Round Magnetic Chuck for Lathe

darkzero

darkzero

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I know they're not very common for use on a lathe as they have lots of limitations. Just wondering if anyone here uses one? I've only used mag chucks on a surface grinder a few times, never on a lathe though & spinning. Don't know what to expect.

I'm going to use it for making thin washers or spacers. Unfortunately it'll only work for ferrous metals of course. In the past I would use epoxy or double sided adhesive which I will still have to do for non-ferrous metals.

I just bought a NOS 6" fine pole Yuasa mag chuck. Can't wait to get it.
 
I have one of those Yuasa mag chucks, too, Will. I have to mount it still but it should come in handy. I cannot begin to count the number of times I needed to make a spacer of a specific thickness or face both sides of a thin piece.
 
mikey said:
I have one of those Yuasa mag chucks, too, Will. I have to mount it still but it should come in handy. I cannot begin to count the number of times I needed to make a spacer of a specific thickness or face both sides of a thin piece.
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Oh nice, which one do you have, fine or standard pole? Well that's what I'm calling it for the Yuasa ones that I was looking at. The first one pictured below I had saved in my ebay list but I wasn't sure about the pole spacing, looked very wide & nothing running down the center. I figured that would not work for me. Then I started looking at imports but they were standard pole as well. I've been reading that fine pole is not as strong for larger parts & finer pole is better for thin parts so I figured fine pole is what I should get.

Then today another Yuasa popped up on ebay from the same seller as the other one. Finer pole & $55 less than the other one but oddly it has the same exact p/n. Seeing how much the Eclipse & Suburban units cost I jumped on the Yuasa. The second one below is the one I purchased. Should clean up nice, listed as NOS.

I hope I made the right choice about the pole spacing. Anything I should be aware of?


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Yeah, I read that fine pole is not as strong as the standard pole, too, so I got the first one you pictured above. I don't know that it will make a big difference because you aren't taking heavy cuts on these things. I think either one will work fine. Another reason I didn't go for the second type is because of the brass - I thought it might be more susceptible to damage and would need facing more often. Probably not a major concern given how little use it will see but it gave me pause.

I bought the wrong backing plate from Grizzly. I need to return it and get one that has no holes in it so I can drill it the way I want. Too much going on right now to attend to this so I'm sure you'll beat me to it but I know for sure this tool will come in handy.
 
I see, thanks Mike. I'm thinking I'll only use it for thin parts so I was just going based off what Stefan mentioned in his videos for fine pole. I didn't even think about the brass but it should be fine. He's the only one I could find info about lathe mag chucks. Well I guess I'll find out when I get to finally use it.

Awe man, another backplate I have to get, I hate machining CI!
 
darkzero said:
I see, thanks Mike. I'm thinking I'll only use it for thin parts so I was just going based off what Stefan mentioned in his videos for fine pole. I didn't even think about the brass but it should be fine. He's the only one I could find info about lathe mag chucks. Well I guess I'll find out when I get to finally use it.

Awe man, another backplate I have to get, I hate machining CI!
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To be honest, I don't think it will make a big difference with either type.

Yeah, cleaning up CI chips is not my favorite thing to do, either. I was thinking of facing the back plate and then sticking the chuck face onto it and then lightly facing the rear of the chuck to get it flatter. I don't own a surface grinder so I thought it might make it slightly more accurate. What do you think?
 
mikey said:
To be honest, I don't think it will make a big difference with either type.

Yeah, cleaning up CI chips is not my favorite thing to do, either. I was thinking of facing the back plate and then sticking the chuck face onto it and then lightly facing the rear of the chuck to get it flatter. I don't own a surface grinder so I thought it might make it slightly more accurate. What do you think?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I agree, not going to be taking heavy cuts with these things anyway.

I think that's a great idea. I've had times where I wanted to face the back of a cheap chuck just for good measure but those times I didn't have a way of holding the chuck to do so.

But in this case, simple cause it's a mag chuck. Good thinking! As long as the rear face is flat & perpendicular with the chuck body, that's good enough for me. Not like it really matters but hey why not.

I will check though once I get the adapter faced, I'll stick the chuck on & see how it measures. If it's good, I'll leave it & just skim the front face.

What size is yours? Is the back flat or does it have a register? I'm going to wait until I get it in hand before ordering the backplate. I can't find a product page, specs, or a manual for it online. With 6" chucks it varies & I don't want to go through with getting the wrong back plate. 6" chucks are all over the place, they come in 5.9"/150mm, 6.0", 6.3"/160mm, & 6.5/165mm". :confused:
 
Mine is a "6". The back has a 50mm register, about 1.5 mm deep. Otherwise, back is flat. It has threaded holes at 90 degree intervals for mounting.

I think its a good idea to wait, measure the chuck and then decide on the back plate. I got mine from Grizzly and it will actually work fine for what I want. I wasn't going to machine a nose to fit the register, since the chuck will see very little force but we'll see.

Let me know how yours turns out. I won't use this thing often but when I need it, I know I'll be happy to have it. Nice thing is that it isn't all that expensive, either.
 
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