Collet chucks

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Carl Fisher

Carl Fisher

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So is the Beall really worth twice the price of the PSI for the complete system? I'm getting ready to buy a full set but I just can't figure out why the price is so different beyond just brand name.

Can anyone give me the rundown?

Also with a collet chuck, do you have to be the exact size of the collet? i.e. 3/4 will only clamp on 3/4 or will it clamp down on slightly smaller as well.

Thanks!
 
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Carl Fisher said:
So is the Beall really worth twice the price of the PSI for the complete system? I'm getting ready to buy a full set but I just can't figure out why the price is so different beyond just brand name.

Can anyone give me the rundown?

Also with a collet chuck, do you have to be the exact size of the collet? i.e. 3/4 will only clamp on 3/4 or will it clamp down on slightly smaller as well.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

It would clamp 3/4 and a little smaller (maybe down to .70")
 
Carl Fisher said:
So is the Beall really worth twice the price of the PSI for the complete system? I'm getting ready to buy a full set but I just can't figure out why the price is so different beyond just brand name.

Can anyone give me the rundown?

Also with a collet chuck, do you have to be the exact size of the collet? i.e. 3/4 will only clamp on 3/4 or will it clamp down on slightly smaller as well.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Carl,
In my limited experience with my PSI collet set they will clamp down about 1/32" less than their size as listed.I have not had my set that long and I have not had many odd sizes as of yet. I chose the PSI over the Beall as cost was a driving factor for me.
I figure the savings will allow me to buy a full range of collet sizes as the need arises.
I did buy a couple fractional sizes off of Ebay to hold a Majestic/Majestic Jr bushing to avoid using a mandrel.Not always ideal but Penturners Products has been out of stock on some of the bushings I plan to get for TBC.

I clicked Robert's link below and found the individual collets and the chart shows the clamping range.Note that the metrics cover a wider range.http://www.discount-tools.com/er32-collets.cfm
 
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Carl Fisher said:
So is the Beall really worth twice the price of the PSI for the complete system? I'm getting ready to buy a full set but I just can't figure out why the price is so different beyond just brand name.

Can anyone give me the rundown?

Also with a collet chuck, do you have to be the exact size of the collet? i.e. 3/4 will only clamp on 3/4 or will it clamp down on slightly smaller as well.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

A machinist would want the Beall, but I'm a hobbyist and I'm satisfied with the PSI set. It's a little cheaper on Amazon, I hear.

Shawn (Watch_Art) gave me this link:
ER32 Collet Sets

I bought the metric set and really like them.
 
Carl Fisher said:
So is the Beall really worth twice the price of the PSI for the complete system? I'm getting ready to buy a full set but I just can't figure out why the price is so different beyond just brand name.

Can anyone give me the rundown?

Also with a collet chuck, do you have to be the exact size of the collet? i.e. 3/4 will only clamp on 3/4 or will it clamp down on slightly smaller as well.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Here is my take, I have both the Beall and PSI chucks;
I like the Beall best, it offers a smaller nose area to get in a little closer with your hands and tools. The PSI knurled ring is a lot bigger than it would need to be to be functional, and it gets in the way a bit.
I have a slight issue with vibration with the PSI above 1000 rpms, also.
The Beall runs butter smooth, no matter rpm.
Price difference is where it's made, likely. and the quality specs given to manufacture. I think the Beall is a tad overpriced, but am happy with mine and would recommend them to anyone.

These both take ER32 series collets, and the collapse range is generally specified at 1mm maximum, (.03937 inches).
Never ever expand a collet. it is a recipe for runout, and it can cause breakage.
So, a 3/4" collet will chuck from .750 down to appx. .710.
 
I have the PSI, and while I am no expert I am very happy with it.

Ohh yea, you can get them cheaper on Amazon.
 
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wow, lots of good information.

Wonder if maybe the beall with a few of the more common collets instead of the full set might be the way to go.
 
Carl...

I purchased the Beall chuck from Lee Valley Tools and a set of metric 3-20mm collets on e-bay from 800Watt. Quality of the Beall chuck is worth the few extra dollars and I'm pretty happy with the collets from 800Watt (now amtools.com according to another post).

Wade
 
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I have the Beale collet set with 5 collets from them. I did buy a set of Metric ER-32 collets from ebay to give me a complete set of 3 to 20 mm. These will cover just about anything from 3/4 on down and work well in my Beale chuck.

Just the thing for kitless and numerous, diverse applications.
 
Lots of mentions of the metric sizes. What has everyone found are the most common sizes either metric or standard needed for say closed ends, kitless, custom finials/nose cones, etc...

