D-Way or Woodturners Wonders CBN wheels?

[Shawn Siegrist]

I’m looking to upgrade my 8” grinder with CBN wheels, I’m comparing D-Way and Woodturners Wonders wheels. The biggest differences I see between them are steel (D-Way) vs aluminum (WTW) wheel and the WTW has wider sides with CBN material on it. Any recommendations between these two products?

[Sam Force]

I cannot compare but I am very pleased with my WTW wheels. the aluminum wheels are not as heavy as steel wheels would be and they say weight matters especially if not on a high dollar grinder

[James Cheever]

I cannot do a direct comparison. I have the D-Way CBN wheels. Love them.

[David Gilbert]

I have 80 and 180 D-Way steel wheels and a WTW 600. The steel wheels killed my 1/2 horsepower grinder and work much better on my new 1 HP grinder. I like the wider steel wheels better than the 1" wide aluminum WTW wheel. I have never figured out what to sharpen on the flat sides of my wheels. By the way, I don't like the rounded edges on some of the wheels. I'd use price as a major criteria.

Cheers,
David

[Jeffrey J Smith]

I’ve had the D-Way wheels on the Woodcraft no-name low speed grinder for several years now (7 or 8 as near as I can tell). They’re still going strong. I love ‘em, too. The grinder is still going strong as well.

[John K Jordan]

I’m looking to upgrade my 8” grinder with CBN wheels, I’m comparing D-Way and Woodturners Wonders wheels. The biggest differences I see between them are steel (D-Way) vs aluminum (WTW) wheel and the WTW has wider sides with CBN material on it. Any recommendations between these two products?

Deciding on steel or aluminum is one thing to consider. Rizza claims the aluminum draws away heat quicker but there is so much mass in the steel I'm not convinced (and not convinced of the need).

I went with Rizza's aluminum wheels and I'm happy. I've bought six of the aluminum wheels so far for use on bench grinders and a couple of Tormeks. I found quickly I did not like the wheels with rounded corners and gave them away. I do like the wheels with 1" of flat grit down the sides. BTW, I really like the WTW spherical washers.

I have only a little direct experience with the steel wheels (never bought one) but I know people who have them and like them. Sharpening on either feels the same to me.


I have 80 and 180 D-Way steel wheels and a WTW 600. The steel wheels killed my 1/2 horsepower grinder and work much better on my new 1 HP grinder. I like the wider steel wheels better than the 1" wide aluminum WTW wheel. I have never figured out what to sharpen on the flat sides of my wheels. By the way, I don't like the rounded edges on some of the wheels. I'd use price as a major criteria.

David, I've used the corner and sides of the wheel more than I thought I would. I designed this tool, for example, for cutting recesses in the bottoms of bowls/platters while staying clear of support from the tailstock. It is easy to make and sharpen with the square corner, flat sides wheels.

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I've also use them to put flats on things like screwdrivers and make special little tools out of allen wrenches and such. I use 80 grit to shape, 600 or 1200 grit to sharpen. I have a spare 220 grit I don't ever use - I should probably advertise it on Classifieds here.

BTW, I see WTW does have 1.5" wide "Mega Square" aluminum wheels now. https://woodturnerswonders.com/products/mega-square-cbn-wheel

JKJ

[roger wiegand]

Can't make a comparison. I have the WTW wheels and they work great. I have other tools from D-Way and based on their quality I'd bet the wheels are great too.

[Shawn Siegrist]

Those of you that have the WTW wheels, how often do you use the wide sides to sharpen? How often do you wish you had a wider wheel?

Those of you with D-Way wheels, how often do you wish you had a wider side to sharpen with?


Thank you to all that have replied so far!

[John Keeton]

Shawn, I have a newer Rikon 1 hp grinder and a WTW 600 grit Mega wheel on one side, and on the other my 180 grit D-Way wheel I have had for several years. I do like the wider wheel, but I am not sure that is a deal breaker for me. I have on rare occasion used the side grit and I actually have a modified Wolverine platform that I can use on the side. I don't see any difference in the steel vs. the aluminum except for weight, which on the 1 hp Rikon is not a factor. For me, the purchase of the new (a year+ ago) Rikon and 600 grit from Ken was based on service and price. I have had a long relationship with Dave Schweitzer and was aware of the impending sale to Jimmy Allen. I just did not know how that would go and was happy with reviews of Ken's service. I agree with JKJ about the spherical washers - a definite plus and must buy. I feel the same about the 1 hp Rikon as compared to the 1/2 hp, so long as the budget will permit. As a side note, from what I can see, it seems Jimmy is doing right by the purchase and does provide quality products and service, though I have not purchased from him.

For me, my setup is perfect. I usually keep the platform on the 180 D-Way wheel for scrapers and use the Vari-grind on the 600 for my gouges. But, others prefer different setups. It is good that we all tend to like different options. If we all liked the same thing, demand would drive the prices out of sight!!!

