Grinder coming home...but which one?

Jim Burr

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Reno, Nv
Have all the parts for my One way Wolverine sharpening set-up, sans grinder. 8" only please...what do you guys like and why? Like to keep it under $200'ish? Thanks!!
 
I have a 6" high speed. Old, old, old Craftsman with bearings that run forever! Jim Bradley was just getting married when this thing was manufactured.

I sharpen on a 1" 2 speed belt sander. Belts including leather for honing available at Lee Valley. With the Wolverine system attached. Just saying there is more than one way to skin a cat.

However, I would love a slow speed 8" with great bearings and balanced, under $200, that would get diamond wheels one day. :rolleyes: :thumb: :D Like that would happen.
 
Rikon 80-805 8" Low Speed, $147 CDN

The Rikon model 80-805 Slow Speed Grinder features a smooth starting, powerful ½ HP motor. The grinder operates at 1,750 RPM, which is ideal for sharpening operations because it reduces heat build-up and minimizes the possibility for “bluing.” This grinder comes equipped with two 1" x 8" white aluminum oxide grinding wheels: one 120-grit wheel and one 60-grit wheel. The cast-iron base features anti-vibration rubber feet and is equipped with mounting holes for convenient attachment to a workbench or grinder stand. Grinder comes with Tool Rests, Eye Shields, Spark Arrestors, 6' Power Cord And Five-Year Warranty.

Mine is on the way. Late Christmas present to me!

I'll be testing it first, then deciding whether it requires Oneway's Balancing System.

https://forum.canadianwoodworking.com/showthread.php?59402-Bench-grinder&highlight=grinders"

Some good discussion here if you're interested!
 
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I was watching a turning video the other day and the guy had a variable speed porter cable 8" grinder. He seemed to think it was pretty good.
My grinder died awhile ago and may try the PC.
 
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Don't forget used/CL.

Under $200 you say.............
My Tormek was found for $185 (with the turning jigs and a couple hand tool jigs).
My Baldor was bought with a stand for $150.
I have a square frame Craftsman, that is liked as well as Baldor for a lot less, that was $35 and it came with a belt sander that needs an external motor.
My first grinder was a Craftsman, that I picked up a multitool belt and disc sander, whe Snap on stopped carrying them (sold under the Blue point name at the time). With both pieces it would have been just at $200.
If I were to buy new, I would probably be looking at the slow speed that Woodcraft sells, personally.
 
I've got the 1750 rpm Woodcraft grinder that has now been replaced in their line-up with the comparable Rikon. In the case of mine, the factory wheels were no well balanced, so I bought the Oneway balancing kit. Then I bought the Oneway grinding wheels. By the time I bought all the stuff to make my grinder decent, I had spent enough money to buy a CBN wheel or two. And now that I've used a grinder with a CBN wheel, I know that's what I should have done in the first place. (Actually, CBN wheels weren't as affordable back when I souped up my cheap grinder.) The Oneway wheels and balancing kit are nice, but they don't hold a candle to a CBN wheel. I'll be buying one once I get my shop up and running.

My advice would be to buy the Rikon or find a good used grinder, use whatever wheels are on it for the time being, and then save up your lunch money to put a CBN wheel on it. (One is all you need.)
 
I see the Rikon successor to the store brand on sale at Woodcraft for $99 periodically. I have the store brand, and it fills my needs, including the Wolverine jig.
 
I caught a Woodcraft grinder on sale for just about $100... still has the white wheels that came with it, but want to put better ones on soon.. the wheels have a slight wobble when they first start, but by the time they reach speed, they seem to run true. I have the Wolverine system that goes with it... the Wolverine cost more than the grinder.

Like Carol, before I got the grinder, I used a HF 1" belt grinder with a 120 grit belt and sharpened free hand... worked for a while, then I needed to take my tools over to a friends house and reshape them.
 