Also I know the 1/4" will fit an A mandrel, I guess I'd have to step into a metric to hold a B mandrel?

I am really leaning towards the Beall and doing it right from the start.
 
I also have the Beal collet and bought a imperial set (inch) off ebay. I just bought a new lathe and used it to test cut a brass piece. I had under 0.001 run out. In fact my dial indicator never moved when testing the cut while turning the brass piece. My digital caliper doesnt measure anything out of round on it either. Unless I get a dial indicator that measures under .001, (they do have them) its good enough for me.
 
Carl Fisher said:
Lots of mentions of the metric sizes. What has everyone found are the most common sizes either metric or standard needed for say closed ends, kitless, custom finials/nose cones, etc...

Also I know the 1/4" will fit an A mandrel, I guess I'd have to step into a metric to hold a B mandrel?

I am really leaning towards the Beall and doing it right from the start.
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Either Metric or Imperial - get a whole set and there will be no "gaps" in sizes that won't fit. As mentioned above I have metric but it will fit imperial size rods or mandrels just fine. And Imperial size will hold metric rods too. Each collet will close down about 1 mm from its size. And Imperials will close down about 1/32 inch when tightened, so there is often a miniscule overlap of size that each successive one will take or fit.

This is why many who can - get a complete set. Using your own rods or arbors or mandrels of any size for pens - is taken care of.

IF you do want to do it right from the start, get the Beale with the specific sizes that you want and then get a full set later from ebay.
 
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+1 fo the Beal and a set of er32 collets fom "800watt". I'm sure the psi is a good entry level piece. Is it the indian or his arrows?
 
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Bought a beall collet with all the collets, after two months the collet locked up on me. Will probably have to use a vise and a pipe wrench to seperate.
Bought a PSI collet chuck have been using it for 6 months, works fine. The nose peice is a little big, but you get use to working around it.
In my expereince the PSI will work just as well as the beall at 1/2 the cost. Plus it comes with a plastic molded case and the beall comes with a cardboard box.
 
One of the benefits of the Beall chuck is thread size. You can get it in 1 1/4" x 8" which will fit my Nova DVR 3000. The PSI chuck comes only in the 1" x 8" size I believe.
 
I own 1 collet chuck from 800 watt. and 1 Beall. all of my collets came from 800 watt. The chuck is only going to be as accurate as the lathe that it is attached to. So consider that when choosing. A tool that is made to within 0.001 is a waste of money if the machine has 0.01 of run out itself. I have the Beall for my wood lathe for reasons that it fits on the machine. My wood lathe screws to the head stock while the metal lathe has a Morse Taper. I am far more concerned with accuracy on the metal lathe and that is where I have the 800 watt chuck. it works just fine and I am dialing in my metal lathe for accuracies of 0.001.
 
I think I've settled on the Beall. I decided I don't want to buy a good starter set and decide later that I'd rather have the other. The money is coming in from a custom order job that I did so now is the time.

Looks like I can purchase the chuck itself separate and get a full 12-piece standard collet set for the same price as the 5-piece set.

Thanks for the help all!
 
Thanks for starting this thread Carl, it has helped me out!

One note about pricing that may help people decide ... The Beall is only twice the price if you buy the Beall 5 piece collet set as well as the Beall chuck to make a similar package to the one PSI sells. If you intend to buy a full set (18 or 21 collets) the price is effectively the same as the 5 collets that come with the PSI chuck become redundant. This was the rational I used as I just bought the Beall collet chuck (and 1/4" collet for my pen mandrel) as I intend to buy a full set of collets in the future.

One other thing I'll note for those that may not know. 1/32" is equal to 0.79375mm. This means the Imperial sets increment is closer together than the metric set (which is 1.0mm apart) (this is why there are 3 more collets in the imperial set). The one benefit I see to the metric set is it would be more logical to find the next size up from the one that doesn't fit (ie 4mm is tight so 5mm must work). The next size up from 9/32" isn't as intuitive though you'd get used to it.

AK
 
I just bought the Beal collet chuck by itself $89.00 after shipping & ordered the collets from Discount tools at $8.95 ea.. They are actually in Huntington Beach. CA. about a 20 min drive. So after I ordered & dicovered they were local I called & was able to pick up 2 of the collets at their warehouse as 2 were on back order. He offered to get them from another local supplier if I didn't want to wait the 4 weeks but the cost was $11.95 ea. I agreed & they arived at my door the next day.

The collets are good quality & fit the Beal perfectly. I can get double the the amount of collets by ordering them from Discount Tools. Beal delivered the Collet chuck in a couple of days & had my order from Discount tools half the order same day & other two collets the next day. Very happy with the quality of the items from both companies.