[John K Jordan]

Those of you that have the WTW wheels, how often do you use the wide sides to sharpen? How often do you wish you had a wider wheel?

Those of you with D-Way wheels, how often do you wish you had a wider side to sharpen with?


I don't sharpen much on 1" wide grit down the sides of the WTW wheels but when I do need it, such as in the tool I showed in the picture, I have nothing else that works as well.

I'm happy with the width of the current wheels with the square corners. The biggest reason I didn't like the radisused corner wheels is the radius reduced the effective working width of the wheel significantly. The 1" wide wheel is wide enough to sharpen even my 1-1/4" skew chisels with the cutting edge even wider than 1-1/4' since the edge is skewed. I sharpen all skew chisels and scrapers by hand on the Wolverine platform rest with no jig.

Some people who are not careful have complained about accidentally running their turning tool off the edge when sharpening by hand or with a Wolverine type Varigrind jig, the original one. In my opinion that's a non-reason. It requires zero effort to keep the tip of the gouge on the wheel if you don't fall asleep while sharpening, assuming you have reasonable control of your hands, reasonable vision, and reasonable hand-eye coordination. For those with physical problems the Varigrind II jig will force the gouge to stay in the center of the wheel. (Otherwise I don't like the new jig.)

For those who want a really wide wheel the 10" diameter Tormek CBN wheels are 2" wide. Mine still have 1" of grit down the flat sides.

BTW, the reason the radiused edges were designed into CBN wheels was to sharpen certain hollowing tools that have a small HSS bit permanently attached by glue or brazing into long handles. The radius allowed sharpening a curve on the bit without making wide, awkward swings with the handle. IMO, the curve is useless otherwise, or at least I never found a use for it. Some tool makers such as the other John Jordan make their hollowing bits removable and mount them in a small jig to sharpen, very much like you would a gouge with the Varigrind, Tormek, or other similar jig.

Perhaps you could purchase one WTW and one D-Way wheel of the same grit and write an evaluation after a year of comparative use.

FWIW, my sharpening station a few years ago. I've changed things around somewhat since then. This picture doesn't show the belt sander I use for shaping hand scrapers.
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JKJ.

[tom lucas]

I have 1-1/4" WTW wheels. I have nothing to compare to, but they are working well and don't show any wear. Just wished I had the room and money for a second grinder for finer grits.

[Reed Gray]

I have worn out one set of D Way wheels, and got more than 5 years out of them. I saw Stuart Batty demo and he commented that a production turner would get about 5 years out of them, which I think is correct. Almost all of my wheels are from D Way. I consider Dave Schweitzer to be a friend, and as near as I can tell, he was the first to get them out on the woodturning market. Now I am trying to remember the name of the new D Way owner, Jimmy Allen??? Ken's wheels seem to do fine as well. I remember concerns about the electroplating on the aluminum wheels, but there haven't seemed to be any problems. I wouldn't consider heating of the wheel to be an issue. I have long figured that these wheels should be on more heavy duty grinders, and not the light weight ones, though many do that. I just like things overbuilt so I can abuse them to my hearts content. I also do not like the rounded edges. I have one wheel with a flat side. I remember hearing once that they are good for carving chisels.

robo hippy

[John K Jordan]

....I have one wheel with a flat side. I remember hearing once that they are good for carving chisels.


I did repair one of my straight-edge carving chisels with the flat side of a wheel. I had dropped the tool and chipped the edge. I used the flat side of the 1200 grit wheel on the Tormek since it turns so slowly.

JKJ

[Richard Dooling]

I have and like Ken's wheels. I am not familiar with D Way wheels but I have a few gouges that are very good quality - I doubt you would go wrong with either.

Ken's 4-in-1 180 grit is great for sharpening small tips like are on the Trent Bosch tools. Moving the tip around the wheel radius let's me transition from the nose to the sides. You end up with the tool pointing to the back of the wheel while grinding the side of the bit on the side of the wheel. Even with the radius you have 1" of flat wheel face.

I also have his Spartan 600 grit. both are nice tools.

[Shawn Siegrist]

I ended up going with the WTW, a mega wheel in 80 grit and a 4 in 1 in 180 grit. With the money saved on the wheels I added the large skew to my order from D-Way. I should be making shavings in a couple of days with sharp new tools!

Thank you to all who took the time to reply!

[Forrest Forschmiedt]

If you are thinking of ordering from WTW it may be worth a call or email before placing the order. Apparently they are feeling the effects of the corona virus and factory shutdowns on their supply chain at the same time they are seeing an increase in orders. I wanted a standard 8x1x5/8 180g wheel but they were out of stock and not able to make any promises when restocks would arrive. I opted to get a 8x1-1/2 radius wheel instead. I have no idea if the radiused edges will be of any use to me but the price was still less than othe CBN wheel options I could find so I went with it. With 1/4 radius on each side the wheel has the same flat area as their std 1" wide wheel.

