Which Bench Grinder?

[Bill Lyman]

I am trying to upgrade my plane and chisel sharpening from the scary sharp system which takes hours to return to the base bevel of plane blades even with a 250 stone. Do you recomend a dry grinder or something like the Tormek. If a dry grinder which one. They all seem to suffer negative ratings on Amazon.
Thank you in advance.
Bill ​

[Rob Luter]

I got a variable speed Delta at the Borg. The price was right and it works great.

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[Tom Trees]

The slow waterstone machines are a slow way of honing, an even more laborious for grinding.
The real question is ...
Is a slow speed 8" bench grinder, what's twice the price of a regular 8" one, worth shelling out for?
Considering that you can get a diamond wheel for it, in due course.
I think the white wheels come second in line, but shed grit everywhere.

Pricewise, I'm sure someone here, has weighed up those options.

Tom

[Gary Ragatz]

I have a WEN 8" slow speed grinder from HD (~ $110). It's not something I use every day, but I've been happy with it for a variety of sharpening tasks - chisels, plane irons, mower blades.

[john zulu]

I would like to state a different approach. Use a well tuned bench grinder. With aluminium oxide wheel at 80 grit. It can shape your tools fast and sharp. It is about presenting your chisel to the bench grinder at the correct angle and pressure.
I have done many times with an eclipse jig and it works very well in creating the bevel for me.

That said. I have various tools at my disposal like a bench grinder, belt grinder with VFD and a complete set of whetstones. Each one has it's place. The wet grinder I have yet to catch that bug yet. I find a 2x72 belt grinder with all the attachments very tempting. I don't have that yet.

[Steven Harrison]

I just bought a Rikon 8 inch slow speed grinder from Rockler that was on sale for $100. I added the Veritas grinder tool rest and jig and am pretty happy with the setup. I've only used it with a practice chisel so far, but I can tell that it's going to be a lot more efficient. I originally wanted a Tormek, but for resetting the bevel I heard it was really slow, and for the price I decided to go with the grinder.

[lowell holmes]

I have a Delta and it is a good tool.

[Jim Koepke]

This may not be considered a grinder, but it is a great sharpening system:

Veritas® Mk.II Power Sharpening System (http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=48435&cat=1,43072) Click it to see it.

Mine has been in use for about 15 to 20 years now.

The way the thickness of the abrasive disks work, it will automatically produce a micro bevel. If one doesn't want a micro bevel, then it is possible to use the backing sheets of the pressure sensitive abrasive sheets to lift the platters with the finer abrasives to maintain a flat bevel.

PLEASE NOTE: This system produces a flat bevel as opposed to a hollow bevel that a grinder produces.

My first discovery was that it is helpful to have about five of the tool holders. This way one can work a lot of blades in one session. It also takes about the same amount of time for one blade to cool as it takes to work on four more. Otherwise a dip in to some water to cool works. When mine was purchased there were a lot of old blades needing work coming through my shop.

One great advantage of this system is when working the backs of blades. The flat disk makes that a lot easier.

If one does go for this system it might also be a good idea to order some extra abrasive disks.

This system works for me on many levels. My sharpening needs includes sharpening chisels, gouges and plane blades like any other wood worker. It also includes garden tools and other miscellaneous items. At times it is even used to round the ends of wooden dowels, try that on a wheel grinder.

My main reason for selecting this system was a Fine Woodworking review of sharpening systems. This one received a better rating than the Tormek at the time.

jtk

[Frederick Skelly]

I've spent a devil of a lot of money trying to find the best approach for my needs (chisels, plane irons). I tried a Tormek clone, but it was waaaay tooooo slowwww for resetting a bevel. I returned it.

Where I got to:
* 8" slow speed grinder (1/2 hp, Rikon). $100 on sale.
* 180 grit cbn wheel for said grinder. $100.
* Tormek tool holder for grinder. (BGM100 - $69, plus SE77 - $70)
* 1000 grit Shapton stone, 6000 grit Shapton stone, roughly $200

I spent a lot of money on stones, worksharps, tormek clones, Lee Valley stuff, etc before I learned that this was all I needed. Everyone is different. Maybe you need (or want) more or less. But this is what works for me, based on a great deal of trial and error.

Hope it helps.
Fred

[steven c newman]

Afraid I am still in the "Dark Ages" as for as an electric grinder..
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Old Craftsman....
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And a big cup of water nearby...
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Well, there is also that hand-cranked grinder....:rolleyes:

[Jim Koepke]

If one really wants a low speed grinder this is hard to beat:

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Though it takes a pretty big bench. :eek:

Not quite as versatile as my Veritas Mk.II Power Sharpening System.

jtk

[Tom Trees]

Fredrick,
Would you still opt for the slow speed grinder, now that you have tried the CBN wheel?
Tom

[Frederick Skelly]

Fredrick,
Would you still opt for the slow speed grinder, now that you have tried the CBN wheel?
Tom

Yes Tom, I think I would. I just feel more comfortable with it.