The Beall Tool Company

Precision ER32 Collets
 

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If you are having vibrations, check the Run-Off on the chuck; try to rotate it a 1/8 of a turn at a time and keep checking Run-Off until it is as close to true as possible then run it to see if it still vibrates.
Price difference is due to Run-True" accuracy, manufacturing, brand name, country of origin but mainly "Run-True" specs.
 
I'm interested in buying a set of er32 collets probably off Ebay. Does 800watt go by a different name now? How do I find him on Ebay?
 
Well, I just ordered my Beall and bought an 18-piece ER32 set off Ebay in standard sizes. That should cover anything I'd ever want to chuck up I think.
 
Carl Fisher said:
Well, I just ordered my Beall and bought an 18-piece ER32 set off Ebay in standard sizes. That should cover anything I'd ever want to chuck up I think.
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Not to put a damper on your purchase but as I've been pondering the purchase of a set you might want to know ...

The 18 piece fractional sets exclude a few sizes around 1/2" that will cause gaps. I forget which sizes they are.

FYI here is the thread that I read this information. http://www.penturners.org/forum/f30/collet-chuck-~-metric-imperial-96848/
 
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I'm hoping that the initial fractional kit will cover most needs for closed ends, mandrel holding, and general kitless work from what I've read. The full set was right at $100 with shipping so I can turn the extra savings into the missing collets if needed.

I was watching that thread until it spun off on to drill bits and tapers and forgot to go back and catch up.
 
There is nothing "starter" about the PSI. Those that have both confirm the runout is virtually the same. Some have reported the PSI with lower runout. The collets are ER_32 and probably all come from the same source in China so that is a nit.

Operationally, the smooth Beall usually requires you to pick up a spanner to open it. You can easily hand tighten/open the PSI with no tool. How often are you going to do that procedure? Both pop the chucks out the same. One costs less. I like easy.

Harry
 
plano_harry said:
There is nothing "starter" about the PSI. Those that have both confirm the runout is virtually the same. Some have reported the PSI with lower runout. The collets are ER_32 and probably all come from the same source in China so that is a nit.

Operationally, the smooth Beall usually requires you to pick up a spanner to open it. You can easily hand tighten/open the PSI with no tool. How often are you going to do that procedure? Both pop the chucks out the same. One costs less. I like easy.

Harry
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The PSI can take the skin off your knuckles if you aren't careful. I get in pretty darn close at times and have hit mine.
 
plano_harry said:
... One costs less ....
Click to expand...
As mentioned earlier the PSI chuck only costs less if you don't intend to buy a complete set of collets and you buy the 5 beall collets to make them comparable. If you intend to buy a complete set of collets the 5 that come with the PSI are redundant and the price to get the chuck is about the same.
 
I have Beall, PSI and CSUSA Apprentice collet chucks. They all function well and all accept the ER32 collets that I purchased from 800 watt over Amazon.

All three chucks work well. As was previously mentioned, the Beall is by far my favorite. It has (slightly) less runout than either the PSI or the CSUSA chuck. Additionally the footprint of the Beall is so much smaller that it allows me to use my Woodchuck Pen Pro closer to the chuck body. The PSI chuck is so large that I keep peeling the skin off the back of my left (tool stabilizing) hand. If you are left handed you likely wouldn't have this issue.

Also, both the PSI and CSUSA Chucks have considerably more vibration at 2000 rpms.

I suspect the difference in price is that the Beall chuck is made in the USA, while both of the others are made in China. All of my collets, including the ones I purchased from Beall come from China and all have the same markings.

If I were buying a new collet chuck today, after using all three, I'd buy the Beall again. BUT, the bottom line is that all three of these chucks do a good job.

I hope this helps.
 
Question, What advantages does a collet chuck have over a regular 4 jaw chuck? I know that you can hold a round piece without leaving marks. Any other advantages?
 
Russianwolf said:
plano_harry said:
There is nothing "starter" about the PSI. Those that have both confirm the runout is virtually the same. Some have reported the PSI with lower runout. The collets are ER_32 and probably all come from the same source in China so that is a nit.

Operationally, the smooth Beall usually requires you to pick up a spanner to open it. You can easily hand tighten/open the PSI with no tool. How often are you going to do that procedure? Both pop the chucks out the same. One costs less. I like easy.

Harry
Click to expand...

The PSI can take the skin off your knuckles if you aren't careful. I get in pretty darn close at times and have hit mine.
Click to expand...



WAIT!! you guys have skin on your knuckles? I just have band-aids....
 
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