LIve Centers -Time to Upgrade?

If you turn a variety of projects, you may want to explore the wide variety of live centers available. Some may be better for your woodturning than what came with your lathe.
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[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

The Woodturning Store is a great place to buy Record Power chucks and many other woodturning accessories www.thewoodturningstore.com/record-power/?aff=7. As a marketing affiliate I earn from qualifying purchases.

[@billthompson9482]

I have a powermatic lathe and live center for 20 years and i never knew the center pin came out. I learned something today.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Excellent!

[@deyyoung42]

I lost the tip of my Nova live center ejecting it across the room 😂. Great video!

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Oh no!

[@alanmullock381]

Good run-down on the various different live centres available Mike👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍😎😎😎😎😎😎

[@dianeewoldt3035]

I purchased an Axminster multi center last year before Record Power released the Falcon multi center and I really like it. It has the 2 sealed bearings and removable tip. Included tips are a 60 degree cone, a 3/8” diameter long point, a cup/ring center, mini faceplate with a central screw (great for goblets) and a 90 degree pipe center. The Axminster has a 3/4” 16 TPI thread which I have used (along with a tap) to make various centering cones for segmented turning. I was able to pick it up on sale for $89- a deal compared to the One Way live center.

[@kenvasko2285]

Well done, as always. You have a way of knowing what I am researching. Your saving me time but costing me money...lol. Thanks Mike, good job.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Glad to help, Ken!

[@monophoto1]

Great video, but it illustrates one of woodturnings dirty secrets - buying the lathe is the least expensive part of the hobby. There are so many neat toys that you can buy to go with it! Should mention the PSI live center. Like the Oneway and Powermatic centers, it has a threaded nose, but the thread is 1"x8tpi - the same threading as many scroll chucks. I think it was intended to allow a chuck to be mounted on the tailstock so that a workpiece can be remounted while retaining the turning axis, but I find that it is also a very convenient live center. I bought a tap (yup, another toy) to match the headstock spindle that I use to make interchangeable 'nose pieces' for the live center.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Now you can make threaded glue blocks

[@jameswhattam3945]

Thanks for the excellent video, Mike. The varied types of turnings I do require me to frequently change the ends of my live center (Rubber Chuckies, Steve Sinner cone centers, etc, etc). That is why I have come to prefer the Robust live center over the one that came with my 3520C since you do not need to use the long pin to unscrew the end pieces. Great time saver.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Right on!

[@oldgeezer1746]

Thanks for the reminder of how versatile the various live centers are. Like you, I have four or five and they are all set up differently. The aluminum 60 degree cones are good because they are sacrificial. If you hit aluminum with a gouge you preserve your tool steel. My 60 degree cones are all marked up. When they get bad I simply lock the free end and re-turn the cone.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

I agree, they are sacrificial. I would expect with f to choose from, you do not have to cut up that aluminum very often.

[@glencrandall7051]

Excellent overview of live centers Mike. I believe I already had a good grasp of what is available but this review is still appreciated. It's also good to know that since most all lathes use a MT2 interchangeability between manufacturers is not a problem. Thank you for sharing. Have a great day and stay safe.🙂🙂

[@naturaIIydifferent]

If you're low budget like me, you can turn wooden tips for a mandrel saver live center. Turn a tenon on a scrap of s hardwood to fit the hole with a shoulder to keep it from pushing through, then turn the other end to whatever point or cup you need. Like a DIY version of the Falcon system you were showing. It's not as durable, but you can always make another one if it gets damaged. The cheapo Chinese mandrel saver is holding up pretty well lol. Great video, Mike! I always enjoy your content 👍

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Necessity is the mother of invention. Thanks for sharing.

[@LewisKauffman]

Thank you, Mike! Great information.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

My pleasure!

[@jackthompson5092]

Great ideas Mike for making additional adapters for my Oneway live center.

[@hfbowerndesigns810]

Thanks for all the good info Mike. Have a great week creating Take care my friend Cheers Harold

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Thanks, you too!

[@SilverBack.]

Mike thank you for sharing this and the link to your hand outs. Keep up the Great work and YT videos

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Much appreciated!

[@billy19461]

Sorry to admit but I didn’t know that the live center that came with my Laguna had that feature. Had to run out and check. Sure enough it does. Thanks again.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

You are not alone! 😉

[@victorprimack2070]

Thanks Mike. I can always learn from others. Great explanation.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Glad to hear it!

[@MarklTucson]

Nice review of live center types. Now I need to go watch your brace handle video; haven't seen it before and it looks interesting. Really like the idea of using a hole in a 2 x 4 to catch the center tip when knocking it out. Not that I'd know anything about this, but I've heard that if you put one hand in front of the live center to catch the point as you knock it out with the other hand, the point can cause some pain when it comes out. 😃 I recently got the Record Falcon live center set and really like it. I made a laser-cut French cleat holder for it to keep it all together and close to the lathe. It really seems like it is going to be able to support most of the turning projects I do.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Great storage solution, thanks for sharing!

[@DavidBird-uu8km]

Very nice great information. thanks.

[@patbeatty7116]

I found that if I'm using the 60 degree center and there is a danger of splitting the piece, I put a small diameter washer on the end of the live center and it restricts how far the center enters the wood, cheaper then buying a new center for the limited number of times I need the extra caution.

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Thanks for sharing.

[@jeffpeters6561]

All the live centers that are threaded are 3/4"-10 except the Axminster is 3/4"-16

[@MikePeaceWoodturning]

Ok. I am not familiar with the Axminster.

[@bernardfutter5327]

@@MikePeaceWoodturning 3/4-16 is still a popular small lathe spindle thread in Britain, along with 1"/8 tpi. Bernard.