I have a 3 jaw chuck with a master jaw set. It's a decent chuck. I have one set of jaws that are used quite often ,but were damaged (jaw faces) by the previous owner. I know this chuck & replacement jaws are obsolete. So my question is ....... Is it normal practice to remachine the jaws of a chuck ,and if so who does this type of work ?? I only have a lathe in my shop. Thanks ����
"Master jaw" implies two-piece, eg with "top" jaws, hard, soft, or custom fixtured, pie. pins, claws or the like.
What do you actually
have, what make, what age, what
size?
Larger chucks are "usually" worth the substantial price of a rebuild as new ones are quite dear. 16" and up, for example. Non-scroll wedge, cone, or balanced lever POWER operated chucks even more so, even small ones. More expensive, too, of course.
"Top" jaws are still made for most every standard as has ever existed. Two dozen or so, per the old ladner.fr catalog and similar speciality houses in Spain who cover US, European, Japanese, etc. Some are easy to DIY, others not so much.
If NOT "two piece" and/or 10" or UNDER?
Jaws are only one of MANY parts of a chuck that wear or sustain damage.
It is nearly always less cost to buy all-new and relegate the worn/damaged chuck to whatever work it can still handle - even if that is a bench fixture, a dividing head, a grinder's fixture, or a welding turntable.
All of those are low/no rotational load, and can live with a shim or two under a jaw tip, so not "useless", just not useful as often. They make lousy doorstops or boat-anchors anyway, so may as well find work for them.
If you have NO 4-J independent, they can be MUCH cheaper, new or used because YOU not just the metal, get to determine where a jaw or tip is, so can compensate easily. I have several superbly made, new/NOS 6" & 7 1/4" 4-J, for example, my "handiest" size.
For the rarely used, few times in a whole YEAR, or not EVEN once a year sizes, "San Ou" Chinese bought NEW are good enough. But only in 4-J where I don't need to depend on a built-in scroll for accuracy.
3-J or 6-J scroll "self OFF centering" have to be "right" and also set tru, tru-adjust, or such, 'coz if nothing else, the scroll can pick up localized damage as affects accuracy even if jaws are OK or have been trued-up.
Dozen chucks worth.... or thereabouts. Too lazy to count them, actually.