G3 or Supernova2 on midi

[Jim Terrill]

I recently bought a Supernova2 from woodcraft since it was on sale and seemed like a good price and it would work well if I decided to get a bigger lathe at some point. At this point though, all my turning is on a midi and a larger lathe is not an immediate concern. Having said that, now woodcraft has the g3 with a few different jaws for not much more than I paid for the supernova2 and it's midi sized. So my question is, should I return the supernova2 and buy the g3, sell it here to someone, or go with the supernova and quit worrying. In an ideal world I'd buy both, but not really in the cards right now and getting a few different jaws for a few $$ more is pretty attractive.

[Harvey M. Taylor]

Jim, you can turn small things on a big lathe, but you cant turn[safely] big things on a small lathe. Keep the sn2n. It will do what you want. Max.

[Alan Zenreich]

I like the G3... it's the same size as the Oneway Talon... perfect for mid size or full size lathes.

[John Keeton]

Toolnut is having a sale on the G3D which would be 1 x 8tpi at $99 shipped. It comes with the 50mm jaws.

[Alan Trout]

I have both a G3 and a supernova 2 I like both very much. The G3 on sale is a heck of a deal with all of the jaws and I am tempted to tell you to take the supernova back and get the G3. Just the jaws are like $99. I have turned some pretty decent size stuff with my G3 and it will work on a bigger lathe without a problem. However the SN2 will also be fine for your lathe. Basically it is your decision and either will work without question.

Alan

[Roger Secrist]

The G3 is an ideal chuck for a midi lathe. You always have the option to change inserts if you move up to a larger lathe. With that said, the SN2
will work fine with no problems on a smaller lathe. I have used this chuck for several years on a Jet mini and it works fine. I have heard the larger chuck will wipe out the bearings on a small lathe, but I have never found that to be true.

[Doug Wolf]

I have both chucks. I started with the G3 and bought the SN2 when I bought a larger lathe and needed the bigger jaws (130mm). I thought about getting another G3 with the jaws that Woodcraft has on sale. After looking at the range of the jaws they are offering I decided I wouldn't use them that much so I bought another SN2 on the last day of the sale. Basically if the jaws in the package are the ones you will use then go for the G3. If they will sit on the shelf because you use the 50mm for most turning then keep the SN2.

[David H Parker]

I had the same debate a few weeks ago. I've just purchased a Jet 1220 and the SuperNova2 was on sale and I knew about the G3 going on sale with all of the jaws. After asking around...... I got greedy... I now own both! I prefer the SuperNova2 with the closed back, don't know why, just do. I plan on getting another full size lathe in the future so now I'm covered.

A friend said considering that the G3 comes with all the common jaws that I'm most likely to need, you're getting the chuck for 10.00 more.

But that's just my opinion. I'm addicted to tools. :D

David

[Ryan Baker]

The answer to this question depends entirely on the type of work you typically do. The 35mm bowl jaws are of limited benefit over the standard jaws for compression mode because they aren't much different in size (unless you work on that size stuff a lot). They aren't of much extra value for expansion either (over the 50mm), which would be better served by larger jaws. I'd prefer to go to an even smaller jaw for small work. That brings us to the problem with the pin jaws -- they aren't much good in compression mode because the smooth inside jaws and the slight flexing (partly bending of the jaws, partly because of the single mounting screw) result in a jaw that does a good job of ejecting what it's holding. You can watch the piece walk right out of the jaws while the lathe is running. They should work fine in expansion mode, but a 1" + recess is not something I hardly ever need to grab. Many people like to use the cole jaws when starting bowl work, but most of us soon put them aside, preferring other techniques, and rarely use them again. Plus, these are the mini cole jaws, so their capacity is limited.

My point is just that these jaws, to me, are some of the least useful ones in the line (the step jaws are the least useful). YMMV -- these might be the perfect thing for the type of work you do. Instead of buying the package deal, figure out which jaws you really need and go for those. (If those happen to be the package ones, all the better for you.) If you do a lot of small work, I expect the new 4-jaw mini-jaw package is probably a much better choice. Take a look at that one.

The SN2 is not too big for your lathe. Don't feel you need to replace it for that reason. Eventually you will get a bigger lather (we all do), and eventually you will get more chucks. Unless the G3 package is the perfect combination for you, I would stay with the SN2 and add jaws as you find you need them.

[Jim Sebring]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned about the SN2 vs G3 is that the jaw travel is identical.

[Mike Peace]

I agree with Ryan in seeing little value of 35mm jaws for expansion over 50mm jaws. However, I use the 35mm jaws all the time for holding small spindle work in compression mode. I have never found the one screw per jaw to be a problem with small work like ornaments, eggs, finials, etc. The Teknatool manual says the 25mm and 35 mm jaws will hold spindle work in compression mode with pieces up to 5" long. They say the pin jaws will hold pieces up to 6" long, probably because the jaws are a tad longer than the 25mm or 35mm. Since I do a lot of smaller spindle work, I find the ability to hold a smaller spigot with the 35mm jaws than I could with the 50mm jaws is essential.

I believe a lot of what folks say about jaw usefullness is really dependent on what they turn. YMMV.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Keep the SN2 AND pick up the G3. All the jaws interchange, and you can never have too many chucks. I have 3 Novas.

They make a 75mm (I think) that has serrated jaws. Very heavy duty, not like the Oneways, but should be more than adequate for your midi.

[Karl Card]

to me the g3 seems like a great setup for the midi lathes. It can handle all the small jaws and alof the larger ones. So to me it more than fits the bill for a midi lathe. If I were in your shoes I would probably go with midi lathe and jaws... when you decide to go with the larger lathe then upgrade or trade up or ???.