Bench Grinder Selection Help Needed

[Walter Ambrosch]

I need a new grinder for the Lathe Studio.

Want the best I can afford, 8" should be large enough I think, but I was wondering about who makes the best grinder for lathe tool sharpening?

I was hoping to find a 2 speed or a variable speed one so that sharpening can be done at a slower pace with less heat buildup.

All suggestions welcome I have to make a decision soon.

 

[Brian McInturff]

The wheels are the important part. If you want the best then my opinion would be to buy the CBN wheels. No heat buildup and they run super true. They will cost more than the grinder itself but are well worth it.

 

[Jon Minerich]

Walter,

I bought a very nice, variable speed 6" grinder made by Porter Cable. The cost was $79 at Lowe's. Porter Cable also makes an 8" if that is what you really want. I find the 6" is very adequate. That said, the grinder comes with lousy wheels. They don't balance very well. I bought 2 wheels from McMaster Carr for $20 each, and now the grinder is smooth as silk.

 

[robo hippy]

The best grinder out there is the Baldor 8100W which has a 3/4 hp motor, weighs about 90 pounds, and costs about $900. This is a slow speed grinder, and is the grinder you will find in industrial shops. I can't wear them out, and they run so smooth, you can barely hear them. A huge step up from the no name 3/4 hp grinder you can find at Woodcraft, and a step or so up from the Delta, Jet and other grinders.

The CBN wheels come from D Way tools (you can google them) and cost about $185 each. That sounds expensive until you consider that they are spin balanced, you never need to clean them, you never need to true them up, there is no chance of them ever blowing up, and you will get way more $ worth of work out of them than you will get with standard aluminum oxide wheels. They are also 1 1/2 inches wide, and they run a lot cooler than any other wheel I have seen.

robo hippy

 

[Syd Sellers]

Sharpening

If you are after a professional sharpen system verses a grinder, have a look at the Sorby Pro-Edge. I've had mine for about a year. What a difference!! The bevel angle is always correct and easy to set. If you cut dry wood, your edge needs to be sharp not rough . If you are cutting green or wet wood, any grinder will do.

 

[Ed Jarvis]

grinder

I bought a delta 23-725 3/4hp from amazon in 05 I think. never been sorry it was on sle then. I am not sure why you would want a 2 speed. I do chane my wheels when I do a rough grind with a coarse junk stone that came with it, and put the good grinding stones back on when I am ready to finish it.
ED

 

[Ed Jarvis]

grinder

I bought a delta 23-725 3/4hp from amazon in 05 I think. never been sorry it was on sale then. I am not sure why you would want a 2 speed. I do change my wheels when I do a rough grind with a coarse junk stone that came with it, and put the good grinding stones back on when I am ready to finish it. I understand it has been discontinued.

ED

 

[Bill Boehme]

I bought a delta 23-725 3/4hp from amazon in 05 I think. never been sorry it was on sle then. I am not sure why you would want a 2 speed. I do chane my wheels when I do a rough grind with a coarse junk stone that came with it, and put the good grinding stones back on when I am ready to finish it.
ED

I also have that model grinder which has now been discontinued. It is huge and heavy at around 80 pounds. It was not cheap -- the price after sales tax was right at $200. It is quiet and extremely smooth running. I replaced the original wheels with a set of Norton 3X blue wheels. It takes up a lot of bench space and I need to make a dedicated table for it so that I can reclaim my lost bench space. The only complaint I have is that I wish those big heavy rings at both ends of the motor housing were not as obtrusive when trying to sharpen something that needs to be presented to the grinding wheel parallel to the rotation axis.

 

[odie]

I also have that model grinder which has now been discontinued. It is huge and heavy at around 80 pounds. It was not cheap -- the price after sales tax was right at $200. It is quiet and extremely smooth running. I replaced the original wheels with a set of Norton 3X blue wheels. It takes up a lot of bench space and I need to make a dedicated table for it so that I can reclaim my lost bench space. The only complaint I have is that I wish those big heavy rings at both ends of the motor housing were not as obtrusive when trying to sharpen something that needs to be presented to the grinding wheel parallel to the rotation axis.

I also have the Delta 23-725.......great machine! I'm using the Norton SG wheels on mine......great wheels!

