If anyone knows of a better choice for adapting the Shopsmith spindle to 1"x8tpi, I would be all-ears!
thanks
{Knight of the Shopsmith} [Hero's don't wear capes, they wear dog tags]
The main problem with using the PSI adapter is that it causes the chuck to extend out from the spindle with little support, which in turn causes your runout.
Other chucks, like Oneway's Talon or Stronghold and the various Vicmarc chucks, have adapters that attach up inside the chuck, allowing it to fit snuggly up against the headstock as if it were threaded for that particular lathe. This prevents the runout.
PSI pretty much designed their chucks to be used on their lathes, or lathes with the same thread count, without the use of an adapter, though they do offer them for sell. The adapters they do sell are not that great in quality and are sold as a cheap way to get by until you can move up to one of the better made chucks.
Most quality chucks cost $200.00 or more and are made so a wide variety of specially-made adapters can fit them, including adapters that will fit a Shopsmith spindle (5/8" plain).
