How many centers do you use in your headstock?

[Jeff Spaulding]

I'm completely new to turning, but hoping to start as soon as I get my lathe in my shop.

The problem is that I've got a nonstandard taper (I think it's a Jarno #5). While I can fit MT2 stuff in there and it's snug, it sticks out a couple inches.

Getting the headstock reamed to MT2 will be very expensive. Getting the tailstock done will only cost about $70.

I can probably get some used Jarno taped stuff off the internet, or have tapers machined down to it (assuming they're not hardened, anyway...).

I'm trying to figure out if it's worth my while. How many centers or drives do you use in your headstock?

[Dennis Ford]

I use a 3 or 4 drive centers in the head stock, a live center and a drill chuck in the tail-stock. For 95% (or more) of my work, a 1" dia. four prong drive center would work fine. The inexpensive drive centers are not hardened.

[Shawn Pachlhofer]

another option would be to thread a chuck onto the spindle, and use one of the spur centers designed to be held in a chuck.

[Jeff Spaulding]

I didn't realize they much such a thing. Thanks, I'll look into that.

Of course, my threads are a weird size, but it's easier to get threads put in a blank insert than find someone that can ream a 22" spindle.

[Jeffrey J Smith]

if the difference isn't too great, you can buy a #2 morse taper reamer. Just be careful...McMaster Carr carries them.

[Jeff Spaulding]

I would love to. A local spindle repair place offered to order them for me at cost.

The problem is that I can't find anyone that'll actually do the reaming. The spindle is 22" long and has a (I think) pressed-on handwheel that's probably 12-14" in diameter. No one will touch it.

I did think about doing it on the lathe itself, using a reamer in the tailstock to ream out the headstock, but I can't go very fast (babbit bearings) and I've never turned wood, much less metal.

I've got another thread on here with pictures named "Advice on an antique lathe" if you're interested.

What I'm looking at now is finding out what centers people usually use in their headstocks to give me a better idea of what I actually need. If most people get by with just a couple, then I'll abandon any ideas of getting the headstock reamed and focus on finding centers that I can use with it as is (or, worst case, buying MT2 and having them milled down). I doubt I'll buy another lathe anytime in the next decade or so (my workshop is small, and my lathe is huge), so compatibility isn't that big an issue.

[Brian Kent]

I use only one center in the headstock. I use two in the tailstock, plus a drill chuck. For my needs, getting one center for the heastock and then getting the tailstock machined would do the trick.

[Geoff Whaling]

I would be thinking laterally and machining Morse Taper #2 drive & live centers to suit the Jarno #5 taper in the lathe.

When you look at the taper specs (from http://littlemachineshop.com/reference/tapers.php ) they are close,

Taper Large End Small End Length Taper/Foot Taper/Inch Angle From Center

Jarno #5 0.6250 0.5000 2.50 .6000 .0500 1.4321
Morse #2 0.7000 0.5720 2.56 .5994 .0500 1.4307

(sorry looses formatting once posted.)

The MT #2 matches the Jarno #5 taper/inch exactly so the only issue is how deep the MT #2 drive / live center seats into the taper in the head stock & tail stock. I would be looking for an assorted drive & live center or "multi live center" to have the centers MT 2 machined to suit Jarno #5. eg https://mcjing.com.au/categorybrowser.aspx?categoryid=77&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1 (Australian site) or https://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCENTSET.html and having a Jarno #5 made for it etc.

As I'm predominately a spindle turner I would not recommend using a 4 prong accessory in a chuck but in saying that I recognize that it would be quite suitable for holding bowl blanks for initial roughing out.

[Jeff Spaulding]

I like that second multi center you linked. It screws on, rather than using the taper, so I could ignore the taper altogether.

I'd have to figure out how to go from 1 1/8" 10TPI to 1" 8TPI, but that shouldn't be too hard. I'll dig around and see if anyone else makes something similar with a blank or a larger diameter thread.

It's funny, this thread isn't going like I expected it to at all. I figured we'd get more people talking about the centers they use. Not that I'm complaining - you all have been very helpful so far.

[Thom Sturgill]

One problem with drive centers is that they can spin in the taper and gall the metal. I use only the multi-toothed safety centers these days. I have two sizes, and am looking at buying a drive center designed to fit the chuck. I make a number of fixtures that screw on to the spindle.

[Jim Hipp]

You might try the Big Bite from Packard Woodworks

[Reed Gray]

I have one steb center that fits in my chuck, and use it some times. I also have a standard spur drive that I use as well. The only time I use them is when turning spindles, and use them for turning a tenon before I reverse and use the chuck.

robo hippy

[Brian Kent]

You might try the Big Bite from Packard Woodworks

Aah, a scary knuckle-slicer!

[Grant Wilkinson]

I use two centers in my headstock frequently, but both of them are held in my chuck. I don't use any on morse tapers on my Vega bowl lathe now. I did, but the ones that fit into my chuck don't have the spinning issue that Thom mentioned. I still use a small steb center for spingles on my Jet mini. It has a morse taper 2.

