WHICH: Bench Grinder for around £100 for grinding HSS Lathe tooling

[alan2525]

I purhased a cheap Wickes Grinder for about 25 quid a few years back, used it for grinding up old brick bolsters and cold chisels for cutting up paving slabs and chanelling out brickwork etc.

It was obviously rubbish but was good enough for the work I wanted. I put a couple of buffing mops on it now and use it for a bit of polishing.

Now, I'm in the market for a bench grinder, problem with the wickes one was that there was no real shoulder machined on the shaft and the wheels were just held in with little thin pressed washers, so the wheels shimmied around like they were doing the macarena...

I'd like to buy a reasonably nice quality grinder for grinding lathe tools, one with nice decent sized rests which can be adjusted, which is true running and reasonably well built. I dont really want something which is continuosly rated as it won't really get heavy industrial use!

Can anyone here recommend one? 6" or 8". I only have a small lathe so would be grinding upto 3/8" Lathe Tools and sharpening drill bits etc. Creusen, Axminster etc - UK Suppliers only please!

Alan

(Not sure if these is an "I WANT!" post or "CAN I HAVE?" post!)

 

[alan2525]

Aww no replies?

Does this mean all those cheap bench grinders are all much of a muchness then?

Alan

 

[HS93]

I have found that the cheaper ones are ok power wise but the rests are very poor , I got hold of a decent rest for mine then fitted a new wheel , that transformed it ,. I am now going to make a second rest for the other side.
Peter

 

[alan2525]

;D ;D

Hi Alan, and welcome to the mad house, how are things going in the Epping,Loughton, Buckhurst hill area these days?
One things for sure....now that your local model shop is closed....and Brian (my old mate) ain't around to take your cash....you will have LOADS more to spend on MACHINING and ENGINES.... ;D ;D ;D ...I am sure the guys on here will help you spend some of it....HE He.

Yes, most of the cheepo grinders are pretty much the same....rubbish......

A good grinder needs to have substantial, adjustable, tool rests and one of the best at the moment is the 6" (or 8") ARBOGA machine available from 'AJAX Machine tools'

www.ajax-mach.co.uk

These have fully adjustable large size supports , unlike the small flimsy things you get on the cheaper grinders.

Another good grinder is the 6" or 8" heavy duty model available from WARCO

www.warco.co.uk

These also have a heavier tool support, fully adjustable, but not quite as large as on the ARBOGA machines.

Both come with a medium and fine pair of wheels (Aluminium oxide type).

If you need to sharpen CARBIDE tools then you need to get a FINE green grit wheel....available from 'CHRONOS'

Hope this helps.

regards.

SandyC ;D

Yep now the local model shop has gone everything has to be got mail order which is a pain in the b*m, more time waiting for padded envelopes to plop through the letterbox than making!

Thanks for the tips on the benchgrinders! And how you get to be friends with Brian, are you into model boats?


Alan B

 

[alan2525]

I have found that the cheaper ones are ok power wise but the rests are very poor , I got hold of a decent rest for mine then fitted a new wheel , that transformed it ,. I am now going to make a second rest for the other side.
Peter

Is that one of those Veritas grinder rests? I was looking at Axminster as I have a 10% off voucher and was looking at those.

 

[HS93]

Yes alan it is they also do one of there own for about half price and it is not that different , but where not doing it when I bought this I think my set uo the grinder £25 the rest was £ 42 and a wheel about £ 18 from chronos so about £95 or $190 ish not bad its 400w and no end float.
Peter

 

[Mcgyver]

I'd like to buy a reasonably nice quality grinder for grinding lathe tools, one with nice decent sized rests which can be adjusted,

a decent grinder,yes, but don't worry about the rests. i made a fancy fully adjustable 6 ways to next Sunday set as a newb and look back and chuckle at myself, a complete waste of time. All the do is get in the way, just grind free hand.

