Stupid lathe chuck question - Unimat

[SpongeRich]

Can anyone shed some light on how a Unimat 3 jaw (model 1001) chuck is supposed to operate? I picked one up in a box lot at auction and I want to sell it, but I can't tell if it's operational.

On my wood lathe, there's an allen key that adjusts the jaws.
The Unimat chuck has some holes along the side and came with 2 little metal rods. It looks like you use the rods to twist the 2 pieces (similar to a drill chuck I suppose) but I can't get anything to move. I don't want to force it and break it. It's also possible that it's already broken and that's why it won't adjust, but it came out of an old hardware store and it's new in the original box, so I'm inclined to think it's operator error and not faulty equipment.

Thanks in advance for any words of wisdom.

 

[johnoder]

Maybe just stuck. My new one in 1965 was quite stiff to turn with the little rods.

 

[SpongeRich]

Thanks... I was just worried that I wasn't adjusting it the right way.

I'll give it an overnight soak in some light oil and see if that helps. If not, I suppose I'll disassemble it. Can't really break what's already broken...

 

[ScottMacLEOD]

The two bars go into the holes and are used to open/close the jaws. Usually just for the final snugging up after you have it hand tight.

Scott

 

[MyrtleLake]

There are a few designs I know of for chucks without the pinion. If it is gummed up and won't move at all, here are a few ways to look at disassembly to clean it out:

*Do the jaws themselves have screws on them? Some of these designs have a base plate (very small) with the jaws screwed on top.
*Is there a snap ring on the rear, center projection of the chuck? If so, this is what holds the rotating collar piece to the body of the chuck. Remove it and consequently disassemble.
*For an example of this principle design, look at the Sherline 3" 3-jaw chucks. It is probably very similar.