[Robert Henrickson]

Aah, a scary knuckle-slicer!

I'm not sure how your knuckles would ever get close to a Big Bite. They are great for dealing with the beginning stages of large and irregular blanks.

[Paul Williams]

I use a multi point safety type center for 90% of my small to medium blanks. For turning pens between center I use a fixed 60 degree point center. I sometimes us a 3 or 4 prong drive center for large blanks, but normally switch to a face plate or chuck if it is too large for the multi point center.

I think machining the centers to fit the lathe makes more sense as then you could use in the tail stock as well as the head.

[Ryan Mooney]

Here's the Nova spur center: http://www.teknatool.com/products/Chuck_Accessories/SpurCenter.htm
and the Big Bite: https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/106/1113/Oneway-Big-Bite-Chuck-Spur
I've used both pretty happily (the big bite is pretty fantastic for starting larger rough blanks, not really useful imho for much else except maybe ginormous spindles.. maybe..).

The main downside of the Nova spur center is that you have that big whacking chuck right next to it which makes getting in closer to the tail stock on some small spindle work more difficult. Its also a fairly small drive center so wouldn't drive super large spindles very well.

Other than those (the links are just representative samples not necessarily the specific ones I've used, there are a lot of other variations and mfgs) here's what I've "used" (this doesn't imply "need" :D):

4 spur drive center - most spindle work can be done with this or something like this: https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/107/4395/Apprentice-4-Prong-Drive-Center
4 prong mini drive center - this is mostly useful for small spindle work where your blank isn't big enough to catch on the regular sized 4 prong spur: https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/107/2489/Precision-Machine-Mini-4-Prong-Drive-Center I'd bet good money that most turners don't need something like this, I've done a bunch of "drop spindles" for wool turning and for doing the initial turn on the ~1/4"x12" spindle this has been fairly useful. The small spindle problem can be solved in a number of other ways though including (possibly homemade) compression chucks, etc..
Steb/Crown type: https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/107/4396/Apprentice-Crown-Drive-Center I'd put this in the "nice but certainly not necessary" category, I actually have two a regular sized and a small one; they're a smidge more forgiving to a beginning turner but you certainly don't need them.
Somewhat stretching the concept of "drive center" but still in the "things I've put in my headstock" category are pen mandrels: https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/16/5751/Apprentice-Pen-Mandrel - having said that there are a dozen different ways to turn a pen blank and most of them don't involve a mandrel - the mandrel is easier but likely not the fastest/most efficient way so I wouldn't really stress on this either since its a problem you can solve other ways.


I think one regular spur center of some sort and maybe a mini spur center or a small steb/crown center if you wanted to do small stuff would be plenty to get by with for 99% of spindle work.

Thom's note about "fixtures that screw on to the spindle" is well taken as well - getting a tap that matches your spindle can be pretty handy for making various types of homemade chucks (jam chucks, compression chucks, .

[Joe Kaufman]

Check the Texas Spur Drive Centers - http://bestwoodtools.stores.yahoo.net/tespdrce1.html Re 1 1/8 X 10 TPI.
The only one I use now after spinning a #2 MT in the spindle and the subsequent clean-up. You might think a little pricey, but very well made.

[Jeff Spaulding]

That thing's scary looking.

Interesting, though. I could see it being useful for larger spindles. One of the things I know I'll be doing is turning posts, and that would probably work.

Edit: Sorry, I'm not used to the way posts get sorted here - I'm referring to the Bit Bite posted by Jim.

[Jeff Spaulding]

I was looking at those, actually. They're pricey, sure, but they won't have the "spin in the taper" problem others have mentioned.

I shot off an email last night to those guys asking about their adapters. They sell thread adapters that have a morse taper in them, and if they stick out enough, I might actually be able to fit a MT2 center into the adapter and have clearance in the spindle. That'd solve my taper problem completely. I still might get something like those if the spinning problem appears.

[Jeff Spaulding]

It's "things that go in the headstock taper" that I'm looking for, so stretch away!

That said, I have a hard time imagining doing pen work on my lathe. I know it shouldn't make a difference, but turning tiny stuff like that on a 10' long lathe with giant tool rests just seems... odd.

My first chuck will probably be a Nova (the price seems reasonable and they're on sale at Woodcraft right now), so that spur center they've got might be an option for me. I'm waiting on an email from bestwoodtools and, depending on what they say, I might end up going with that Nova spur.

[Ryan Mooney]

That said, I have a hard time imagining doing pen work on my lathe. I know it shouldn't make a difference, but turning tiny stuff like that on a 10' long lathe with giant tool rests just seems... odd.


I dunno, I think you'd have to turn at least one just because of the oddity factor :D

Maybe both a giant oversized pen and a regular sized one just for fun ;)