Can I use a venturi system for vacuum chucking on a wood lathe?
A venturi based system might not be a good idea since it would cycle on and off to maintain pressure. These cycles can be problematic if the project piece is very thin at the mounting point. The fluctuations of pressure can cause the project to flex which can not only change the shape of the turned project as its is spinning on the lathe, but can also weaken the area that is attached to the chuck. Because of this, I recommend using a vacuum source that maintains a stable level of pressure such as an electric vacuum pump. Of course, you can use a venturi for this but it will cause your air compressor to run almost non-stop. And if the air compressor cant keep up with the flow required by the venturi to maintain vacuum, then it’s possible that the work piece could fly off of the chuck and wreak havoc. For vacuum chucking with an auto-cycling vacuum press (such as the EVS system) I always recommend converting the system to run continuously instead of auto-cycling. This way the vacuum leve
