Rubberflex Chucks

[AlanT]

This is my first post on here and I'd like to show my Jacobs Rubberflex chuck.
These are well known in the US but rare in the UK.

For those that don't know this is an industrial collet system that covers 1/8in to 1 3/8in with only elevern collets.
Normally they go on big lathes, but this one has found a home on my tiny ML10.

https://flic.kr/p/hE2h74

[awemawson]

Hi Alan, welcome aboard.

The Rubberflex system is quite common on tapping heads and the like here in the UK

[vtsteam]

Alan, also a welcome

It kind of reminds me of the mass and overhang of the 3 jaw chuck I added to my Gingery lathe -- and one of the reasons I'm increasing the spindle size. Do you get chatter at times?

I think one of the great advantages of a MT and similar collet systems is that they fit in the spindle bore of lathes so equipped, and really bring the work close to the headstock --- I mean besides the advantage of easy centering. And with low mass they don't act like a giant low frequency tuning fork.

[AlanT]

I reckon these J900 size collets are pretty rare here in the UK.

Its a bit more likely to chatter but not too much.

I also have ER25 collets but these have are a pain to release. i have to sort of undo them twice.
This chuck releases the collet at once and its just like using the key on ordinary Jacobs chucks.

I work quite a lot of biggish plastic material and one advantage of this chuck is that you can work a 300mm stock bar, without cutting off a bit to work on, to reduce the stick-out. Saves a lot of odd-end left-overs.

Normally these chucks come on a non-threaded mount of various types.
This one fits on an ordinary back-plate which you must machine to fit.

[John Stevenson]

Got a couple here, one for each lathe but not the keyed type, the large handwheel type.
To be honest I'm not that impressed with them to the point I can't remember the last time I used them.

Day to day use I rely on soft jaws most of the time as I can customise them to what I want.

Holding of large long stock is always limited by the spindle bore what ever the machine so on a ML10 this would be 9/16" approx ?

[AlanT]

The handwheel is the usual type. I can't swing those.

These chucks are not cheap, even well used, so somebody must like 'em.

Super on thin section like pipes.