shaper disk guard, bearing or not

[Bill Dufour]

I will be making a disk guard that spins on top of the shaper cutter to guard my fingers, act as a top spacer and improve dust flow. Is it better to use a bearing or just make it solid. I suppose a bearing is easier to startup but a little harder to make. Not much load on the bearing so it should last my lifetime.
Bill D.

[Joe Calhoon]

I had some of those when we ran dedicated shapers. Made some out of aluminum and had a couple from LA Weaver.
I think a bearing would complicate things and still be spinning while the machine runs. They are inexpensive from Weaver.

[Mel Fulks]

Weaver. Joe, did they pull you out of the crowd and insist you make a door before you could buy ? !!

[Mike Cutler]

Bearing, definitely.
If you ever contact a solid disc spinning at 10,000 rpm it's going to hurt/burn where it contacts. Won't be anywhere near as bad as contacting a cutter, but you still don't want to contact that spinning disc at 10,000rpm.
Mine is not on the shaper when I'm using the fence. Mine is on when I'm doing template work, as most of the cutter is exposed. ( Someday I need to get a ring guard.)

[Rod Sheridan]

Bill, I've only used one with a bearing.

I don't use one now, I have a hood for curves, it provides good protection and dust collection.

[David Zaret]

if you're going to be doing a lot of curved work, it may be worth buying the aigner hood. it's not cheap, but from a safety, dust collection, and usability point of view, there's nothing better. the aigner has arched guides, depth-adjustable, with a bearing in the center for the spindle - the guide locks into the hood itself, and gives you the ability to softly enter the cut. aigner, of course, also offers other fixtures such as pressure wheels and such. if you're doing a lot of curved work, this may be the way to go.

-- dz

[Joe Calhoon]

The Aigner or Suva hood is the way to go if you do much curve work. There are a couple less expensive brands from Europe that don’t function as well as these but are not bad for occasional curve work. I used rub collars for 30 years and can appreciate the safety, function and good dust collection of the Aigner

We are in the middle of a curve top window and door job. Yesterday shaped some 6’ long 68mm thick segmented heads using the Aigner with the power feed on its nose. We take one pass to rough cut then adjust the dead collar to remove 4 or 5 mm for the final. Today going to tackle a 11’ piece!

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[Joe Calhoon]

Here is a link to the Weaver catalog. They call the protective cover a warning disk.
http://weaver-sales.com/bs-creative/pdfs/weaver-shapers.pdf

I have never seen one of these with a bearing. Don’t see how a bearing would be an advantage unless you can fix it somehow to keep it from spinning.

[Cary Falk]

We had on at the shop I worked in as a kid. It was orange with a bearing made by Delta. It spins with the cutters until you contact it with your hand or something. It then stops instead of burning your hand or pulling your hand into the cutter.
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/1/3/5/4/1/3/4/webimg/697464459_tp.jpg

[Joe Calhoon]

Thanks Cary,
Now that you mention it I remember the orange delta disk.

[Bill Dufour]

Thanks Cary,
Now that you mention it I remember the orange delta disk.

That is what I am thinking of. My Dad made one for my 1/2 spindle shaper out of thick plexiglas with a bearing.

[peter gagliardi]

You can use those bearing disks, like a dead collar, by rigging a slight “pressure finger” on the outer portion that will “give” with a small amount of feed pressure. That way you don’t get the spin, and momentary contact burn when introducing the piece to the outer contact diameter.