Can anyone here recommend one? 6" or 8"

I purchased an 8" delta, wasn't much more than the 6 and its nicer having the larger size. Like almost every other bench grinder, the rests on it where a joke. Mostly I think because no actually uses them but they need have something in the picture on the box for those you think they need them

I only have a small lathe so would be grinding upto 3/8" Lathe Tools and sharpening drill bits etc.

I've a 13x36 lathe, i guess you'd call that largish homeshop/small industrial and I mostly use 1/4" bits, or sometimes 1/2 x 1/4 for heavy hogging. when using 1/4 if they're not high enough, put some packing or a second bit underneath. the reason why this is preferred imo is they are easier to grind. 3/8" is fine, but just a suggestion that you might find 1/4 more convenient

 

[alan2525]

I've a 13x36 lathe, i guess you'd call that largish homeshop/small industrial and I mostly use 1/4" bits, or sometimes 1/2 x 1/4 for heavy hogging. when using 1/4 if they're not high enough, put some packing or a second bit underneath. the reason why this is preferred imo is they are easier to grind. 3/8" is fine, but just a suggestion that you might find 1/4 more convenient

I was thinking I'd use 1/4" tooling mostly, and easier to grind too as less material to grind away.

I bought a grinder, got a WARCO one in the end, still not sure what the difference is between the WARCO stuff and Axminster stuff! I guess you just pay more for the green paint?

 

[CrewCab]

Alan

apologies for the late reply, but I've only just joined. I was having a browse around at the weekend and it seemed to me the Grinders fitted with induction motors were a little smoother and quieter, Metabo seem to do a nice 6" one for around £110 but Screwfix have 2 under £50 which seem worthy of consideration ............. imho

Sheppach

Ryobi


Sorry this is too late to be of any help to you but perhaps it might be of some use to others.

Anyway, enjoy your new bench grinder, looking forward to a review ;D

Dave

 

[alan2525]

Sorry this is too late to be of any help to you but perhaps it might be of some use to others.

Anyway, enjoy your new bench grinder, looking forward to a review ;D

Dave

It's a fair bit of kit, weighs about 30 kilos!

I'll have a think how I solidly mount it first...the grinder came with 4 rubber feet on the bottom, but I think best to use the bolt holes!



Space is a bit of a premium for me, my old grinder was mounted on a piece of 6" heavy gauge steel box section on a stand (an old gate post) bolted to the floor. I think I'll weld something up for the new grinder to free up bench space. I just need to get some scraps of hefty steel plate for the top and bottom. I was thinking of filling the tube with oil impregnated sand to add a ton of extra mass and keep the resonation down too.

Alan

 

[CrewCab]

It's a fair bit of kit, weighs about 30 kilos!

Blimey, that's one "BIG" bench grinder the two I was looking at were around 11 kilos.

I was thinking of filling the tube with oil impregnated sand to add a ton of extra mass and keep the resonation down too.

Mmmmmmmm .......... like your thinking, I'm a Structural Engineer by profession rather than Mechanical so "Big" and "Heavy" things are no strangers to me, but the damping effect you suggest seems it would be far more efficient than my first thought ........ which would be .... concrete ???

OK first lesson learn't ............. take my present box and consider it externally 8)

atb

Dave

 

[Mcgyver]

you shouldn't have to go to that extreme, if its vibrating, its out of balance....if its excessive, its dangerous. without a wheel there should be almost no vibration or take it back, with a wheel there still should be minimal, but it you want to fine tune here's how

Dick Kostelnicek's article (incorrectly credited in the second link, my error, can't change it now)
http://www.homemetalshopclub.org/news/sep04/sep04.html

my version
http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/showthread.php?t=12741&

for that matter, you can manual abrade away some of the heavy area with a dressing stick

 

[CrewCab]

Minor update ;D

I ended up buying one of these Sheppach

I've got an old 8" grinder in the garage but it's a noisy and rough old beggar, this little 6" feller is very quiet and smooth with the induction motor and so far seems a pleasure to use, to my mind good value for (just) under £50 ......... the light is useful, the rests are crap ....... no suprise there ....... however ........... if anyone can figure out what the flip/flop plastic wheels in the box on the top are for I'd appreciate a "heads up" ..... cos I have no idea and it's driving me crazy

Dave ............... aka CC

 

[Bogstandard]

Dave,
By the sound of your little round flip flop bits are adapters for mounting wheels with larger holes in the centre. Put them somewhere safe, where you won't forget where they are. Sometimes when you buy new wheels, they are delivered with these adapters missing.

