I can use a faceplate and turn a small bowl, sure ... it comes out nice if I hollow it and finish the inside and most of the outside that way, but then I part it off and the bottom needs to be finished by hand... I don't really like this method.
I've tried using my 3-jaw to turn a small bowl, told you guys what happened there... It wasn't terribly fun. I turned the outside between centers and managed to turn a 1-inch long tenon on the bottom, then flipped it around to hold in the 3-jaw. It kept wiggling out any time my tailstock wasn't in use.
I'm thinking I may need to just buy another 3-jaw and modify the jaws to give it a very slight dovetail grab. I can't do that yet because that will make it impossible for me to drill my blanks with it anymore, and I only have just the 1 chuck.
I appreciate you looking for a used chuck for me, but as I already mentioned, I'm between jobs ... currently have no money to spare. Thanks for thinking about me and taking the time to look around.
I've determined that my little 1/3 hp mini wood lathe wasn't really meant to do much more than perhaps a 4-inch bowl. I do have a large wood blank that started out nearly 6 inches in diameter. I have found that anything more than extremely light cuts really bogs the speed down or stops the lathe .... which is very bad for my motor and pulley belt. The most I have been able to do with this blank is to turn it round ... it's going to sit on a shelf and wait for a while.
It's still green wood ... I cut it down earlier this year, because it was rubbing against my roof line. I have absolutely no idea what species it is, but it's a light colored and very closed grained wood ... EXTREMELY HARD and pretty heavy, but it's still got plenty of moisture in it. This stuff is way harder than maple. I'll have to snap a pic of the tree with leaves on it and see if you guys know what it is ... perhaps tomorrow with the sun out.