NOTE: There's nothing mysterious or high level user about collets. They are just another/much better way of gripping small stock. They are just another type of chuck that can be fitted to all modern lathes, that will grip harder, better, more accurately, without marking or destroying the job. Very few lathe users seem to cotton on to what they are missing out on. Do yourself a favour and get set up for collets. ER are the most popular and give the greatest compression range. Cheers Rob

@jeffreyyoung4104

3 жыл бұрын

I just purchased 29 imperial ER 40 collets and a collet holder for my lathe, as I don't have a small stock holding method, other than a drill chuck, which will work with some things, but not with very fine stock. Not to mention my three jaw chuck is not in great shape. When I can afford it, I want to expand my collets with metric size collets as well.

Thanks for the lesson in collets Rob - much appreciated!

Great explanation and demonstration. Thanks Rob! Joe

Thanks for the video Rob. Interesting information. I was looking at collets. This has come in handy. Keep safe and stay well.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Colin, once you use them and realise just how effective they are you will be hooked. To newbies collets look like high end gear that only a factory would use, but that's not the case. It's just another lathe chuck, that grips work all the way round and is relatively inexpensive these days. Easily added and removed. Cheers Rob

@nikond90ful1

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu Thanks again.

Rob as usual great video. As a young Fitting &Turner I was taught to always reverse my Tap or Die to break the swarf and keep the cutting tool clear. Not so bad with free cutting brass and steel, but a good habit to prevent breakage of fine Taps. Keep the videos coming.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Tracey, brass is probably one of the worst at self clearing drill and tap flutes, after aluminium which is terrible. Yes, to preserve fine drills/taps you need to clean them regularly when drilling. Brass also likes to bind when tapping as you are doing it dry. It is great to machine, but a bit tricky to drill and tap at times. Stay safe and well. Cheers Rob

the best way to hold stock for sure , Great for small stock ! ENJOYED Rob ..

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

It's unbeatable for small work Shawn. Cheers Rob

Thanks Rob, this was a particularly good video because you shared many little tips, a few of which were new to me. Totally agree on the use of collets. Upon your recommendation, I also got mine (ER32) from CTC tools and have been very happy with them, together with one of their keyless chucks, Morse taper’s etc.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Glad to hear that CTC are still good Brian. They still get recommended in Forums, so they must be OK. I haven't had to buy anything for a while, but they would be my first choice. Cheers Rob

Thanks for all the collet info. I selected ER40 collets when I started setting up my little home shop and use the morse taper chuck in the headstock. I had worked for many years in a machine shop but unfortunately was never taught how to properly tighten the drawbar in the lathe and how to knock it out like you demonstrated. I only wish I had watched your video before I started beating the living crap out of my drawbar to drive out a taper I had locked far tighter than necessary. Once again, Thanks!

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Glad it helped. It's Morse taper so you basically only need the same force/tension as you would use for the tailstock - it's no different. So about a fifth of a turn will be plenty. Cheers Rob

Great video. Keep sharing the knowledge. Cheers m8

Thanks Rob. 👍 Nothing wrong with letting off a little steam now and then! 29:00 BTW, the top belt in the gear box is looking rather gnarley. Must be due for a change in the new year 😉

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Laz, yes, the belts have done a lot of work and been replaced a few times. The change gear oil spray does them no good. Times up when they disintegrate ;) I always have a spare handy. Cheers Rob

Great video Rob, all hail the adoption of collets 👍👍👍 On my small lathe I have found that you can safely use a morse taper collet chuck in the tailstock without a tang. Even with fairly large drill bits it will hold securely without coming loose. Cheers, Alan.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Alan, yes that's right, they will hold fast in the tailstock without a tang. The tang is only there to enable ejection, unlike on a drill press where the tang generally engages and prevents turning, as well as for removal with a wedge. If your tangless Morse taper ejects OK, it must be slightly extended on the end - generally they don't. Have a 1698 for me. Cheers Rob

@RetroSteamTech

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu Hi Rob. It usually needs a little persuasion to eject 🙂 All out of 1698 at the moment but as the pubs are now open again it's not too much of an issue!! Cheers, Alan.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Alan, I stocked up yesterday. They had it out at 4 bottles for $18 AU, which is as cheap as I've seen it. If that morse collet chuck has provision for a draw bar it would be a simple matter to put a small length of bolt in there to make ejection easier, Just cut a bit of appropriate thread and put a screw driver slot in one end. I did it to a couple of mine. Cheers Rob