Today I received, mounted and used the wheel with a new Wolverine setup to sharpen a few tools. Definitely much nicer to use than the white wheels my Rikon grinder came with. The 180g CBN wheel raises a burr much quicker on my scraper than the 120g white ceramic wheel I was using before. I like the Wolverine setup better than the Sharp-Fast gouge sharpening jig I was using before also. The Sharp-Fast jig looks very much like the Kodiak system WTW is now selling.

[Shawn Siegrist]

I received all of my tooling from D-Way, very happy with them!

The wheels from WTW are on back order..... 🙁

[Kevin Smira]

Sorry for bringing up an old-ish thread...

I have the Rikon 1/2 HP grinder and am in need of a (read: 1) CBN wheel. Why one wheel you ask? So that I don’t hit the wife with too much spending at once! I’m about to pull the trigger on my first lathe and tools, etc. I have the Rikon 8” slow speed, 1/2hp grinder and the Wolverine bases (both the platform for my hand tools) and the long arm for turning tools (that I don’t have yet). Which 1 wheel should I choose? I like the idea of the 1” flat on the sides so if I need to do chisel prep (hand tools), that makes it easier for what it’s worth... also, anything else that I need like washers, bushings, etc with the wheel.

[John Keeton]

CBN wheels are intended for high speed steel. I would avoid using carbon steel on them. As to grit, I think 180 is a good “one wheel” grit.

[Forrest Forschmiedt]

I also have a 1/2hp Rikon and also bought one wheel for the same $$ reason.
After my usual habit of over-researching these types of purchases, I found several suggestions for 180 grit if you can only buy one wheel.
Not knowing if all 1/2 hp Rikon grinders are the same, you probably need a wheel with a 5/8" arbor. Some wheels may need an adapter to fit the 5/8" shaft.
WTW recommends their 2 pc. spherical washer set to help assure the wheel seats square to the shaft. They reason that the securing nuts are not precision made and, if not perfectly square, may cause runout at the wheel's surface. I bought the spherical washers and the wheel is as close to true as I could want.

As to wheel profile, I bought the 1-1/2 wheel with radiused sides because the no-frills square edge wheel was out of stock and this was the next least expensive option. If I had the wheel with flat sides I would likely find uses for it but I use my flat sanding wheel for prepping chisels and such before honing.

[Jen Joy]

I'm pretty novice, but recently bought 3/4" arbor wheels from woodturners wonders. Just call them! (And I don't like calling people.) They got me the right grit, helped me get the right size (3/4" with an adapter for 5/8" because stuff is sold out) and I also got the special spherical washers to balance it all out on my low speed, low end Rikon. I ended up with a 180 and a 600 1.5" wide wheels with the 1" edges. So far, working great for me. But this was a month+ back. I spent all the money because I'd been saving up, but I agree with Forrest, I think a 180 would be good and then maybe a finer one down the road. Two mega square wheels was $320.

[John K Jordan]

Sorry for bringing up an old-ish thread...

I have the Rikon 1/2 HP grinder and am in need of a (read: 1) CBN wheel. Why one wheel you ask? So that I don’t hit the wife with too much spending at once! I’m about to pull the trigger on my first lathe and tools, etc. I have the Rikon 8” slow speed, 1/2hp grinder and the Wolverine bases (both the platform for my hand tools) and the long arm for turning tools (that I don’t have yet). Which 1 wheel should I choose? I like the idea of the 1” flat on the sides so if I need to do chisel prep (hand tools), that makes it easier for what it’s worth... also, anything else that I need like washers, bushings, etc with the wheel.

Kevin,

I agree that 180 might be a good all-around single wheel.

But as with many things, what you turn and how you work can make a difference. For example, I often to turn small spindles from hard woods. For that, I want my spindle gouges to be very sharp and the bevels as smooth as I can get them and wasn't happy with the results from the 180. For the spindle gouges I eventually went to a very fine wheel (1200 grit 10" wheel on a Tormek) but for rough shaping of tools I use an 80 grit wheel because it's far faster. When I occasionally turn green wood, the 180 grit wheel was fine for the bowl gouges before I switched to the 600.

180 can give you a reasonable edge on skews too and you can hone and strop to polish for a better cut. The 180 will also coarse enough to let you do moderate shaping in a reasonable time, where the 600 grit takes much too long. And if later you decide you want both a finer and a coarser wheel, you can probably sell the 180. Note also that with a lot of use any CBN wheel will eventually wear out and while it will still sharpen it gives a smoother bevel while starting to take longer for shaping. Perhaps that would be a good time to reevaluate your the grits.

All this said, with the 1200 and 80 and 600 8" wheels in my arsenal I found myself not using the 180 at all for a few years so I eventually consolidated and now have both the 80 and 600 on the same grinder. I'll pass the 180 grit on to a student (who I promise will be thrilled!)

JKJ