I have the same complaint as Bill does regarding those rings that get in the way with scrapers that are ground along the sides. I've been thinking about grinding some of those rings away, but have never done it yet! One of these days, I might do that.......

ooc

 

[Bill Boehme]

.... I have the same complaint as Bill does regarding those rings that get in the way with scrapers that are ground along the sides. I've been thinking about grinding some of those rings away, but have never done it yet! One of these days, I might do that.......

ooc

There is a basic problem in that a separate grinder would be needed if I wanted to remove the end caps of the grinder motor to grind away a portion of the rings along the front edge.

 

[MichaelMouse]

If you're going to use a jig rather than the rests that come with, I'd like to suggest one of these. http://www.specialtytoolsusa.com/catalog/jet-jsb-10l-10-inch-buffer-and-sander.htm It's also your sander, with pneumatic (outside) and mop (inside/outside) capability. Mount your buffing equipment and good to go there as well. Quite the triple-threat item, requiring only that you do a bit of work with ply or tin to enclose your stone. Keep a hard felt on the other end for quick strop if you're one of those who feels there's an advantage. I do for carving or a plane iron, not turning.

I'm still using SiC stones on my old grinder. They freshen edges well, don't cost like hell. Haven't dented the 60 I bought with the 100, but I don't reshape much after years with the old patterns.

On the subject of rpm, slow keeps a small error that way long enough for the turner to recognize it. Doesn't push back as hard when buffing, either.

 

[David J Edwards]

Bench Grinder

You can take any 6", 8" grinder and make it the best grinder. Dress the wheel real slow a cross and you will get a better finish. It is what you want to do with grinder is the bottom line. or add on to the grinder.

David

 

[David J Edwards]

Bench Grinder Selection Help wanted

You can take any 6", 8" grinder and make it the best grinder. Dress the wheel real slow a cross and you will get a better finish. It is what you want to do with grinder is the bottom line. or add on to the grinder.

David

 

[Bill Boehme]

All of the aluminum oxide wheels and their ceramic variants throw off a lot of fine grit ranging from particles that stay suspended in the air (especially ceramic it seems) to fine sandpaper size grit that accumulates around the grinder. A vacuum system will collect most of it, but some of the larger grit still scatters around the grinder. For me, the super fine dust from a grinder is much worse than fine sanding dust from wood. If your aim is to get away from generating fine dust then you might want to consider a wet sharpening system such as the Tormek. I bought my Tormek in the late 1990's originally for sharpening plane irons, bench chisels, carving tools, planer blades, and jointer blades long before I considered woodturning as something that I would be interested in doing. It turned out once I became hooked on turning that 99.44% of my sharpening on the Tormek is turning tools. I understand that the Tormek has gotten expensive in the last few years, but I am glad that I own one and I really do like the smooth sharp long lasting cutting edge compared to sharpening on a bench grinder. However, there is also the option of the CBN wheels for a bench grinder as mentioned previously by Brian and Reid. Because of respiratory issues, I also use a 3M Airstream PAPR system which has a high efficiency filter. It is not cheap, but I am glad that I have it -- otherwise turning or any other woodworking activity that creates dust would not be on the list of things that I could do.

 

[odie]

There is a basic problem in that a separate grinder would be needed if I wanted to remove the end caps of the grinder motor to grind away a portion of the rings along the front edge.

Hi Bill......

Actually, an angle head grinder would do it. Wouldn't even have to disassemble the motor caps, just grind in place. Just a small vertical strip about 1-2 inches is all that's needed.......but, I'm a little chicken to do it!

If I absolutely have to.....right now, I can switch the platform from one side to the other and get the job done. The only time the motor flanges get in the way is for scrapers with a long sharpened edge on the right side. Both sides have the 80gt SG wheel.....left side for scrapers, the other side for gouges. Either side can be adapted for everything else, but since I specialize in bowls, gouges and scrapers amount to 99% of my tool sharpening.

ooc

 

[robo hippy]

I am not sure about the particulars of dust collectors on grinders. I do know there are specialized ones for grinders because sparks can ignite.

I have found the D Way tools wheels to be great for my bench chisels. almost no tendency to burn or heat up at all. I would think they would be fine for shaping plane irons.