@RetroSteamTech

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu Hi Rob. Nice score on the 1698. That's a good idea on the collet chuck, I think they are threaded 10 mm so I will give that a go. Cheers, Alan.

i made a hollow draw bar for my collet chuck ,great for long bits of small stock

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Good idea Lewis. Cheers Rob

Thanks, great explanation

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

I have almost the same lathe as Rob. (its the europe version) Insert diam of the spindle is 26 mm. A 3/4 inch gas pipe is 26,2 mm. So I made a bit smaler and screewed that on a peach round of 40 mm. So my drawbar is hollow. So up to 20 mm stock can as long as you want in an ER32 collet. The collet taper is turned in the lathe. So super in center.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Kees, I have considered doing similar to my CQ9325 (same as the HBM450), but as I have two other lathes with feed through I haven't bothered. For the money I would probably buy a bolt up collet chuck these days if I was to kit out the lathe for collets again. Good idea though. Cheers Rob

Easy project to turn a collet chuck. I made an ER40, plan to make something bigger but that needs my own design of collet too. Rarely use my 3 or 4 jaw. If you turn it yourself, the runout will be in the single ten-thousandths when you re mount it.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Not difficult. I made one for the Schaublin and it worked out OK. You must get a snug thread though or it won't be accurate.

I use my collet chuck often like that , best way to hold small parts concentric . Cheers .

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Right on

I’m a relatively new subscriber (3 or 4 months) and I’m sure you’ve answered this question before, but could you please give me a link for your collet kit? Really enjoy and appreciate your knowledge and vids. You have been a huge help to me. Thanks!!!

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Mark, I bought my collets and collet chucks from various places over the years. For accuracy at a competitive price I recommend CTC Tools, who have consistently supplied decent quality products. A lot of cheap ER collet gear being sold is not accurate, so shop wisely. Here's their link : www.ctctools.biz/ I have bought from them many times over the years and not been disappointed. Cheers Rob

@markashlock9017

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu :Thanks for the link to CTC Rob. I wasn’t familiar with them. Just what I was looking for : )

Hello Rob, Good video, I am a fan of collets... I have some ER16 but will also get some ER32's early next year... Take care Paul,,

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

They are the way to go Paul. Cheers Rob

Hey Rob. Not sure if you're able to get hold of any W20 collets for your Schaublin, but I have a 1.666 w20 collet puller going spare if you want it. It's from an ARE, so might not be the right length for your headstock, but they are easily modded. Direct spindle mount W20 is far better than an external ER collet chuck, IMO - you're much closer to the headstock, and at least with Schaublin collets, additional runout is close to the bounds of measurability, sub-micron on my machine apart from a couple of rather tatty ones which run out 5 microns or so. They're expensive new, but over here in Europeland a full set runs about 200 euros second hand.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Michael, I have a nearly full set of W 20's that came with the lathe. Most are in worn condition. I rarely use them because of the poor compression factor. ER can be technically more accurate than W20 as it compresses evenly full length of the collet while W20 only compresses half the length. That's why C5 style collets are only really good for close to nominal sized work. Thanks for the offer, but I would never use a collet puller. Cheers Rob

On my big lathe I typically use the ER 32 collet block as that lathe has a 4 jaw on it all the time and it is quicker to centre up the collet block in the 4 jaw rather than remove the 4 jaw and use the MT type or a spindle mount collet chuck . Hopefully by tomorrow arvo i will have collets and collet chucks coming out of my wazoo ! ER11 for the 3020 engraver , ER16 for my drill sharpening jig , ER20 for my mini lathe all in metric and imperial and a set of imperial ER32 collets to add to my metric set for my mill . Got a couple of the tang type (MT2) ER32 chucks , one for the big lathe and one for my drill press coming and the ER16 and ER20 chucks for the drill jig and mini lathe as well . Banggood must think i have a collet fetish i reckon 😂 But more seriously i have had enough of drill chucks chewing up the shanks on my drills 😡 Now i just need to find an ER chuck that fits my battery drill ! It is the worst offender of them all ! I reckon Ryobi drills would have to have the worst keyless chucks ever invented 💩

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Ian, I have also used the collet block in my Chinese four jaw as it then allows feed through. Yes, swapping out big heavy chucks is bad news and I made the point in the video. It's good to see that having a large lathe hasn't deterred you from using collets. I've been driving this point to viewers for many years and I'm pleased to see that many have become converts and are eternally grateful ;) Cheers Rob

