homemade belt grinder wheels

[Mungo Park]

Hey where can I get wheels from to make a belt grinder. I looked at the knife supply places and they are not very reasonable price. Is ther some place that sells them that do not have a knifemaker markup.
Cheers Ron.

[skipknives]

http://www.sunray-inc.com/store/standardwheel-idler.asp

[AcridSaint]

Contact wheels for grinders are marked up that way throughout the industry. Unfortunately (perhaps fortunately), this isn't a situation where we are getting shafted as a fringe group, the entire industry pays these prices (or near them) because there's not a large market for 2" wide 70duro contact wheels outside of industrial grinding applications. Only way to get the prices down would be a bulk order from China I would imagine.

I don't know the melting point, but poly is going to melt faster than the rubber contact wheels, be sure to not get it hot if you use those. Also, the bearings may need replacing and the wheel may need to be balanced. Talk to them first and let them know it's for a high speed operation (2000+ sfpm) and ask if the bearings will hold out. You could still probably get into it for ~100 or less if you had to replace the bearings.

For what it's worth, Grizzly has smooth wheels in 8" and 10" both for under $100. A lot of home builders are going that route. You'll have to put together your own bearing setup if you go with one.

[David Broadwell]

Originally Posted by AcridSaint

Only way to get the prices down would be a bulk order from China I would imagine.

And you don't really want to order from China. They'd be junk!

I replaced the large contact wheel on my Square Wheel earlier this year with one from Pop's Knifemakers Supply. It was a wheel manufactured by Bertie Rietveltd and is probably the nicest wheel I've ever ground on, and better than the original wheel ever was. It cost over $200 and was worth every penny! That's really a reasonable price for a well made wheel with good bearings.

I've bought small contact wheels in the 5/8" range from the normal knifemakers supply houses like Texas Knifemakers Supply.

Ron, like most thing you get what you pay for. If you're going to use cheap wheels you're going to get poorer performance. The rubber may not be good, the bearings may not last long, and they probably won't run as true and smooth. I certainly understand budgets, but buying the better equipment or using better components on your home made equipment will let you work more efficiently and produce better knives.

David

[Mungo Park]

Thank you for your insights, make me think that a good built grinder wil work poorly if the wheels are cheap.
Cheers Ron.

[Mungo Park]

I another post recomended this place, they seem like nice wheels for the price, they will make any size besides the ones listed in the site.
http://www.sunray-inc.com/store/standardwheel-idler.asp
Cheers Ron.

[David Broadwell]

Originally Posted by Mungo Park

I another post recomended this place, they seem like nice wheels for the price, they will make any size besides the ones listed in the site.
http://www.sunray-inc.com/store/standardwheel-idler.asp
Cheers Ron.

You guys sure these Sunray Inc. wheels are contact wheels for belt grinders? I looked around the site and got the impression that they are wheels for carts, or idler wheels, or rollers, but nothing said they were contact wheels for grinding. I'd sure check it out before ordering something.

David

[AcridSaint]

These are the same poly wheels I was talking about, just talk to them about the speeds for the bearings, balance and watch the melting point of the poly. I have no idea how durable it is compared to rubber on contact wheels.

[Ray Rogers]

I us a similar poly wheel for a 5" contact wheel that I built to do hollow grinds on very small blades. My grinderis variable speed so I have not had any problem with heat. It does do the job and it was cheap, but like David said, you get what you pay for. There is noticeable vibration and considerbly more noise than with my 10" contact wheel.

My advice would be the same as most of the others here: spend the money for a good wheel, at least on your main contact wheel. The poly wheels are OK for small projects where you don't have to use them for long periods but that's about as far as I can recommend them....

[SamLS]

I have been tempted to make my own. If you were to take an Aluminum hub and make a round mold I think the polyurethane casting resin would work. I have been told it bonds to aluminum well and have a strong suspicion thats how they are made commercially. A natrual rubber or synthetic blend would have to be vulcanized. The other option for the large contact wheels is the two piece with a replaceable outer ring sold by MSC etc.