1x30 experience?

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fields_mj

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Nov 29, 2015
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Does anyone have any experience with the vevor style 1x30 belt grinders? I'm kicking around the idea of getting a 1x30 grinder for my shop. Something like the Vevor configuration. From the limited information I can find, it looks like the toolcker is a really nice unit, but it sells for around $260. Vevor is only a slight step down (exact same design) and sells for $210. Then there's a bunch on amazon and ebay in the $170-$175 range, a few in the $150 range, and one or two in the $130 range. Again, all the same design, but some may not have a readily accessible reversing feature. I'm wanting it for lighter work like sharpening knives, deburring/chamfering/rounding small steel parts, and anything that involves wood (ie scales). If I'm not trying to make knives on it, I'm struggling to justify spending $209 or $260 instead of $130-$150 (all US stock).

FWIW - I don't make anything to sell, just odds and ends for myself. I have a 2x72 that I built about 25 years ago (KMG-ish) and use for any heavy work including making a knife blade or sharpening the commercial mower blades on my 60" deck. Just looking for something better suited for smaller work and these 1x30 machines look like they would be a good fit depending on the price tag.

Thanks,
Mark
 
Bought one of the $273.99 versions off Amazon last year. I like it so far.
Mostly using it for sharpening. This one is variable speed, and forward or reverse.

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If you have a 2x72, then I doubt you'd find much utility in the 1x30. I gave my Harbor Freight 1x30 away.

As for the prices, you are correct. A bunch of companies (Harbor Freight, Vevor, Grizzly, etc) sell the same Chinese machines in different colors and slightly different parts. Vevor competes strictly on price, so you get cheaper on/off switches and plastic knobs. The machines themselves perform the same.
 
I had a 1x42 Delta for a long time, and I used it a fair amount even after I built the 2x72. I typically kept a cheap 120-180 grit belt on it to use on wood, aluminum, and mild steel (although I normally used the bigger grinder even on mild steel). I miss not having it now that its dead.

At +$250, its not worth having for me. The limited use doesn't even come close to justifying the cost. Anything north of $200 is too much, even the Vevor at $209. $175 is probably still too expensive, but I'd be willing to flex the budget a little to make that happen just to get one back on the bench. $130-$150 I'd do in a heartbeat, but I'm hesitant about the quality. At that price range, am I buying the QC rejects that they knew the couldn't sell for $175?
 
The 2x72 style of the 1x30 (variable speed, reverse, contact wheel, platen, etc) would be nice for sharpening and repair work and I could see it for handle shaping, too. Don't need a ton of power for those tasks! I think grinding a blade on it would be harder than your 2x72. The old style 1x30 with the 5" flat disc on the side sucks for knifemaking because the platen is so flimsy and it's fast, but doesn't have much power to it.
 
At this point I think you've said your 2X72 is a single speed? You're talking about a VFD and 3 ph motor for it? Once you get variable speed on the 2X72 you'll seldom look at the 1X30 for sharpening. I had a 1X30 I used for sharpening back with my first 2X72 (KMGish 3 speed). Once I built the next with a VFD, I found I didn't use it anymore and gave it to my brother for him to use for sharpening.

Just like the 2X42" Grizzly I ordered on impluse when they put it on sell for $300 shipped. Thought I might use it some, but find I seldom use it. It works just fine, but I like my variable speed 2X72 much better.
 
Ken H> said:
At this point I think you've said your 2X72 is a single speed? You're talking about a VFD and 3 ph motor for it? Once you get variable speed on the 2X72 you'll seldom look at the 1X30 for sharpening. I had a 1X30 I used for sharpening back with my first 2X72 (KMGish 3 speed). Once I built the next with a VFD, I found I didn't use it anymore and gave it to my brother for him to use for sharpening.

Just like the 2X42" Grizzly I ordered on impluse when they put it on sell for $300 shipped. Thought I might use it some, but find I seldom use it. It works just fine, but I like my variable speed 2X72 much better.
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I have pullies on my 2x72 that allow me to change the speed, but it is a cumbersome process to go through. Also, I don't make a knife very often. Maybe 3 or 4 every 5 or 10 YEARS. I use it for quite a few other things though (I do more welding than knife making). I have a cheap VFD and a 3ph motor for my 2x72, but I've never gotten around to installing them. After getting them, I realized that I'd probably be better off buying a new 2x72 DIY kit that would also give me a grinder that would rotate horizontal, use the new motor and drive for that, and sell the one that I built originally. I don't keep a lot of 2x72 belts on hand because they tend to go bad from age (breaking at the seam) before I ever wear them out. I keep a few aggressive belts for hogging material (sharpening mower blades, chamfering steel for welds, grinding welds down, ect). If I plan on making a blade, I'll generally buy a small assortment that will last me through the individual project and let it go at that. Sharpening a new blade and/or reprofiling blades either gets done on an electric worksharp, or manually with a fixed angle system. Not fast, but for my limited use, it works fine. 1x30 would give me the VFD feature and much cheaper belts. I wouldn't want to grind a new blade on it, but for random work that's not well suited for a 2x72 running a ceramic or zirconium belt at full speed, it seems like it would be a good fit. With that said, north of 2 Benjamins, I'd rather sink the money into the a cheap 2x72 kit and put my VFD and 3ph motor to use. At that point, I suspect I could figure out a way to modify the kit to also allow me to run some shorter (cheaper) belts for my general purpose needs.
 
