collets for a lathe

[richiec]

I was wondering if Peerless 8mm collets are the same as any other 8mm collet or is there a design difference between them and say a moseley or levin.

[Dave Coatsworth]

Peerless collets are standard 8mm WW collets and can be used in other standard WW lathes. Moseley collets are not standard WW collets as they are a bit longer. You can use Moseley collets in a standard WW lathe, however, by using a spacer at the knob end of the drawbar.

[richiec]

Thanks, Dave, really appreciate your input. I knew about the Moseleys from Perkins lathe book, spacers wouldn't be a problem. I was told to avoid the Rivett lathe and the chinese one on sale cheap on ebay. I am getting a really nice used lathe next week and need collets and have been searching flea bay and comparing prices. I took the lathe course at the NAWCC school and want to experiment as soon as possible, my wife will really appreciate the mess I'm sure.

[Jerry Kieffer]

8MM and WW collets have the same profile but slightly different body diameters. The body diameter for WW collets is about .313" while 8MM is about .315". This will vary slightly by Manufacturer. Both WW and 8MM collets will generally function properly in most 8MM lathes. However many Lathes designed for WW collets will not except 8MM collets. I have Peerless collets that measure .313" as WW collets and also .315" as 8MM collets. Some of my old sales catalogs list peerless Lathes and collets under the term "WW" as well as "8MM" .
I would suggest before purchasing Collets for any lathe that you measure what will actually fit in that particular Lathe.

In regard to Moseley long collets. They come in two styles. The first style with a head containing a 20 degree flat closing surface will fit in most 8MM lathes but require a Draw Bar spacer as mentioned by Dave.
The second style has a head with a radius closing surface. These collets WILL NOT work in a WW/8MM lathe. If your lathe uses a collet adaptor, then some adaptors can be modified for this type collet.

Jerry Kieffer

[Roger from England]

Hi Jerry, You are obviously well clued up on collets and I found your answer V. informative. Have you any experience or heard anything about the quality of the Chinese collets as adsvertised on Ebay? my 'set' (?) consist of various makes with several missing and I have considered purchasing Chinese but can not locate anyone with knowledge/experience of the these collets. New collets are out of my price range and second hand ones are scarse. Thanks in anticipation.

[Jerry Kieffer]

Hi Jerry, You are obviously well clued up on collets and I found your answer V. informative. Have you any experience or heard anything about the quality of the Chinese collets as adsvertised on Ebay? my 'set' (?) consist of various makes with several missing and I have considered purchasing Chinese but can not locate anyone with knowledge/experience of the these collets. New collets are out of my price range and second hand ones are scarse. Thanks in anticipation.

Roger
This subject was just discussed about a month ago in the following thread including my own personal experience and others.

http://mb.nawcc.org/showthread.php?t=55965

Thank you for the vote of confidence

Jerry Kieffer

[Toolhi]

If you're buying collets, I'd suggest Dashto.com. Tom is an NAWCC member, and is more than fair to deal with, and has had a liberal return policy.