screw chuck

[Dave Fritz]

I want to make a small screw chuck. The directions call for a #4 wood screw. How do you seat the screw so it's running true?

Others suggested using a self threading sheet screw metal screw. The question is, how do you square everything up before glueing it together?

Thanks for your input.

Dave Fritz

 

[hockenbery]

I want to make a small screw chuck. The directions call for a #4 wood screw. How do you seat the screw so it's running true? Others suggested using a self threading sheet screw metal screw. The question is, how do you square everything up before glueing it together? Thanks for your input. Dave Fritz

Fritz,
There are many ways to do this accurately. One important element is being able to recenter your screw chuck.

I would turn a wooden Morse taper and the mating surface of the screw chuck.
With the morse taper seated drill a pilot hole.
Cut the head off the sheet metal screw. Turn the cutoff end on the grinding wheel chamfer cut an make it a bit pointy.
Use epoxy and run the cutoff end into the hole.

You can hold the sharp end of the screw in some pliers with leather to protect the threads and turn it in.
Lock the head stock.
Screw that sticks out should be centered and parallel to the ways.
Once the epoxy cures the work piece should come off leaving the screw in the Morse taper.

If you just want to use it a few times.
You can put a small block of dry wood in a four jaw chuck, turn a tenon, drill a pilot hole and run the sheet metal screw into the block using spacers to limit how far it sticks out. Flip the block in the chuck. And it is done. You can plan for how much the screw sticks out by the thickness of the block and counter sinking the screw. You can bck the screw out and turn the mating profile for the screw chuck.

After some number of uses the jaws will begin to eat into the tenon. And the screw will be off center. If it is hard wood you could get a lot of uses. There is no good way to return the tenon for the jaws. Make another screw chuck.

Never hurts to mark the number one jaw spot on the block so you use the same position. ( I don't bother with this in the ONEWAY or Vicmarc chucks.). The chuck might work a long long time.

Al

 

[dbonertz]

Good directions by Al but as he mentioned a tenon will eventually not run true. Contact this guy for good inexpensive face plates for such applications
Bill [william_b_noble@msn.com].

Or better yet buy a worm screw for your chuck and mount it into the jaws. It will run true all the time and is easy to use. When I rough out bowls I use one in my vicmarc chuck with 5" or six inch jaws on it. I have used it with the 3 and 4 inch jaws also. Bigger bowls I like the bigger jaws and screw.

Dale

 

[Odie]

For those reading this thread, who can be persuaded to getting a dedicated screw center chuck, I've found that Precision Machine makes some very excellent all-steel ones. They are available through CSUSA. The review of the product you see on the link is mine.....

http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/109/5506/Precision-Machine-3"-Screw-Center-Chuck?term=screw center chuck

I've never been a fan of aluminum faceplates and screw center chucks. I suppose they are ok for the occasional use, but steel is better. It's more durable, and is guaranteed to withstand use and abuse for a lifetime of turning......

I currently have 6 of the 3" screw center chucks.....2 of the 1 3/4" SC chucks, and 2 of the SC 4 3/4" chucks.

ko

 

[Dave Fritz]

I probably should have clarified the intended use. I want to make small refrigerator magnets with scraps of nice wood. I'm using a #4 wood screw in the chuck.

Dave Fritz

 

[Bill Boehme]

Rather than using a screw which leaves an ugly hole, how about double sided tape. The demo at our club this month was by Janice Levi on making wooden jewelry. The pieces ranged from about 2 1/2" inches diameter and smaller. She fastened the pieces to the waste block using small pieces of double sided tape from Craft Supplies. She.said that she has tried numerous brands and the one from Craft Supplies is the best.

 

[Dave Fritz]

This is the plan I'm following: http://www.woodturningonline.com/Turning/Turning_projects.php?catid=110

It's the one by John Utech.

I've done everthing like he suggested however when I try to seat the screw from inside through the hole it doesn't run correctly. I'm going to try Al's suggestion of drilling the hole, then cutting the head off a #4 wood screw and inserting it into the hole with epoxy. I'm sure the more of the shaft I can get into the hole, the more stable and true the screw will be.

Actually if I ran it from inside and had enough of the screw in the wood I suspect it would true it up as well.

You can see the hole will be covered by a rare earth magnet so no one will see it.

Thanks for the input, sorry to be vague about what I want to do.

Dave Fritz

 

[Odie]

This is the plan I'm following: http://www.woodturningonline.com/Turning/Turning_projects.php?catid=110

It's the one by John Utech.

I've done everthing like he suggested however when I try to seat the screw from inside through the hole it doesn't run correctly. I'm going to try Al's suggestion of drilling the hole, then cutting the head off a #4 wood screw and inserting it into the hole with epoxy. I'm sure the more of the shaft I can get into the hole, the more stable and true the screw will be.

Actually if I ran it from inside and had enough of the screw in the wood I suspect it would true it up as well.

You can see the hole will be covered by a rare earth magnet so no one will see it.

Thanks for the input, sorry to be vague about what I want to do.

Dave Fritz

Dave......You might want to consider this one.

http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/107/706/Precision-Machine-Arbor-Screw-Chuck?term=screw center chuck

I apologize if you just want to make your own screw chuck, and have no interest in a commercial alternative. I also have this Morse Taper small screw chuck, and it's made by Precision Machine, as well. When I bought mine, it was quite a bit cheaper, but it's made so well that you can use it for a lifetime.

If you still want to make your own miniature screw chuck, you might want to try making the pilot hole for the screw a bit larger, but very slightly smaller than the screw threads themselves. This may help keep the screw straighter than if the pilot hole were a more standard size for this type of application. I don't know what your difficulty getting the screw straight is, but this may be something to try.

ko

 

[Dave Fritz]

Odie,

What is the diameter of the outside of that? They don't have that listed.
I notice too there is a lip around it, do you know the diameter inside the lip?

Thanks,

Dave Fritz

 

[Odie]

Odie,

What is the diameter of the outside of that? They don't have that listed.
I notice too there is a lip around it, do you know the diameter inside the lip?

Thanks,

Dave Fritz

Howdy Dave.......looks like the outside diameter is 1 1/4", and inside the lip is 1".

ko

 

[Dave Fritz]

Thanks for that information. I think I'll see what I can do, I'd like the outside diameter to be 1/2 inch.

Dave Fritz