Raptor2 setup tools

[Harvey M. Taylor]

Got my 5 Raptor setup tools today. Checked 3 of them with 2 angle gauges that I have and all 3 are not the same as the gauges. Anyone else have this problem?
dont want to go thru blacking the bevel, then finding the correct angle to sharpen my tools. any help will be greatly appreciated. Max

[allen thunem]

just an opinion but 1 or 2 degrees either way aint gonna make all that much difference; just my 2 cents

[John Keeton]

I have not used the Raptor tools, but are you measuring the tools or the grind on the tool? In the end, consistency might be as important as precision in the angles.

[Joseph M Lary]

Like John said a repeatably angle is what you are after . I made my gauges for my grinder out of hardboard . made one for 45 deg tool & 60 deg tools along the in of a raptor design. just something to get the same grind every time .

[Thom Sturgill]

The angles my set creates seem to be accurate, but it has been quite a while since I checked them.

How are you measuring? The raptor tools set against the wheel in two places creating a 'chord' which is perpendicular to the centerline. If you set the plate rest with the device and try to measure the angle of the plate to the face (or to the floor) you will get a different number but measure across the face of the ground tool to the bottom of the flute (before rounding the heel) and you *should* get the right angle. Since you are creating a hollow grind, grinding off the bottom of the grind will change the angle that you read slightly. Also the angle will only be correct if you set the varigrind leg and tool projection exactly as they show and have the wolverine set to exactly the right height. But, the angle will be approximately correct and will be consistent even if these settings are off as long as these other settings stay consistent.

Changing the height of the pocket is something I have been wanting to experiment with to see what changes occur. Our club has one of the arms with the pocket raised to improve the Ellsworth grind. I am going to grind two tools and compare them, but that's another post.

As Reed says when he talks about the RoboRest - his angles are not exact, but they are consistent and that is more important.

[Harvey M. Taylor]

Thanks to those that answered my question. consistency more important than accuracy. A good day when you learn something. Max.

[Grant Wilkinson]

I watched a video, as I recall, on the Raptors.

One thing to keep in mind is that the angles that they say the Raptors produce are based on a specific set up for the jig you are using to hold the tool. If you are using the wolverine/varigrind, for example, the angles from the Raptor are based on the base of the wolverine being a specific distance from the centre height of the grinder; the tool protrudes 2" from the end of the varigrind jig; and the varigrind arm is set to 23 degrees. If any of these settings is not as they specify, the final grind of your tool will not match the angle that the Raptor says.

Having said all that, as the others have pointed out, if the grind you end up with is the one you like to turn with, and you can now grind to that profile consistently, you're home free.

[David Delo]

I use the right wheel of the grinder with the Wolverine setup for roughing and bowl gouges so the arm does get moved in/out from time to time. When switching back to bowl gouge mode, I used the 60 degree Raptor to set the arm length and use the vari-grind 1 set at 23 degrees with 1.75" stick out. Using a protractor, I've measured 62 degrees consistently for the bevel. Why 62 and not 60? I don't know. Maybe my 23 degrees isn't quite dead nuts 23 or my jig for stick out isn't exactly 1.75" or maybe wheel center-height to table is off just a tad. Doesn't really matter where the error might be, it's close enough and most importantly it repeatable each and every time.

[John King]

See "Raptor Setup Tools" thread in this Forum for more information/thoughts on subject. - John