Enjoyed...I have er32 collets ordered from BGood

@johanandersson9287

3 жыл бұрын

Chuck - You'd better check those out thoroughly on arrival before the money-back guarantee expires... I've ordered a few MT 2 & 3 ER32 chucks from BG thru the last two years, finding all 4 of them had both concentricity and runout problems up to +/- 0,05 mm, and my BG Imperial & Metric collet sets measured about the same runout AFTER I'd reground the collet chuck in situ (down to 0,005 mm runout). All other aspects of the machining is excellent - it's just that all the collet's holes are both non-concentric as well as at an angle... Haven't yet come around to grind alla the darned collets - 2 years after... Check this for a few other's experiences of same: kzread.info?search_query=Banggood+collet+set+review All the best! Nice channel you've got, too! 2 cents from DIYSwede

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Johan, I don't think much of most Banggood collet offerings. Apart from their nice bolt up collet chuck, the only collets I've reviewed have been sub par, as lots of buyer comments indicate. Other reviews have also been critical and I have advised BG on several occasions that they need to lift their game on the quality of the ER offerings. This is not just a BG thing and lots of Ebay collet gear is total crap. So buyer be ware. The only store I have consistently bought from and found to sell accuarte gear at a reasonable price is CTC Tools in Europe. It's still Chinese tooling but accurate. Here's their link: www.ctctools.biz/ You pay a little bit more but it's worth it. Cheers Rob

On the drawbar type collet closer vs. the regular collet chuck... I personally don't know much, having just bought my first lathe (bear with me), but 2 machinists I know have both told me that collets are the way to go for holding small work. The gunsmith is totally convinced that the collet chuck is absolutely the way to go, because they are better for the one-off type of work he typically does. The machine shop guy on the other hand, is totally convinced that the drawbar type collet closer is absoloutely the way to go, because it is better for the production type of work that is his bread and butter. Kind of a moot point for me since there isn't a drawbar type closer available for my lathe; I have to get the chuck.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

ER and C5 both have their pro's and cons. ER are easier to use and have a much greater compression range. C5 only grip at the nominal size, but can come in a range of internal shape configurations, allow feed through, and offer a quick action lock and release system for repetition work. C5 don't have self release like ER. It would be fair to say that ER is the most widely used collet system today, but C5 is still an industry favourite for production work. I have also got W20 (for my Schaublin) which is like C5 and personally hate using them because they have zero compression range compared to ER. ER will grip a much wider range of sizes for a given number of collets. Cheers Rob

Concerned about deflection of the bit that I watched. Will it cause tolerance problems? Elsewise, found it a clear working concept.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Deflection where John ? If you mean using tailstock creep to cut threads, not really provided the lathe has prismatic ways and the tailstock isn't loosened off too much. I've never had any issues doing it this way. Cheers Rob

@tomweinstein

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu At 16:00 your spot drill looked like it was deflecting significantly. Is your tailstock off center? Or could that be caused by the tip geometry of your spot drill? Or am I seeing things?

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Tom, that wasn't a spot drill, that was a jobber drill and any deviation would be from tip geometry. Cheers Rob

Nice mod to the original design Rob, looks better proportioned being bigger at the base with the nut in place. Happy to send you my drawings for the tailstock die holder I made (doubles up as a sensitive drilling device which for this small stuff would be useful). If you want a copy, drop me an email and I will send out. Cheers, Jon

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Jon, thanks for the offer, but I will continue to use tailstock creep for now ;) It works fine provided you don't let things get sloppy. I have considered making a sliding die holder, but it's just another project for a rainy day. The old style pull down type tailstocks do have some advantages over cam lock at times Yes, with the big lathes you really must use a sensitive drill feed or it's snappo time. The smaller the lathe, the better the tactile feel for sure. Cheers Rob.

Hi Rob, I agree that collet chucks are great. Safety valves are quite simple to construct but there is a calculation that must be performed before it can be labelled a "safety valve". There is a scenario where the heat source can boil the water at a greater rate than the valve can evacuate the steam and as a result, the pressure within the boiler can exceed the safe working pressure. The calculation involves the bore size of the valve and its capacity to pass the steam generated. So even though the valve is statically tested as you did using air pressure, and blow off at the desired pressure, it may not be safe! This is in no way to denigrate your video but rather to bring to you and your follower's attention a significant safety issue. Incidentally, it is recommended the ball be set in its seat by placing a brass rod onto the ball and giving it a sharp rap with a hammer. This ball is. then discarded and a new ball used in the valve. I always enjoy your vids, you have lots of great ideas and energy. Many thanks, Richard

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Richard, yes I'm aware of that, but it's good that you make the point. The safety valves I made are for low pressure steam and small capacity boilers, so they will be perfectly adequate. In the previous video I mentioned you can scale the dimensions up to suit the boiler capacity. Cheers Rob

Hello, Thanks for the video. What size of ER collet do you recommend in General ?