[lowell holmes]

Just go to Lowes or Homedepot and shop. You will find Delta for one and it is a good grinder.

[steven c newman]

Maybe one like Roy Underhill uses?
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Just clamp it about anywhere...
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( I haul those cans in about once a month...and recycle..)

[Tom M King]

The one I want is not made yet. In the meantime, I get by with this one, but would recommend getting a half speed grinder, instead of this full speed one. I like them smooth. Several other brands were returned before I found this one. It was running several minutes like this, while I went to the truck, and came back with the camera.

[Christopher Charles]

I have a half speed grinder that was sold by woodcraft about ten years ago. Has two white wheels, which have worked fine with improvised tool rests. One note is that performance improved considerably when I balanced the wheels by rotating one of them (probably not an issue for the CBN wheels).

[Jerry Olexa]

The DELTA bench grinder is good one ..I also have a slow speed, a WORKSHARP and a Tormek...Delta good for everyday use.

[steven c newman]

Was in Lowes this morning, running errands ( bandsaw blade, paint brushes...) and walked past their selection of grinders, at least the Delta ones...

Plain & simple dual wheel 6" grinder...$59
fancier variable speed, 6" duak wheel grinder....$99
The 8" version of the variable speed grinder ( even has a light?)..$149?

Didn't see much in the way of wheels for the grinders, though..

[Jerry Olexa]

Thinking when i replace my current Delta bench grinder, I'd add variable speed...is this is a useful feature? Also do you find moving up to an 8" wheel worthwhile? Thanks.

[Derek Cohen]

Jerry, I have never used a variable speed grinder. Mine is a half-speed (1450 rpm). At times it is still faster than I would prefer, even with a CBN wheel. A variable speed may take it lower. If not, then do not waste your money.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Tom Trees]

I have a half speed grinder that was sold by woodcraft about ten years ago. Has two white wheels, which have worked fine with improvised tool rests. One note is that performance improved considerably when I balanced the wheels by rotating one of them (probably not an issue for the CBN wheels).
Hello Christopher, could you be more specific exactly what you've done?

Having watched some youtubes years ago on bench grinder tuning, It didn't feel like it was worth the hassle, but have since acquired a full speed 8" grinder which vibrates
like mad, when left coast to a stop.
So much so, warranted a base to be welded up for it and the drill quickly, and for it to be clamped down.

Hoping you have a good link or video.
Any info appreciated
Thanks

Tom

[Rob Luter]

Thinking when i replace my current Delta bench grinder, I'd add variable speed...is this is a useful feature? Also do you find moving up to an 8" wheel worthwhile? Thanks.

I find the variable speed very handy. Slow speed on the soft wheel to establish primary edges on chisels and plane irons. High speed on the hard wheel for lawnmower blades, metal shaping, etc.

[Patrick Whitehorn]

... but have since acquired a full speed 8" grinder which vibrates like mad, when left coast to a stop.
So much so, warranted a base to be welded up for it and the drill quickly, and for it to be clamped down.

Tom, it sounds like you have one of two problems - bad bearings (easy to replace in most grinders) or unbalanced wheels. Checking and replacing either (or both) of those might go a long way to fixing the vibration in your grinder.

Patrick

[Christopher Charles]

Hi Tom,

I agree with Patrick that it is one or the other (imbalanced wheels or bad bearings). The (imperfect) way to balance the wheels is to put a mark on both and then rotate one 1/4 turn in relation to the other (to change the net balance between them). Turn on, test, and repeat until it gets as good as it gets. Make sense?

Since you're not truly balancing each wheel, perfection is unlikley :) Mine is not perfect, but very usable for my needs. I suspect the lower end models come with cheap wheels that may each be poorly balanced--you could remove one wheel and test to see if one of the two wheels is especially out of balance.

Good luck!

[Tom M King]

One of the grinders that I bought, and sent back, was a big Dewalt. It had a vibration too, but was traced it to a shaft with a LOT of runout. It was in a pretty safe looking box, and the box wasn't beat up, so it must have gone through quality control like that. I just wrote those off the list.

[Jim Koepke]

It was in a pretty safe looking box, and the box wasn't beat up, so it must have gone through quality control like that.

One often made mistake is seeing the packer's sign off and thinking that is the QC check list. It is just an assurance that all the items that were supposed to be in the box were in the box.

100% testing of each individual product off an assembly line by the quality control department is not practiced for any consumer item to my knowledge.

Quality control uses statistical analysis. Usually 10 (or some predetermined number) items of a manufacturing lot of 100 to 1,000 will be checked. If all 10 pass then it is assumed they are all the same. If one fails then the whole lot goes back for rework.

Some manufactured items go through a system of multiple tests throughout the manufacturing process. These are usually adjustment stages to bring the product into the range of the 'published specifications.' Some manufacturers may allow for more vibration or other 'defects' than others.

jtk