Thread: Nova midi lathe vacuum chuck assembly

There shouldn’t be much difference between lathes. As long as you have the right thread to match your headstock and the vacuum pipe fits through the headstock spindle it should work. I’m using TMI bits and pieces for mine and the only issue I’ve had is that the rubber O ring wasn’t glued down very well. The same vacuum adapter fits both my Jet 1014 mini lathe and my Vicmarc VL300.

Vacuum Products

For bowls with an even rim I screw a piece of plywood on to a faceplate, cut a groove to fit the rim and use a cup live center - 13mm to hold the bowl on. I finish turn, sand, and apply finish on everything but the nub under the center. I then take the bowl off, place on a padded surface and cut off the nub with a bench chisel, sand & finish.

For natural edge bowls I made a fixture that I grab with a chuck that is padded and presses against the inside of the bowl about 1/3 to 1/2 of the way to the bottom. The rest is as above.

Even with international shipping, you could get a Tail Stock Steady for less than a vacuum chuck set up. All you would need after that is the will to use it, plus when removing the tenon, you would always be safely between centers.
Go to Wood Turning Tools | Tucson | WoodTurners WorkHolding Solutions and check out the videos. You could also go to youtube after clicking on one video from the website. Check out all the other videos. Most are boring, but they show the Tail Stock Steady in use. It performs better than any vac chuck or any other holding device in the current market today. ............ Jerry (in Tucson)USA