I put a square block in my vortex 4 jaw chuck, but only two jaws left imprints. And I canāt get my eye directly in front of the 4th axis. How do I properly ācenterā my material? I know it will be concentric when Iām finished, but I might like to work with a pre cut partā¦ get my drift? Thanks, geniuses.
What I have been doing it find the center of both ends and drill a hole in one. Then I have a long lag bolt that a screw into the hole. The lag then gets put into the chuck.
This also helps to put a little gap from the chuck to the wood so I can unclench about hitting my chuck with the bit and maximize the wood piece - but obviously only works if youāre okay with having a hole in one end.
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It is possible that the jaws are not aligned correctly. Check the jaws by completely closing them to see if they come together at the center, if not it will require removing and reinstalling the jaws. Also the stock may not be square.
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Iām handy with a tablesaw, so Iām pretty sure my 1 1/4ā is the same both ways, but I think you nailed it with the jaws. Iāll pull them out and re-insert, hoping to get on the threads equally four timesā¦
I wonder if thereās a way to construct a ādead centerā at the chuck end. I want to ā¦ imagine turning a light house tower on the outside, then (or before) partitioning rooms and stairs on the inside. So I need to set the tower accurately. As it is, once Iāve turned it, then it is centered, but I want to center it before I start turningā¦ if I figure it out Iāll share.
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See my answer to @Mickus below. Your idea to pre drill is what Iām after, but Iāve got to have the chuck jaws precisely centered. (This may turn out to be easy, but Iām not in the shop)
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Perhaps take a look at what traditional woodturners do in mounting their work on a modern, chuck-equipped lathe.
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Thatās where my solution originated from. There are multiple methods of work holding for a wood lathe but for a lot of my non-pen-type creations, I find the center on both āendsā then I drill a pilot hole on one end and use an adapter that screws onto my spindle and also screws into the wood to be turned.
I translated that solution into a 3d design (PETG) with a lag screw that I can chuck into my lathe or vortex. Now I can work a piece of material on the vortex or lathe depending on what I am making (or use both). To be more specific, I have been using the vortex of late to carve/turn some designs and then transfer over to the lathe for final sanding & finishing.
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As others here have already said, there are many means of holding wood in a rotary axis, but none of them are optimal if the chuck jaws are not closing on centre.
Once that obstacle is addressed, there are many options. (On this, I will respectfully disagree with @whitewolf.) There are many woodholding options that have nothing to do with pen turning type creations.
Since I have lathes for spindle and bowl turning, I was lucky to have many of these tools. For my Vortex, I tend to use either a steb centre or a prong centre held in the chuck. I also have screw chuck plates and worms screws. Each of these simply involve finding the centre of both ends of the stock and holding the stock between the centres. This way, the stock does not need to be square. When taken down to round, it will be parallel to the X axis. For projects where I want the ends to be a square pommel, as long as the jaws are properly installed, using any of these methods renders perfect results.
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Not sure what we disagree about or perhaps my wording was just off. I completely agree with your statement. My wording was merely meant to separate my experience since I make about 75x more pens than bowls, plate, gnomes, tops, etc. I have chucks and various centers as well but for work where a hole is acceptable, I find this solution rather simple. Plus I tent to use the entire length of the wood so this allows some stand-off for me.
All that said, I still consider myself a novice on lathe work & woodturning having only a couple of years under my belt so happily receive the advice from more tenured turners.
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@whitewolf I retract my respectful disagreement, Corey. I didnāt read your post carefully. Sorry about that. 
We completely agree on the idea of stand off from the chuck. Thatās why I like either my steb centre or my prong centre. Each of them holds well in the chuck and each of them push the end of the material a couple of inches beyond the jaws. Your idea to drill a hole works well, too. Iām doing much the same, but I donāt need to drill a hole. The point of the steb or prong centre bites into the end of the material.
On bigger pieces, I have used glue blocks and a small face plate. Itās over kill for the Vortex, but since I have all the contraptions required, I figure that I may as well use them.
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