What kind of Grinder/Sander should I get

[NJStricker]

Chris,

Alignment is very important to proper tracking of grinding belts on these machines.

So, you haven't received your wheels, but you've already welded up the frame. What if your alignment is off?

[jawilliams0425]

Originally Posted by NJStricker

Chris,

Alignment is very important to proper tracking of grinding belts on these machines.

So, you haven't received your wheels, but you've already welded up the frame. What if your alignment is off?

Wondering this myself. Have seen several builds that were pre welded and then when the wheels came in people had to grind the welds off and then start over. Hopeing the best for you on this. But pics would be very nice.

[squigly1965]

The plate that I used was outside. thats why its a bit rusty. I cleaned the areas before I welded. It's as square as June Cleaver. Still haven't finished the Tension Arm.
here's the pix.
The first one is of the tension armature with the tracking adjustment. I The hinge I used is pretty solid. The others are of the Grinder body. The second tube is for a work rest holder.

As it sits it's about 16" long and 8.5" wide(the base plate) and 16" tall. All in all it weight about 35-40 lbs

Any question or comments welcome

[squigly1965]

With the motor I'm planing on using, and the drive wheel I ordered I'm looking at roughly 1800 SFPM

How is this for speed?

I the motor I was planning on using is a 1725 RPM. I do have a faster motor(3450rpm) but it's only 3/4 hp

[Ray Rogers]

That's slow when compared to most grinders but that is about where I like to work. Slower is safer, that's how I like to look at it. Some guys like 3000 - 5000 sfpm because they can hog metal in a hurry. That's true, but you can hog finger tips just as easily and I'm not in that much of a hurry.

Anyway, try it, you might like it. If not, you can always switch motors or pulleys later ....

[squigly1965]

in order to gin any speed I would need to either get a bigger drive wheel or faster motor. Reason is the drive wheel is designed to be on the motor shaft. I didn't go with a pulley set up.

[Ray Rogers]

Yup, and the bigger the drive wheel the lower the torque. Everything is a trade off. Try the speed you have, you may find as I do that it is all you need and a heck of a lot easier to control. And, if you can't vary the speed you'll find the slower speed much better than high speed when you are using finer grit belts. Overall suckage increases dramatically at high belt speeds when finer grits are used ....

[Doug Lester]

I agree with Ray, slower can deffinantly be better. My motor spins at about 3600rpms but I use a 1.5" drive wheel with a 5" wheel on the grinder. If I was to change anything it would be to go to a 6" wheel. I might seem real nice to be able to hog off the steel to rough the blade and set the bevels but it also makes it easier to remove more metal than you want to. Another thing that you might try is a step pulley.

Doug Lester

[Terry Paulsen]

Earlier in the thread crowning of idler and drive wheels is mentioned. How much is the wheel crowned? is there any special surface texture on the drive wheel? would you use a knurled surface on the drive wheel?

Thanks for any help

Terry

[Ray Rogers]

On idler wheels that are not crowned, crowning can be accomplished by applying a couple of turns of electrical tape to the idler. That should give you an idea of how much (or little) crowning is required.

No special surface is needed on a drive wheel, smooth is fine ...

[squigly1965]

Alrighty well my wheels should be showing up this week. And well I've been putting the Platen off.

So I'm going to Start on it today. Get most of it done I hope.

Once the wheels show up I still need to drill all the holes for them and mount the motor

time to have some fun