I would be curious how the Easy Chuck compares to the Stronghold. I know Stuart Kent swears by it and he does turn some pretty large stuff - I know even using the talon I have never had a problem...
I would be curious how the Easy Chuck compares to the Stronghold. I know Stuart Kent swears by it and he does turn some pretty large stuff - I know even using the talon I have never had a problem...
Hi Hank, and all,
I have been off the map here lately, due to the holidays and a bottleneck of work at the shop. I am starting to see the light again, so I thought I would take a minute to say hi to everyone, wish you all a happy and prosperous New Year, and add my 2 pennies on a discussion.
Yes, I do VERY strongly endorse Easy Wood Tools. I've been at this for a long time and when I started using EWT products I never looked back. It appears a lot of people share my affinity for American made products. I have visited the EWT plant in Kentucky and have become friends with the company founder. They do in fact make everything in the U.S. and they are so committed to that central idea that even their raw materials are now sourced domestically - the steels, the carbide, the wood, all of it!
As for chucks, I have owned and/or used almost every brand. Easy Chucks are expensive, but you really do get what you pay for - and in this case you get more for your money. The machining on Easy Chucks is simply flawless and jaws can be changed in 30 seconds with perfect, repeated alignment every time. They have patented quick adjusting zoom rings, and something like 9 jaw types currently available, with more in development. In terms of capacity I turn 36" diameter pieces with and they do not slip - in other words the holding power is as good as anything on the market. I have two of these, one for big lathes and one for a MIDI and prefer them over any other brands for both types of machine.
As for EWT tooling, again I am a big fan. Like many serious turners I have a shop full of fine, traditional English-made HSS tools and they still have their place in my work,
but once I started using EWT chisels again, they became the tools I use 99% of the time.
As for the lathe, again, I am in the Powermatic camp. Best all purpose machine on the market. One of the universities where I taught had OneWay machines and they are nice, but dollar for dollar I think you get more machine from Powermatic and I don't want to pay for bronze knobs. The 3520b is heavy duty, reliable, straight forward, and simple with no cheap or skimpy parts. I ran mine through the ringer making pieces that WAY exceeded what the specs say is possible, and never had a complaint from it.
Go for it Harry!
