Bison vs Gator chucks

B

BWS Arms

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I need a 4 jaw independent chuck for my new to me lathe. It currently has a 10" Bison 3 jaw that I am well pleased with. The difference in price between Gator and Bison is pretty steep. Is the Gator comparable to the Bison in quality? If I am going to drop over a grand on a chuck, I dont want any suprises.
 
Bumping with the same question. I'm thinking a 4 jaw independent chuck brand isn't a big factor it if scroll chuck then yes but may be wrong. Brand may matter do to options (revers jaws) on the particular chuck.
 
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I have a generic 8" 4 jaw on my small lathe. I assume its a china chuck. The jaws are crap. You can see daylight at the rear 1/3 of each jaw.
 
When I bought my used Jet lathe it had a worn out Bison 12 inch chuck on it. I replaced it with a new Gator 12” and have been pleased with it.
 
At least some of the Gator chucks are made in China. That doesn't always equal bad, but it might explain the cost difference.
 
Bison makes a great chuck. Pratt-Burnerd is another chuck you may want to consider. I have four chucks: 3-jaw and 4-jaw in both 6" and 8". For three of them, I got great deals on ebay by searching for 'New-Open Box'. My recollection is I paid roughly half of what 'New' would cost. A word of caution: Make sure you're getting the higher end line. On Pratt-Burnerd, they have two grades (if I'm remembering correctly). One is made in England; the other is made in China. HUGE difference in price, but just as significant a difference in quality. You get what you pay for. I would suspect the same consideration is likely with Bison. If you're patient, 'New-Open Box' can save you a boatload of money. There are other equally good brands out there. Some of our other experts may chime in on additional brands.

Regards
 
P.S.: Just did a quick perusal on ebay. There are several 'New-Open Box' listings for Bison's in various sizes and configurations.
 
Money spent on a good chuck is worth it. I've had quite a few chucks by now, and I've kept only the Bisons (but I do miss a Pratt-Burnerd, even if it didn't fit my new machine). 4-jaws allow runout to be adjusted by design, but the quality of the chuck dictates the experience you have getting parts set and holding them that way through the duration of the machining operation. In a nutshell, tenth-thousandth movements are easy and predictable in my Bisons. B-line import chucks make thousandth movements unpredictable and fiddly.

Definitely look into your new old stock or open box purchase options, you can save a lot of money that way. Used is okay too, as long as your eyes are keen to the details.
 
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