Question For You 1340gt Owners

jbolt

jbolt

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For those of you that got the preferred package do feel it was worth the extra cost?

Is the quality of the chucks that much better than the standard Chinese stuff? How does it compare to a Bison or a Buck?

Jay
 
When I bought my 1340GT I received one of the last of the old Preferred Packages, and was not impressed. I recently received one of the new 4-jaw chucks from the new Taiwan package and am quite satisfied with the quality of that chuck. Nice step up from the old package IMO.

I didn't get the upgraded 3-jaw as I had already bought a Pratt Burnerd 8" set-tru to replace the 6" that came with the lathe (I'll use that chuck on my rotary table).

I don't have it on the lathe, but here's a couple of pics from when I was unboxing it.

IMG_0686.jpg

IMG_0688.jpg


Someone on here reported that when they installed the new 4-jaw that they had zero run-out on the body. Not too shabby. :)
 
New chucks are much better than the generic Chinese ones, tolerances are the same as the Bison or Gator. I also have the new 8" 4J that Bill has, and it is comparable to my Bison chucks in tolerance/performance and finish. When you consider that a 4J Bison D1-4 will cost close to the same as the whole preferred package, I would say that the preferred package is worth the additional expense if you do not have chucks. Some of us use a Set-Tru type of scroll chuck, you can dial them down a little closer on the repeat TIR when not using an independent type, they will cost about the same as the whole preferred package. If that is something you are interested in QMT does sell the Bison Set-Tru chucks. The actual TIR of a standard scroll is probably 0.002" or better, Set-Tru is ~0.0004", a 4J independent can be dialed in to probably 0.0001" (just takes longer).

I would say, that the new preferred package is significantly better than the previous package, I would not even consider a generic Chinese chuck on this (or most) quality of lathe. Had them, they where either returned or sit in their boxes. The Gator chucks supposedly are direct copies of the Bison, installed one of their D1-4 back plates on a Bison chuck the other day, very nice finish and tolerance at 1/2 the price of the Bison version. Bill and I have the PBA scroll 3J Set-Tru type chucks, very high quality units :). They are available through Grizzly, but are about 10% more than the Bison version . Ajax Industries also has a wide assortment of chucks with very good pricing.
Mark
 
Thanks guys. I'm about to pull the trigger on a PM-1440GT in the next few days. (deciding on new equipment is not easy!)

I already have 6" import Set-tru chuck that is actually pretty decent. I think it is a Bison copy. It may not have the fit and finish of a higher quality but it repeats extremely well. If I get this lathe I will be getting a high quality 8" Set-tru type chuck so I'm not sure I need a standard 3-jaw. I will also put a new back-plate on my 6" set-tru. My Chinese standard 3-jaw was 0.0015" from day one so 0.002" does not seem any better. I rarely use the standard 3-jaw anymore. I have never worked with a high(er) quality 4-jaw so I don't know what the difference might be. The Chinese 8" 4-jaw I have has never been a problem to dial in though I did end up regrinding the jaws to be perfectly axial.

The other items in the preferred package are a live center and 1/2" drill chuck (which I already have high quality versions of), a halogen light and micrometer stop. I may have answered my own question. Decisions decisions.....

Jay
 
You sound like me... ;)

I too was intending to purchasing a quality 3-jaw set-tru, so I wasn't concerned about the quality of the 3-jaw. I bought the rather pricey (for me) Pratt 8" set-tru and can set it to where I can't see the needle move on a .001" DTI. And repeatability was so good I forgot what it was. :rolleyes:

If within your means, the Pratt (PBA) chuck is the best I've seen outside of a high-end commercial shop.
 
The 3 jaw chuck is nice but it is not a direct mount (requires an adapter plate) as the 4 jaw is. Mine has about .0025" runout as delivered, I haven't had a chance to mess with it to see if I can improve that. I think for the cost it should have been better than that but re-machining the adapter plate (or just a new one) should fix that. There are also some tweaks you can do to improve the stiffness of the sheetmetal stand, much easier to do up front before mounting the lathe on the stand. Most people have not had an issue but a few have so just something to be aware of.
 
mksj said:
New chucks are much better than the generic Chinese ones, tolerances are the same as the Bison or Gator. I also have the new 8" 4J that Bill has, and it is comparable to my Bison chucks in tolerance/performance and finish. When you consider that a 4J Bison D1-4 will cost close to the same as the whole preferred package, I would say that the preferred package is worth the additional expense if you do not have chucks. Some of us use a Set-Tru type of scroll chuck, you can dial them down a little closer on the repeat TIR when not using an independent type, they will cost about the same as the whole preferred package. If that is something you are interested in QMT does sell the Bison Set-Tru chucks. The actual TIR of a standard scroll is probably 0.002" or better, Set-Tru is ~0.0004", a 4J independent can be dialed in to probably 0.0001" (just takes longer).

I would say, that the new preferred package is significantly better than the previous package, I would not even consider a generic Chinese chuck on this (or most) quality of lathe. Had them, they where either returned or sit in their boxes. The Gator chucks supposedly are direct copies of the Bison, installed one of their D1-4 back plates on a Bison chuck the other day, very nice finish and tolerance at 1/2 the price of the Bison version. Bill and I have the PBA scroll 3J Set-Tru type chucks, very high quality units :). They are available through Grizzly, but are about 10% more than the Bison version . Ajax Industries also has a wide assortment of chucks with very good pricing.
Mark
Click to expand...

I've been hearing the Gator name thrown around lately. Don't know anything about them.
 
sanddan said:
The 3 jaw chuck is nice but it is not a direct mount (requires an adapter plate) as the 4 jaw is. Mine has about .0025" runout as delivered, I haven't had a chance to mess with it to see if I can improve that. I think for the cost it should have been better than that but re-machining the adapter plate (or just a new one) should fix that. There are also some tweaks you can do to improve the stiffness of the sheetmetal stand, much easier to do up front before mounting the lathe on the stand. Most people have not had an issue but a few have so just something to be aware of.
Click to expand...

All the chucks I own have had back plates. I would rather match the back plate to the lathe than take a chance on a one piece chuck.

This lathe is a slightly different animal than the 1340GT but it still has a steel stand. Matt says it is reinforced where it needs to be.
 
jbolt said:
I've been hearing the Gator name thrown around lately. Don't know anything about them.
Click to expand...

Jay - I have a 8" Gator 4 jaw on my 12 x 36 lathe. Very good fit and finish. I machined my back plate from a D1-4 blank that came with my lathe. After mounting runout was less than .001". I'm looking to buy a 6" 3 jaw Gator to replace my made in India chuck sometime soon.

Tom S.
 
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