6” Chuck decision

I have actually been watching that one on eBay. No problem buying used at all. Just get an uneasy feeling as I don’t tend to trust people when it comes to money. But rust and pitting not a big deal. I’m purchasing a high quality chuck to actually use daily if possible. Not at all to have a trailer queen so to speak. What make you think it barley used?
 
Look at the jaws - no wear that I can see. The pins show little wear, too. It's mostly cosmetic pitting, not wear. For a chuck that would cost over $1K, it is in pretty good shape.
 
Great points! All of which I agree with. I dropped from a 10” to an 8” chuck to reduce weight on the spindle and as importantly the inertia on my machine. I believe a 3 jaw chuck has some advantages in the way they clamp vs a 4 jaw. My 12” 4 jaw independent is a direct mount where every ounce saved there is huge, I guess (I can’t lift it anyhow).
A possible consideration and the only reason I keep my old 10” 3 jaw around is that I often need the chuck body to “swallow” parts that are bigger then the slightly more than 2” spindle bore. Depth and capacity inside the chuck body is huge for me.

I don’t really adjust my “set-tru” chuck often at all because even when rechucking I get pretty good repeatability (under 0.002”) which is fine most often. If I have a single round part that needs to be as close as I can get it, I’ll get out the 4 jaw which sits in the trolley at the back of the lathe. If there are multiple parts to be made in a second operation and they need to be really close, the adjustable chuck is great, fantastic even. Since getting the adjustable chuck, I use my collets way les than previously. My scroll plate is pretty good but it’s super quick to make a small adjustment if a certain diameter stock is being used. It’s a great option but as pointed out here there are downsides to most things.
 
Think I’m gonna make him an offer after viewing his other items. Taking it as a sign that I was already watching it and you mentioned it. Your right the jaws don’t look worn at all.
 
Forgot to mention that the pinions show no signs of use. That little bright spot at the bottom of some of them are machining marks.

If you get it, a nice soak in an Evaporust bath and a bit of polishing on the lathe will have it looking good.

I've looked at a lot of chucks on ebay and bought too many, too. This chuck looks really good to my eye. It looks just like my Pratt Burnerd 6-jaw set-tru chuck looked - dirty but was in near mint condition, purchased for 25% of retail.

Good luck!
 
I’m gonna go for it and offer $525. It does look good. Only thing that sucks is I don’t even have my lathe yet. The Suez Canal fiasco pushed the delivery from basically today til mid late July. But if I don’t pull the trigger now while I have the cash think I’ll regret it later. The 3 jaw that comes with my lathe is probably not the greatest. Better than nothing but I’d like to start off with something higher in quality. Any guesses what year it was manufactured? Doesn’t matter of course but I like the older tools they were built with a since of pride made to last. Sure wish I could have gotten an older American made lathe but gave up the search after a handful of years. Just couldn’t find the right one that wasn’t ridiculously overpriced. Happy as hell to be getting even a Chinese made lathe tho. Much more than I ever expected to get.
 
The Chuck has a serial number so Pratt may be able to tell you it's date of manufacture.
 
I recently purchased a 5 inch PBA Chuck and was very disappointed with the quality. it was at the level one expects from a China product.
 
Looking at that PBA model you are referencing, it caries the Atlas name and as Mikey mentioned when they list the country of origin as "import" it almost always means mainland China. You would be better off buying buying the higher end Shar's chucks. I would just go for the Bison 3245-6, it is a known quantity and new. The eBay PBA chuck, is hit or miss, and that price level for the condition I would not consider it. I have seen new 3J Bison, Rohm, etc. go for a similar price. Here is an example of a new Bison 8" camlock (probably D1-6) with shipping one could probably get for $650. Just an example it is a waiting game, but I have seen much better for less.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/313241437408
This is close to the same price as the eBay used PBA and new:
www.smalltools.com

Bison 6" 3 Jaw Self Centering Manual Chuck D1-4 Mount 7-803-0634

Bison 6" 3 Jaw Self Centering Manual Chuck D1-4 Mount 7-803-0634
www.smalltools.com www.smalltools.com
 
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