@Xynudu

2 жыл бұрын

ER32 is probably the most popular range, but the smaller sizes also get plenty of use from the mini/micro lathe guys. ER40 and larger are less popular for home use as it's more expensive, not so readily available in budget lines, and also considerably more bulky when working in close. A four jaw chuck should be able to handle most work over 20 mm provided it's not deformable/ thin walled tube etc. Occasionally I wish ER32 went a bit larger and you can buy oversized collets up to about 28 mm (from memory) but they are a bit of a fudge really. I'd recommend ER32 overall, but it comes down to personal requirements. Cheers Rob

So you have convinced me to get my Cheap Chinese 7x14 a collet chuck. I need to find out the taper and then bob is your grandma.

@Xynudu

7 ай бұрын

It will be Morse 3. All mini lathes are the same. Having said that, you will be much better off with a bolt up to the drive plate style collet chuck than one using a draw bar, as the bolt up style allow the work piece to feed though the spindle. This is a big plus. Cheers Rob

Question Rob. How is you three jaw chuck attached to your chinese lathe? How did you remove the chuck, it looks like you left the backing plate on the spindle and unbolted the chuck body? Why not unscrew the chuck and backing plate as a single unit? Thanks Greg

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Greg, on very many Chines/Asian lathes the drive plate is part of the spindle (it's all one piece) and the chuck does NOT screw on. So to remove the chuck you simply undo three bolts and off it pops. This also means the chuck can't unscrew when you reverse cutting rotation. It's a very good system and gets over issues with chucks stuck on etc. If a non OEM chuck does not mate with the locating holes you then use an intermediate/backing plate with the chuck. Cheers Rob

Great project Rob. Would it be possible to calibrate it relatively with an air compressor.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Calibrate ?

@markthompson4885

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu It is supposed to be a pressure relief valve is't it? You should know what pressure it pops at.

Great video, but your tailstock is low. I noticed the die jump up & the drill did the same.

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Tailstock is fine. I didn't face off the end after I cut it. Also brass tends to grab really sharp drills.

Would 1/8 NPT not be a preferable thread to attach to the boiler?

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Use whatever thread you like. BSB would be better.

@trollforge

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu interesting, why do you think so? I am thinking NPT, because it is designed for pressure applications, (I had to Google BSB) where as BSB is designed not to undermine tube strength of Standard Brass tube, which you are not using...

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

BSB is also designed for high pressure application. It is a standard thread used on steam loco's. In theory you could use any fine pitch thread, but BSB is a good choice, and was widely used for hydraulic/pressure applications as well. It is a relatively old type and modern equivalents/tapered fittings have largely taken over. Cheers Rob

@trollforge

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu thanks Rob now that choise makes more sense!

Where to get quality and good price collets on aliexpresss?

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

What's your next funny question ?

"These are the collets you're looking for "

Also large lathe owners too

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Yes definitely Adam, but as small lathes usually do small/fine work, I focused on their use in that size range. Cheers Rob

@carneeki

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu Yup, I have ER32 and 5C on my 10in swing lathe, but when I went to TAFE (finished up yesterday!), the 250mm chucks were a little comical to hold some 10mm bar, I would've loved my collets for that!

@Xynudu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Adam, yes the bigger chucks will only grip down to a certain size and you bust a gut changing them. Plus the tactile feel with large lathes is terrible. That's why I don't like them. If you need that sized lathe, then fair enough, it's justified, but most hobbyists and back yarders don't. The trouble is newbies listen to the wankers on forums (the exception who make the most noise) who tell them to buy the biggest lathe they can afford, even if it's a worn out old piece of shit. I feel sorry for them. It'a all an ego trip from those members I refer to as "big dickus - mines bigger then yours, so yours must be a toy" ;) Cheers Rob

@carneeki

3 жыл бұрын

@@Xynudu I totally agree about the big lathe ego trip! You also don't want to run a huge chuck at 2500 RPM for some small bar either! That said, the extra mass in the casting is really nice for dampening vibration. Have a good one :)

I just now ran into this bloke, I am guessing that he is Australian. I assume when he says: "Mills " he is not referring to: "mils" (a thousands of an inch) but millimeters. Ron W4BIN