The Tormek is fine for sharpening most tools, but is not good for roughing, or shaping.

robo hippy

 

[john wallace]

Dayton Grinder

I found an 8" Dayton grinder made by Grainger old enough to made in the US on eBay. I looked for several months after deciding NOT to buy one of the many grinders made in China. The grinder is quiet and vibration free. It is heavy and takes up enough space to get a stand all of it's own. The Norton 3X wheels work fine with the Wolverine jig. I did replace the face shields.

I played with a Tormek that my friend owns, great edge, slow going.

 

[Bill Boehme]

Since I own both a Tormek and a high quality dry grinder with plenty of experience using both systems, I can give you a list of some of the pros and cons of each.
Dry grinders work well as evidenced by the fact that most turners successfully use them and are happy with them. Quality does make a significant difference in both the grinder and the abrasive wheels. They are fast and work well for reshaping tools. Aluminum oxide wheels are terrible about throwing grit all over the shop especially the low cost soft white ones. The 3X wheels are a huge improvement in that respect, but still much more grit than I like. I have heard that the SG wheels are somewhat better in that respect. Very few dry grinders have dust collection, but it sure is worth it. There is no need to worry about a fire hazard -- the sparks are cool after a few inches of travel and besides there is nothing flammable going through the ducts -- it might be a different story if the sparks were mixed with a cloud of wood dust. A bench grinder lends itself well to freehand sharpening since very light pressure is used. For a few tools, especially the skew, I feel that the dry grinder is inadequate, however, the Lacer "slab-o-steel" skew is the exception because trying to freehand sharpen a tool with a long shallow bevel on the Tormek is an exercise in frustration.

Now, for the Tormek -- using jigs for most tools is a necessity because much greater tool pressure against the stone is normally used. The bevel produced on the Tormek is very smooth and the cutting edge is very smooth and razor sharp. I firmly believe that this sharp smooth edge stays sharp far longer than when I sharpen them on the dry grinder. Sharpening on the Tormek is slower than when using a dry grinder, but not by much when talking about gouges and scrapers. Sharpening a skew on the Tormek is really really slow. However, it could be said that a dry grinder is even slower since it would never sharpen a skew completely to my satisfaction. Freehand sharpening on the Tormek is done using the flat tool rest and is often a challenge if the tool has a long bevel. Scrapers with large included bevel angles are OK, but otherwise you need to pay close attention to avoid a runaway tool climbing the stone.

Please forgive the typos -- typing on an iPhone is an exercise in frustration for fat clumsy fingers and a microscopic keyboard.

 

[Brian McInturff]

Bill,
You need to try the CBN wheels. My torment has been set aside for turning tools since getting them.

 

[Brian McInturff]

Auto spell correction. I hate it. Last post should have said Tormek not torment.

 

[DOCworks]

I second Bryan's comment on trying the CBN wheels. And the "torment" comment is spot on for those of us with Tormecks and our rather substantial investments collecting dust.

 

[Richard Jones]

I second Bryan's comment on trying the CBN wheels. And the "torment" comment is spot on for those of us with Tormecks and our rather substantial investments collecting dust.

Amen to that. I still use mine, but only for sharpening scissors for the ladies at the store. I do about 40-50 pair, twice a year.

 

[Steve Worcester]

The best grinder out there is the Baldor 8100W which has a 3/4 hp motor, weighs about 90 pounds, and costs about $900. This is a slow speed grinder, and is the grinder you will find in industrial shops. I can't wear them out, and they run so smooth, you can barely hear them. A huge step up from the no name 3/4 hp grinder you can find at Woodcraft, and a step or so up from the Delta, Jet and other grinders.

The CBN wheels come from D Way tools (you can google them) and cost about $185 each. That sounds expensive until you consider that they are spin balanced, you never need to clean them, you never need to true them up, there is no chance of them ever blowing up, and you will get way more $ worth of work out of them than you will get with standard aluminum oxide wheels. They are also 1 1/2 inches wide, and they run a lot cooler than any other wheel I have seen.

robo hippy

I have this exact config, very nice. Using some washers, the wheels fit inside the enclosures and you really can balance a nickel on it when it's running.