I have a variable speed 2 X 72, a Hardcore single speed 2 X 72, a Grizzly single speed 2 X 72, a variable speed MultiTool 2 X 36. I bought one of the Chinese 1 X 30 VFD drive units quite a while ago. I think it was around $400 then.
It's a very nice, professional-style little grinder. Different tools for different jobs. Ideally, I want to move it to my workbench, where it would be used without having to walk over to one of the bigger grinders-simply for convenience sake.
 

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fields_mj said:
Does anyone have any experience with the vevor style 1x30 belt grinders? I'm kicking around the idea of getting a 1x30 grinder for my shop. Something like the Vevor configuration. From the limited information I can find, it looks like the toolcker is a really nice unit, but it sells for around $260. Vevor is only a slight step down (exact same design) and sells for $210. Then there's a bunch on amazon and ebay in the $170-$175 range, a few in the $150 range, and one or two in the $130 range. Again, all the same design, but some may not have a readily accessible reversing feature. I'm wanting it for lighter work like sharpening knives, deburring/chamfering/rounding small steel parts, and anything that involves wood (ie scales). If I'm not trying to make knives on it, I'm struggling to justify spending $209 or $260 instead of $130-$150 (all US stock).

FWIW - I don't make anything to sell, just odds and ends for myself. I have a 2x72 that I built about 25 years ago (KMG-ish) and use for any heavy work including making a knife blade or sharpening the commercial mower blades on my 60" deck. Just looking for something better suited for smaller work and these 1x30 machines look like they would be a good fit depending on the price tag.

Thanks,
Mark
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I bought a Grizzly 1x30 around 3 years ago and it has been a great addition to the shop. I bought one with variable speed. I wouldn’t want to grind a whole knife with it, but it does come in handy for certain things.
 
If it's more the 1" belts that you want, you should be able to use 1" belts on your 2x72. You can split them yourself or buy 1x72 belts from some of the suppliers. They will track just fine. Practice on some old belts first if you're going to split them yourself. Easy enough to make a jig that uses a utility blade screwed to a block of wood with a slot cut in it.

I've posted this before, but for handle work, there is nothing that works better than 1x72 scalloped belts. I get them from Red Label, but I think other suppliers make them too. The scallops let them get into pretty tight curves. They stay cool when grinding, they even grind leather without burning it like a solid belt. And they remove material like crazy, I swear a 240 grit removes micarta more like a 120 grit. A lot of times I'll start with the 240, then 320. and final power with 400. A little bit of hand sanding to clean up anything that needs it and it's ready for the buff. Red Label runs some package deals where you can get a variety of grits without having to buy dozens. I couldn't find what I wanted one time and sent an email, they made it a "package" and sent me the price/link.
 
I appreciate everyone's responses. Looking at what some of you have paid for your "cheap" 1x30 grinders ($250-$300) has me thinking that if I'm buying one off ebay for $130-$150 (or even $175), then I'm literally buying Vevor's QC rejects. I'm not into doing that at any price. Seems like my best option would be to save up enough to buy a $600 2x72 chassis kit, add my unused motor and VFD to it, and possibly modify it to run shorter 1x42 or 1x30 belts if I'm really wanting to be able to use the shorter/cheaper belts for some reason. That said, with a tilting 2x72 and a vfd drive, I may find that its easier and cheaper to just buy the bigger belts than it is to spend time and $$ modifying the grinder to run cheaper belts.
 
I got mine for free. Amazon was offering a $250 credit for signing up for their credit card. Didn't need the card but for a free 1x30 grinder why not.
 
fields_mj said:
I appreciate everyone's responses. Looking at what some of you have paid for your "cheap" 1x30 grinders ($250-$300) has me thinking that if I'm buying one off ebay for $130-$150 (or even $175), then I'm literally buying Vevor's QC rejects. I'm not into doing that at any price. Seems like my best option would be to save up enough to buy a $600 2x72 chassis kit, add my unused motor and VFD to it, and possibly modify it to run shorter 1x42 or 1x30 belts if I'm really wanting to be able to use the shorter/cheaper belts for some reason. That said, with a tilting 2x72 and a vfd drive, I may find that its easier and cheaper to just buy the bigger belts than it is to spend time and $$ modifying the grinder to run cheaper belts.
Click to expand...
I think I paid around $250 for my Grizzly. IMO, it’s well worth the investment.
 
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