Compatible 8mm Collets for 'WW-Style' 🇺🇸 Watchmakers Lathes (WHOOPS!) 

Great video for anyone in the market for watchmaker's lathe collets! Thanks for making this, Mike! (BTW, that SA logo is for Schaublin!)

The collet marked SA stands for Schaublin a Swiss high end machine manufacturer. Very nice and interesting video! 😊

Hi, Mike Sorry to see you're having so many problems trying to get your lathe setup, we never make mistakes we only learn lessons, but sometimes those lessons can be expensive. I've just bought a 130-piece staking set from China for maybe double the price I could have got from eBay but at least I know it's complete and not damaged in any way and I'm sure it will be good enough for my infrequent use as a hobbyist. I've found that fixing watches also makes you become a tool junky 😂

Appreciate all the information and best of luck finding all the collets for your lathe. Ill be on the lookout for ya. Thanks for all your time and effort Mike 🍻

Hi Mike, great to see your latest video. If you’re plan to pursue learning lathe work using a watchmaker’s lathe, then the choice between the lathe you started with and something closer to a full set is a no-brainer. The cost of the lathe bed, headstock, tailstock and toolrest pales almost into insignificance vs the cost of a good set of collets and accessories. Look up the cost of the used accessories bought individually and a set of collets (plus wax collets, stepped collets etc) and you’ll find that even a set that costs several thousand dollars is cheaper than buying the same items piecemeal. You also get the advantage of a set that was made to work together, with everything in alignment. A visual check of runout and other critical tolerances is nowhere close to adequate. A watchmaker’s lathe can appear to run dead true to the naked eye, but be completely unfit for any precision work. A frankenlathe is unlikely to be worth building into a full set for this reason. If you do decide to keep and build upon the lathe you have now, get a decent dial indicator and carefully check your alignment and runout. It’s impossible to tell any other way, that said I think I occasionally glimpse what look like red flags when you use the lathe suggesting it’s not running true. If you can afford it, take the plunge and get the best full set you can afford. These things hold value and you can always sell it if you decide to stop lathe work. Regarding collets, you really need a full run by one manufacturer. WW collets are not a brand (yes it stood for Webster Whitcomb but refers to a standard pattern of lathe now) and not even all WW collets are interchangeable amongst WW type lathes! There are charts showing the threads and other measurements of various brands of WW collets to help guide in selecting which will work in what lathes. Another reason to get a full run by one maker is one brand’s #5 collet is another brand’s number #6 etc. To properly cover the range of sizes you can’t jump between brands. There are also some collets to avoid even if they fit your lathe. You want fully hard collets and they are the most expensive. Boley, Lorch, Leinen and Wolf Jahn are some examples of good hard collets. Starrett collets are soft and should be avoided, unless they are very cheap. I’ve seen a lot of people try to get into watchmakers lathe work with a very bare bones setup, planning to add to it. The ones who stuck with it all eventually started afresh with something close to a full set and wished they’d done so from the beginning. A mismatched headstock, bed, tailstock and toolrest with a handful of collets is unfortunately a money pit and often intrinsically flawed. I hate to sound so negative, but this are the facts as I see them. I would’ve fallen into the same hole if I hadn’t had this advice from other people.

I think European collets are called B4. If you get a tap of that size you can make a drawbar for them on a larger lathe.

Yeah its a bit of a learning curve and a gamble. You have to figure out if this is for you and worth investing in or is it okay to build it bit by bit. You could also try a steady for that Jacobs chuck. They slide onto the bed and typically have high speed bearings for the material to run on to help stabilize your work. All the best my friend!

Good info,Mike and good luck.Thank you.

heey mike you are going down the rabbit hole called lathe!!!! i am here for mental suport! little tip next time use hammer . a lot are Moseley death lol

🤘🤘

Thats always the problem with perches kind of blind. Good that you got a refund. Its a hassle though anyway.