I've got the 1750 rpm Woodcraft grinder that has now been replaced in their line-up with the comparable Rikon. In the case of mine, the factory wheels were no well balanced, so I bought the Oneway balancing kit. Then I bought the Oneway grinding wheels. By the time I bought all the stuff to make my grinder decent, I had spent enough money to buy a CBN wheel or two. And now that I've used a grinder with a CBN wheel, I know that's what I should have done in the first place. (Actually, CBN wheels weren't as affordable back when I souped up my cheap grinder.) The Oneway wheels and balancing kit are nice, but they don't hold a candle to a CBN wheel. I'll be buying one once I get my shop up and running.

My advice would be to buy the Rikon or find a good used grinder, use whatever wheels are on it for the time being, and then save up your lunch money to put a CBN wheel on it. (One is all you need.)

I was thinking about the CBN Vaughn. When I ordered a 5/8" From Doug Thompson the other day he said the leather strop with honing compound on the Tormek is superior to the CBN. Having a T3...I'll have to do a comparison!
 
I was thinking about the CBN Vaughn. When I ordered a 5/8" From Doug Thompson the other day he said the leather strop with honing compound on the Tormek is superior to the CBN. Having a T3...I'll have to do a comparison!

"Superior" is a subjective term. ;) The leather wheel and compound will put a finer edge on the steel (smaller scratches) but will take longer because of the nature of leather and honing compound. And there's no reason you can't go from the CBN to the Tormek leather hone. To me, the beauty of the CBN wheels is that they are very well balanced (super smooth running) so you can use a VERY light touch when sharpening, giving you very good control of your profile. They also excel at removing a lot of steel quickly.


I like using my Tormek for gouges but still prefer a dry grinder for my scrapers. When I get a CBN wheel, I'll probably still keep using the Tormek for touch-ups on the gouges, but the CBN wheel will be handy for quickly changing profiles on gouges, as well as putting a burr on my scrapers. :thumb:
 
I don't have a Tormek to compare, but now have two CBN wheels. There is no comparison between them and the white/pink wheels I used to have. They run true, with no wobble and don't continuously wear down. The drawback to CBN is that you will muck them up if you grind normal steel on them. I don't know if you can grind tungsten, if you do any TIG welding. CBN was a good investment for me. A light touch will give you a great cutting edge on everything but the skew, which I like to hone. As Vaughn said, they will take off some metal if you get heavy handed.
 
Well I'm sold on the Rikon. CBN to follow the next month. The 8" prices have really come down in the last few years. I have several scrapers so maybe keep the 100 grit AO on there for them. Thanks all...great help!
 
I was watching a turning video the other day and the guy had a variable speed porter cable 8" grinder. He seemed to think it was pretty good.
My grinder died awhile ago and may try the PC.

My PC 8" variable speed grinder lasted a few hours before it became a door stop. Glenn pursued this on the web and found many people who had the same problem. The electronics are short lived. Replacement seemed to run $40 to $50.

I down loaded instructions on how to true the stones sidewise and true and balance them rotation wise. Glenn was here and we (mainly "he") had it running like a dream without buying something else to add to it. The process took a bit of time but worked like a dream. I will look and see if I have a copy. That was the good news.

The bad news was that the grinder only continued to function for a couple hours after that so I had to go back to my dad's old Pre WW-II Craftsman. The old Sear's is still running just fine, however it is just 6" x 5/8" (?) carborundum stones.

I replaced the PC with a Ricon I purchased at the WoodWorking Show. I sure wish I had purchased two; the were on sale at the Show for less than $100. The Ricon ran tremendously better, just out of the box, than the PC did.

Gads, I sound like a salesman.

Enjoy,
JimB
 
Good deal on getting back up and running Jim[Bradley]. I think its pretty much the same unit as the woodcraft when it was sold, so I'm hoping both Jims have as good a luck with it as I've had with the woodcraft one.

I left the woodcraft running (accidentally) for a while once when I was sharpening between cuts and when I got back to it it was a little on the warm side. Other than that which was entirely my fault its been a champ. Granted my usage is pretty low and intermittent so...

Saw an interesting discussion on CBN wheels, someone did the math and they're about twice as hard to spin up as the white wheels are. Apparently that's also been a plausible cause of some of the VS grinders pooping out. A few folks said they "give them a bit of a whir by hand" to get them spinning a little which helps get past the initial inertia to start them up.
 
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