Drilling Pen Blanks on the Lathe

Randy asked: Does anyone know of a quick way to accurately mount the pen blank for center drilling on a mini lathe?

Paul Porter: I use a Talon chuck with spigot jaws.

Russ Fairfield: Like this?

Jack: I put the drill in the headstock and, with a quick clamp to hold the wood securely, use the tailstock (without a center) to apply pressure. I even MacGyver'ed an adapter for my portable drill to quickly rewind the tailstock. Got the idea from someone on a newsgroup—probably IAP on www.penturners.org. Until I get the deal of deals on a drill press that'll drill 3", I find I can make a pretty well centered hole this way. I always start the hole from what would be the center of the pen so if I'm off a hair, it's on one of the extremes of the pen itself.