John

 

[CrewCab]

John,
Not so I'm afraid .......... pictures below, no doubt it's something simple and I'm looking too deeply

The block is fairly solid and clips securely to the top of the grinder, there are 4 plain discs (all are @ 15/16"diameter), one at each end, two others with 3 sets of toothed wheels, 3 sets of x6 in between. All are free to rotate and there is about 6mm (1/4") play ...... left to right in the whole assembly.

My thoughts are perhaps some sort of contraption for brushing loose bits off "whatever" .................. or even a crude "dressing wheel" ......... but no, I really think not ............. or best yet ... : ..... Stress relief ;D ....... cos' I keep spinning the dam thing round trying to figure out what it does ??? ......... OK simple things, simple mind I know ......... OK I'll get mi coat ;D ;D

Dave

 

[Bogstandard]

Dave,

That is a wheel dresser. You put it against the face of the rotating wheel and it dresses the face square again. Sparks and crap fly everywhere.
They don't last long. You can buy replacement wheels. I tend to use an emery dressing stick.

John

 

[rickharris]

Diamond point dressing sticks are available at very reasonable prices from many tool suppliers, although using one against a whirling grindstone scares the C*&^P out of me they do work rather well to remove the glaze and flatten the grinding surface.

 

[DickDastardly40]

Further to what has been said on dressing, an piece of old harder compound wheel can be used for dressing and removing the loading and glaze. It has the advantage of not spinning and being IMO more easily held than a diamond stick.

A few grinder quid pro quo for those that may not know

As a general rule a harder compound wheel is used for grinding softer material.
Do not exceed the stated maximum speed of the wheel, the grinder tally should state the spindle speed.
Use the blotting paper washers, do not over tighten the spindle nut, spin by hand to check runout is not excessive.
Dress the wheel as soon as it is fitted even if brand new to true it up, this is often a cause of vibration.
Have the rest as close to the wheel as possible.
Don't leave wet wheels submerged when stopped to prevent imbalance.
An old wheel laid down makes a useful flat grinding surface.
Break a scrap wheel by dropping it etc before putting it in the skip to prevent use by others.

Al

 

[Circlip]

To the uninitiated on our side of the pond, have a look round for an article which appeared in MEW called The Sweeper, (think that was the one) It shows a method of mounting a diamond dresser in a guide so as NOT to scare the cr^p out of anyone re-cutting a wheel.
My cheap and nasty Taiwanese (Pre Chinese) bench grinder used to suffer from various maladies before I reduced the end float by bitsing it and adding turned shims inside the housing, and making two sets of PROPER wheel washers, with face recesses, out of steel or aluminium (aluminum) plate. As has been said on the bandsaw posts, chuck the cutting bits that came with the machine and replace with quality branded ones, In my case a pair of NORTON's finest, one Blue and one Green, dress and what a difference. IMHO a reasonable rest does help, A few designs also in MEW.
Play safely, Regards Ian.

No, A wheel dressing jig (the one I meant), was in MEW Jan/Feb 95
The sweeper, a lathe tool grinding jig appeared in MEW Mar/Apr 95

 

[CrewCab]

Thanks guys,
so it is a wheel dresser then ............ doubt it would last 5 minutes, oh well saves me the trouble of clipping it back on after removal for it's photo shoot ............. I shall consign it to the bin.

I use a diamond dressing tool on my wetstone grinder but as that revolves pretty slowly it's not a heart stopping experience, will look into something for this one.

No, A wheel dressing jig (the one I meant), was in MEW Jan/Feb 95
The sweeper, a lathe tool grinding jig appeared in MEW Mar/Apr 95

Ian, are those articles available on line by any chance ............. don't really suppose so though

Dave