Yesterday I started my first bowl on a chuck( Penn state bargin chuck). I turned my tennon about 1 1/5 inches in diameter and about 1/2 long. Much within the parameters of the chuck. The blank was only about 5 inches in diameter and about 5 to 6 tall. It was cedar and fairly dry.
I had turned the outside profile using a face plate and had flipped it around to start on the inside. After fussing with the placement a bit, the blank was centered very nicely. During the turning of the inside, I hit a catch and the bowl dropped out of the chuck. I rechucked it and tighten it even more. Then I started again. This time I hit the same branch/crack /catch and the bowl left the lathe and landed in the driveway after bouncing around the garage. One second it was there, the next it was gone. So after a qucik change of underwear-(hey I am new at this), I looked at the bowl and it had cracked pretty good done the side and had other chunks missing including part of teh tennon---not worth turning.
So my question after all that is....what did I do wrong? HOW tight do you tighten the chuck. It had started digging into the wood. I know this chuck has worked for some of you..cough cough...Kurt Any help will be appreciated before I turn another perfect outside profile with no tool marks(first time--with no sand paper) only to see it fly away and get screwed up.