Just wanted to pass along some information. I finally picked up a self centering 4 jaw chuck 3" for my lathe. After a bunch of research I got the H7605 from Grizzly and for a self centering chuck under 50.00 it is great! holds material no problem and my mandrels with out any slip. With a 1"x8 TPI it allows the mandrels to pass though the center allowing you to 'choke up on your material" to minimize any woble.

Thanks for the report Eric, this might be just what I'm looking for.

Walt Davenport
"Roadhouse Rods"

Eric,
Though it appears that the metal jaws of the four jaw chuck are biting well into your mandrel, there is a possibility that slippage may occur. If that happens your mandrel could come away from your live center - a bad thing with the weight of the wood mounted on the mandrel. Others may also recommend using a drill stop collar against the chuck jaws.

Jeff

Jeff,
One thing to help in this area is to use a keyed, or keyless chuck that is ball bearing mounted and fitted into your tail stock.
This allows the mandrel to be chucked into the chuck on the tail stock end with the other end chucked into the head stock chuck.

Take care
Roger

Thanks for the feedback, right now I use a small amount of tape built up, maybe 1/8-1/4 high and push this up against the jaws prior to snuging it down just for that reason. Your idea of the stop seams a little easier though. Safety is always the first concern.

An accident that could have been a LOT worse than it wa last year made me a firm believer in drill stops The TK nandrels from Backlash Tools are great for preventing that also

Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!