Beginners Woodturning | Axminster Woodturning Discovery GK88 Chuck
The Axminster Woodturning Discovery GK88 Chuck Package is the ideal starter kit for beginners woodturning.
The 88mm stainless steel chuck is the smallest chuck in the Axminster Woodturning range. Due to its light and compact design, it is suitable for a variety of lathes and is particularly suited to smaller models.
As with all the chucks in the Axminster Woodturning range, the GK88 is precision designed and manufactured from Axminster Tools HQ in Axminster, Devon, UK. It is engineered using the latest in CNC technology and is carefully assembled, packed and dispatched from one site.
What's Different?
The Discovery GK88 Chuck, is a more compact chuck, designed to be versatile with an interchangeable backplate so you can keep hold of your chuck body, should you wish to upgrade your lathe. Simply swap the backplate to suit your new lathe, and you're good to go again. Meticulously crafted with precision, the GK88 Chuck is made from stainless steel for effective corrosion resistance. With versatility, as well as quality in mind, this chuck is ideal to begin your woodturning journey with.
Watch our video below to learn more.
What's Included?
The package includes the basic tools needed for work holding on the lathe, and is ideal for beginners in woodturning including faceplate ring, dovetail jaws, screw chuck, backplate and 88mm chuck body (also all available to buy separately).
Dovetail Jaws
The Type E Dovetail Jaws supplied give a stable and secure grip on your workpiece and offers both an internal and external grip.
The external dovetail expands into a recess enabling you to turn bowls, platters and the like. Whilst the internal grip has a stepped shoulder, for an extra firm grip on to a spigot, perfect for boxes and goblets.
Furthermore, the dovetail design provides a strong and reliable grip on the workpiece as it creates multiple points of contact. With enhanced holding power, the risk of the workpiece slipping or shifting during the turning process is greatly reduced.
Faceplate Ring & Screw Chuck
Fix the faceplate ring directly to your bowl blanks and mount to the chuck before initial turning for ease.
The one piece screw chuck can also be inserted in to the chuck to hold smaller projects. The central screw has a deep sharp thread for a positive and secure hold. It only requires you to drill a single shallow hole in the blank.
Other Accessories
Also available is a range of 88mm jaws compatible with the Discovery GK88 Chuck, useful for holding a wide range of projects. You can purchase the Discovery GK88 Chuck as body only.
Review with Colwin Way
Watch our Axminster Woodturning Ambassador, Colwin Way, give an overview of the Axminster Woodturning Discovery Range.
History of Chuck Development
In 1984, engineers at Axminster Tools designed the first woodturning chuck. With woodturners in mind, they chose the scroll chuck and designed a four jaw chuck system.
It wasn’t long before they moved into exploring accessories. Designers devised a style of mounting four quadrants of a profiled disc, known as jaws. And to this day, those original jaws are still compatible with all modern chucks Axminster Tools manufacture.
Different to other manufacturers, the Axminster Tools' design is based around interchangeable sets of jaws utilising accessory mounting jaws, to allow you to swap between sets with ease.
Over the years, much of the development of our chucks and jaws has come from the feedback and input of professional woodturners and our customer. And our design and engineering team continue to develop our lathe accessories to provide our customers with world class products.
More from Axminster Woodturning
Renowned for quality, and built to last, Axminster Woodturning offers a wide range of tools and accessories designed by woodturners, for woodturners.
Explore our range of chucks, jaws, woodturning tools, accessories and more.
Beginner's Woodturning
If you are looking to brush up your woodturning skills, Axminster Tools has a range of useful articles, videos and projects to help you along your way.
If you are a complete beginner just starting out then why not consider our Woodturning for Beginners online course. Expert tutors in woodturning have designed this course to give an in-depth understanding of woodturning. It covers the functionality of a lathe, the tools used and how to look after them, timber selection, turning and finishing techniques.
