Tool Gloat

[Brian Rupnow]

I have been checking out 1" belt sanders for the last couple of weeks. When I sharpen my lathe tooling with my 6" diameter grinding wheel, it leaves a serious "hollow ground" effect on the sharpened surfaces. I wanted a small belt sander to "dress" the tools with after roughing them in with my 6" grinder. Today I went down to the local pawnshop and picked up this Delta unit for $60, tax included. Somebody had dropped it and bent the 8" diameter round aluminum plate that is one of the sanding surfaces!! Thats okay---I didn't need that part of it anyways, so I removed it. This will be a nice addition to my small toolroom. It is not in its permanent home in the picture--its just setting there for the picture.---Brian

 

[mklotz]

I think of my 1" belt sander as a poor man's die filer. With a bit of clear marking out and a little patience it's amazing the complex contours that can be formed on such a tool. You'll grow to love your new acquisition.

 

[vlmarshall]

Nice. We have one of those at work, and the plastic top pulley builds up a huge static charge on dry days. A quick spray of WD40 (on the back side of the belt) kills the static-building ability of the thing and makes it more fun to use. I learned that trick from Van de Graaff generators.

 

[4156df]

Vernon,
Thank you for that WD-40 tip. I've nearly crapped my pants, not to mention throwing a part across the room, when mine discharges. No more.
Dennis

 

[vlmarshall]

Vernon,
Thank you for that WD-40 tip. I've nearly crapped my pants, not to mention throwing a part across the room, when mine discharges. No more.
Dennis

:big: :big: Yeah I've nearly thrown a few parts, too. I added a bit to clarify the WD-40 usage; spray the back side of the belt, while running.

 

[putputman]

I have one of those small Delta sanders on my work bench that I use almost everyday. When my kids gave it to me for a Christmas present, I thought to myself, "when would I ever use that toy".

I get zapped quite frequently with it. Thought maybe I had an electrical problem. Will try the WD-40 trick. Thanks Vernon!!!

 

[vlmarshall]

After a week or so when it starts zapping you again in the middle of a job, and you don't feel like walking off for more WD-40, just keep a hand or the part, in contact with the machine. It'll keep that charge from building up and shocking ya.

 

[tmuir]

Delta is a good brand and for $60 it was a steal.
I keep looking at them in my local hardware stores but they only sell the real cheap nasty brands.
I've learnt the hard way that if you plan on buying a power tool to use a lot for a long time, you get what you pay for.

 

[Brian Rupnow]

I had considered building one, but didn't want to invest the amount of work it would take. I looked at the cheapo models, and the cheapest I found new was $79 plus our blessed 15% tax.---and it was pretty questionable. This morning I thought "Times are tough---I have to go check out the hock shop". I'm very pleased with it.

 

[shred]

Likewise my little 1" belt/disk sander is one of my most-used finishing, deburring and general shaping tools. Again I wasn't sure just what I'd use it for when I ran across it at a garage sale, but now I'd hate to be without it.

 

[applescotty]

Brian - nice find. Looks like it will be quite useful.

I have two comments/questions regarding sharpening lathe tools:

1: What problem does the hollow grind cause? Seems like the hollow grind would actually be helpful, as you can touch up the tool faster since you only have to take off the edges instead of that whole surface.

2: I've only read about, and have no experience with, grinding tools with an abrasive belt. However, in similar discussions, I've seen it mentioned that the abrasive belt may not be ideal for cutting tools because it tends to round off the edges of the tool since the belt can flex. Might be worth carefully looking at.

Scott

 

[Brian Rupnow]

Applescotty---I'm not sure if it does cause a problem. Based on very little actual testing of my new belt sander, it seems that the "hollow grind" on the top rake may actually act as a chip breaker. --I am getting longer stringier swarf when I grind that top rake flat. As for the hollow grind on the other two surfaces of the tool---the jury is still out on that one. I will post an opinion on whether the belt sander actually makes things better or not when I know.---Brian

 

[BobWarfield]

Belt sanders are really handy. I built a disc sander that I use every time I am down in the shop. Eventually, I'm going to build a pretty heavy duty belt grinder like the knife maker's like to use. I keep an Idea Notebook on them here:

http://www.thewarfields.com/cnccookbook/CCKnifeMakingGrinders.htm

Cheers,

BW

 

[Brian Rupnow]

That little belt sander I bought is just for sharpening my lathe tools. If I want to do any serious belt sanding, I go out into my garage and use this unit I built about 25 years ago. I built this for grinding the edges on flame cut brackets when building hotrod frames. It was originally built to use a 4" wide belt, but I generally run 6" belts on it because they are easier to get. Thats a 2 HP. motor on there. When I fire that sucker up, all the lights in Barrie go dim!!! ;D ;D