Beware Of Chinese Jacobs

I just caught this thread I am in the process of purchasing a 16n Jacob super drill chuck. I have a MT3 tailstock Percision Matthews 1236 and I was wondering can I put the 18n Jacob's super drill chuck on there? By putting an adapter on the tales stock -will that compromise the rigidity and the maximum strength that the tailstock was meant to hold?

Second question whether I end up getting the 16n or the 18n --guys where should I get it from I don't want a Chinese rip off . Who has had a good experience and where I will check out those websites
 
Swerdk,

I know nothing about any of the PM machines but assume that you mean that yours has a 3MT socket in the tailstock ram. If that's correct then you just need an arbor that is 3JT to 3MT for the 16N or 4JT to 3MT for the 18N. No adapter needed.

As far as where to buy either one, I never cared for the Super Chucks so don't have any recommendations. But if you find one advertised as NOS (New Old Stock) or NOSB (New Old Stock in the original Box), you should be relatively safe as there probably hasn't been enough time elapsed since Jacobs shut down its US plant for wholesalers or retailers to have gone out of business and their stock to appear on eBay. Otherwise you should buy a used one.

What I did was to buy several different sizes of older Jacobs chucks and to buy up enough NOSB sleeves, nuts and jaws in the old green boxes to rebuild most or all of them.
 
I just received an 18N today. I wish I had found this thread first. Sure enough, the top of the box says made in China. :mad: Mill will be here next week. We will see if it's runout is bad or not.
 
Well, who knows. Check the spindle or quill runout first. If it is OK, then check the chuck. The Chinese can make pretty decent equipment. They just won't do it unless someone holds their feet to the fire. No pride of workmanship. I happen to have direct experience with this in small electro-mechanical parts. But I probably wouldn't, either, if I were being paid what they are.
 
wa5cab said:
Swerdk,

I know nothing about any of the PM machines but assume that you mean that yours has a 3MT socket in the tailstock ram. If that's correct then you just need an arbor that is 3JT to 3MT for the 16N or 4JT to 3MT for the 18N. No adapter needed.

As far as where to buy either one, I never cared for the Super Chucks so don't have any recommendations. But if you find one advertised as NOS (New Old Stock) or NOSB (New Old Stock in the original Box), you should be relatively safe as there probably hasn't been enough time elapsed since Jacobs shut down its US plant for wholesalers or retailers to have gone out of business and their stock to appear on eBay. Otherwise you should buy a used one.

What I did was to buy several different sizes of older Jacobs chucks and to buy up enough NOSB sleeves, nuts and jaws in the old green boxes to rebuild most or all of them.
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Thank you for clarifying. I need 4JT to 3MT arbor. I would perfer 18n. I will comb ebay.
 
Swerdk, my one and only Chinese Jacobs chuck had a lot of run out AND wouldn't grip a twist drill brand new out of the box. It was promptly returned to Enco for a refund. You might get lucky and get a Chinese made Jacobs chuck with acceptable run out. BUT make sure it also holds the drill. I suspect even if it does initially it might not do as well after it is a little "seasoned". I've never had a holding issue with any of my US made Jacobs or Albrecht drill chucks. If you find a likely prospect on e-bay make sure the seller accepts returns if it doesn't meet your needs.
 
Earlier in this thread I mentioned my new Jacobs chuck. It has not seen a lot of use yet, I don't drill alot on lathe, but the drill chuck has proved flawless. I actually prefer it to my well worn Albrecht, but as I said it does not have much use yet. It and its packaging had no marking as to where it was made. I suspect it will serve me fine. But if I had known it was not US made I would have ponied up the extra $100 or so an bought an Albrecht.

michael
 
wa5cab said:
Well, who knows. Check the spindle or quill runout first. If it is OK, then check the chuck. The Chinese can make pretty decent equipment.
Click to expand...

You may also consider chucks with integral shanks, I use one with an R8 integral shank (Glacern R8-DC500) on the mill and a 3MT (Z live CNC precision 1-16mm) on the lathe. As best as I can tell the TIR is better than 0.002" and they work well. I believe both are of Chinese manufacturer, but may be built to higher QC standards. At this point I prefer the Z-live, and it is about 1/2 the price of the Glacern which has doubled in price since I bought it. :eek:
 
I was just able to check my 18N in the mill. It's mounted on a Jacobs R8 arbor. I checked it with a Best Test .0005" indicator mounted in a Noga holder. I measured a TIR of .0025" as best I could tell. This was measured on a 3/8" solid carbide endmill. So I guess It meets or exceeds the .003" TIR they advertise. I can live with that. I still wish it had been American made though.
 
Doubleeboy said:
My Jacobs chuck JK 160-MT4 arrived from Zoro today. Actually it was supposed to be here last week, but all they shipped was an empty box. Luckily that was taken care of with no drama. My fears were confirmed, although the chuck , box and literature say nothing of country of origin, the certificate of inspection states .0016" runout and stamped with a Chinese looking stamp for the inspector. Chuck seems okay, but lathe is not here yet and wont be for a week and I have nothing to hold a MT4 arbor with to test it. Sure would be nice if suppliers would let you know the country of origin of their merchandise, and sneaky of Jacobs to make no mention of country or origin either. I let my guard down and got what I deserved.

michael
Click to expand...

That's odd, I thought by law they had to have the country of origin identified.
 
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