Scrap my spindle sander or fix it?

[Jonathan Jung]

My Grizzly 1071 is getting annoying. The spindles aren't spinning straight anymore. All the tapers (both machine side and drum side) got gouged, likely from a foreign object getting into the taper, or the machine spindle taper has a burr on it, which we tried to remove, but it came back. So it's really tough to unscrew the drum spindles anymore. If really cranked down, the wobble is better but can still leave marks. Also, and this is maybe more to do with the design, the oscillating feature seems to lag at the top and bottom of the stroke. Is that normal?

I could get a new machine spindle for $54, but the drum spindles range from $40-84 each. That could add up to as much as I paid for the machine.

Having 3 phase, I would consider an older machine, if I could find one complete that's really a dream to use. But I want to ensure I'm upgrading and not jumping from one puddle into another.

[Jim Becker]

I suspect the seeming pause/slowing at top and bottom of the stroke is normal because of the mechanical action necessary to achieve it.

Tough call on this one...I think you have to pit the cost of replacing all the offending parts with new vs what you can find to replace it with equivalent or on the used market plus any necessary reconditioning there. Fixing may or may not have and edge financially and you're used to how this machine operates. It's less about what you originally paid for the tool than it is for what it costs to fix vs replace including availability. The original investment is what it is. Have you been able to locate any potential replacements that will meet your needs? THe used market is tight now, too.

[Bill Dufour]

Any idea on what the taper is? If it a standard like a morse taper they make reamers to clean up the bore. I looked at a harbor freight tabletop unit and it looked similar to a morse taper with a quick look. maybe a M2 or M3.
Bill D.

MAX used a short MT2 taper.

https://www.toolots.com/dimensions-o...rd-tapers.html

[Robert Hayward]

I also have a Grizzly 1071. Before buying I looked at finding one of the old ones and putting a VFD on it. Every one I looked at, pictures anyway, was missing something or a lot of somethings. Or something was broken that would need a new one machined as sourcing parts would be a time consuming process. I wanted to use the sander, not tinker with rebuilding one or spend time working around missing/broken pieces.

I would buy the new machine spindle socket and clean up the sanding spindle tapers. My tapers are all like new but I cannot imagine it being that hard to clean up burrs and gouges on that small taper using hand tools.

The cost of buying a taper cleaning ream would most likely be the same of more than the cost of a new part. I just did some measurements on one of my spindles and I think it is an MT2. Do not take my word for it though, call Grizzly.

[Mike Kees]

I would buy the new socket part for the spindles ($54) And then clean up each spindle with a fine file and emery cloth.

[Bill Dufour]

Probably little wrong with the male tapers. Blue them in to fit the socket. A little file or stoning time should be good enough for wood working. I belive they have a draw bar don't they? If so, much less critical then a drillpress.
Bill D

Amazon has mt2 reamers for under $25. What size is your drillpress or lathe tapers.

[Jonathan Jung]

That's part of what I'm asking, what would be a significant enough upgrade? An old Max? The Jet / Delta with tilting arbor? The power, table size, capability, of the Grizzly is sufficient for me. Only thing I really want is better build quality.

I suspect the seeming pause/slowing at top and bottom of the stroke is normal because of the mechanical action necessary to achieve it.

Tough call on this one...I think you have to pit the cost of replacing all the offending parts with new vs what you can find to replace it with equivalent or on the used market plus any necessary reconditioning there. Fixing may or may not have and edge financially and you're used to how this machine operates. It's less about what you originally paid for the tool than it is for what it costs to fix vs replace including availability. The original investment is what it is. Have you been able to locate any potential replacements that will meet your needs? THe used market is tight now, too.

[Jonathan Jung]

Good idea. We cleaned up the burr in the female taper with fine files, but clearly didn't get it all. I'll look into a reamer. It would be great if there was an easy fix. If not, looks like I'll just replace all the spindles I commonly use.

[Jonathan Jung]

They don't have a drawbar. The end of the sleeve spindle is threaded into the drive spindle.

[Jim Becker]

That's part of what I'm asking, what would be a significant enough upgrade? An old Max? The Jet / Delta with tilting arbor? The power, table size, capability, of the Grizzly is sufficient for me. Only thing I really want is better build quality.

Setting aside the fact that your current machine has mechanical issues, is there anything it doesn't do that you would get value out of on a machine that did provide additional functions? Is the current machine large enough, or would your work benefit from a stouter machine...or a smaller machine. It sounds like what you have is sufficient for how you have been using it, so there really has to be some value add to make an "upgrade" worthwhile, even if the cost were the same as the parts you need to fix the issues. A tilting arbor would definitely open up some opportunities that a stationary one cannot provide without substantial creativity. It takes effort to get a "new to you" machine up and running and it may be the same effort required to just replace worn parts...so there's gotta be an upside for you to do it. (continued availability and cost of said parts for the fix factors in, too.) I don't know any specifics about OSS in this class so I can't help with that; I'm just throwing out how my mind would process the situation and it sounds like you are thinking in the same way. Fixing is less disruptive...you know the machine and as you note, it works well for your current needs. But I, too, would be sensitive to the "build quality" thing and it impacts almost every tool I've purchased.

[Bill Dufour]

To me a tilting arbor would just be one more thing to get out of adjustment.
Bill D

[Jim Becker]

To me a tilting arbor would just be one more thing to get out of adjustment.
Bill D

Not untrue...but if the utility of the feature outweighs the cost/risk, it's worthy of having if it provides enhancement to the work being put to the machine. ONly the OP can make that determination.

[Bill Dufour]

Not untrue...but if the utility of the feature outweighs the cost/risk, it's worthy of having if it provides enhancement to the work being put to the machine. ONly the OP can make that determination.

It would also mean it can be adjusted to be perfectly square if it was not set correctly at the factory. Probably not an issue on a quality older unit.

[Jonathan Jung]

Update

Got in a new drive spindle and set of drum spindles. Unfortunately, the new drive spindle has slight gouges inside the taper. It looks just like my original when it started acting up! It has clearly been in a machine before. Also, 2 out of the 6 new drum spindles are a bit rough on the taper. It's obvious that each spindle is not made at the same time or on the same machine, as some are machined, some are ground, and one is a different color altogether.

I need the machine running, so I stuck in the new drive spindle. While in there I noticed the oscillating gear is plastic and badly cracked in many places. It still works, but man, the build quality on this machine is so aggravating.

In response to the above comments, the functionality of the machine is perfect for me. Only thing is, once in a while I wish it had a bigger table. But I can add an auxiliary table easy enough.

I'm going to try to get my money back on the spindles. Then see about a reamer to clean up.

Been trying to find info on what spindle sanders are the best quality. Having a hard time with that. I've heard good things about old Max and old Oliver's.

[Dave Cav]

I have an older 1071 I got a number of years ago from one man shop that was closing up. So far it's worked fine. I've used Max sanders at school, and they work great; the problem is both the Max and Olivers are out of production, and spindles can be very difficult to find. The other problem is that (for the Max, at least) is that I believe they used a number of different tapers over the years, so finding the correct spindles can be difficult and expensive. That's one advantage to the Grizzly; parts are still available for it. If I have any problems with my OSS I'll probably just rebuild it.

Lots of info on Max, State and Oliver OSS over on OWWM.