About to buy first real grinder...

Great looking grinder! And good price! I don't have one of those, because I build all of my own equipment, but it is very similar to what I designed. Good setup! Go ahead and pull the trigger! That's only about $300 more than you can build one, using the same materials. Mine incorporates the same aluminum construction as well. Good find my friend. :thumbsup:
 
The Reeder is another great option. Pick up the Frame assy. for $495, and your own wheel set. Little more $$ but close in price. Their motor/VFD combos are WAY expensive, but I'm glad they have JUST the frame available. You can find a billet wheel set for under $130, and a motor/pulley setup for $200-$300. Now ya have a variable speed grinder for well under $1K! Now that's doable for most hobbyists. I like even cheaper, which is why I build everything! LOL! But for those that can't build, great options.
 
I looked at that grinder - price is right, BUT "Uses 1.6 x 1.6 Tooling Arm " that one right there is enough to turn me away. Just like the TW90 with the 1-1/4" tool arms, while the rest of the world uses 1.5" tool arms...... You're locked into buying from them - with that funky 1.6" tooling arm you can't even make your own tooling arms.

Tension arm is too short - if that gas piston is strong enough to work good, I hope you're a strong boy to change belts.

No 56C motor mount plate - more expense to mount motor.

Just some comments.
 
Tooling arms are no big deal. The steel supply warehouse I get all my stock from, does square 6061, 7075 or 2024 aluminum in any size you need. Measured to the 1/16" of an inch! But I agree with you Ken. It's a cheap marketing trick by these people. "Make it different so people not in the know buy from us!" It's pretty deplorable.
 
scott.livesey said:
i agree about 1.6 tooling arms and the tension arm arrangement looks real clumsy. a face mount for the motor will be a lot more secure and stay in alignment. here is what I own that is just a little more money, a wilmont LB1000 http://www.wilmontgrinders.com/Pages/LBGrinder.aspx
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Well, "looks" are one thing, and performance is something else. Luckily, they have nothing to do with one another. A tool can look as clumsy as it can be, and I could not care less.....As long as it performs!

Another note. Weather face mounted or bench mounted has no bearing whatsoever on security, or belt alignment in the slightest! So long as both are mounted correctly, they will be equal in those categories.
 
One Armed said:
Well, "looks" are one thing, and performance is something else. Luckily, they have nothing to do with one another. A tool can look as clumsy as it can be, and I could not care less.....As long as it performs!
Another note. Weather(whether) face mounted or bench mounted has no bearing whatsoever on security, or belt alignment in the slightest! So long as both are mounted correctly, they will be equal in those categories.
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since I don't have one in front of me, I have to go by how the tension arm APPEARS to me mounted in the video. the load is not coming straight down onto the cylinder which could lead to premature wear and failure of the cylinder. the video shows very little of the motor. what does it bolt to? how many mounting holes? what will prevent the motor from moving out of alignment? if the motor moves just a tenth of a degree from square, again premature wear on shaft and motor bearings. of course i have only have 40 years experience in factory maintenance and machine design and repair, so what do I know.
my machine currently mounts a Leeson motor driven by a Leeson VFD that cost me $175 delivered, the deals are out there, you just gotta shop. for tooling arms, i got 3 24" lengths of thick wall 1 1/2" steel tube and a 5 gallon bucket full of 1/2 and 3/4" aluminum plate, total cost, gas to get to local machine shop and ask to look thru scrap.
 
One Armed said:
The steel supply warehouse I get all my stock from, does square 6061, 7075 or 2024 aluminum in any size you need. Measured to the 1/16" of an inch!
Click to expand...

Yes, but 1-5/8" would be 1.625", so you''d have to machine .025" off all 4 sides.

On mounting the motor, there is nothing provided to mount motor, you'll have to provide your own baseplate to mount grinder AND motor. That can be designed so the motor is mounted securely so will work just fine. Still would be nice if they'd provided an option for a 56C mounting plate. Takes care of motor alignment. Scott is correct, motor alignment is pretty important for belt tracking and motor life.

Ken H>
 
Ken H> said:
I looked at that grinder - price is right, BUT "Uses 1.6 x 1.6 Tooling Arm " that one right there is enough to turn me away. Just like the TW90 with the 1-1/4" tool arms, while the rest of the world uses 1.5" tool arms...... You're locked into buying from them - with that funky 1.6" tooling arm you can't even make your own tooling arms.

Tension arm is too short - if that gas piston is strong enough to work good, I hope you're a strong boy to change belts.

No 56C motor mount plate - more expense to mount motor.

Just some comments.
Click to expand...
I agree with you on the 1.6" tooling arms, but not the 1-1/4". My two old B-III Bader grinders use 1-1/4" and it is the grinder that Everybody copied. Seems KMG started the 1-1/2" craze, but I prefer the 1-1/4" arms.
 
Don, I agree with the idea that 1-1/4" tooling arm will work just as good as the 1-1/2", and will be a tad less expensive than the 1.5" arm. My opposition to 1-1/4" tooling arm is because all my current tooling arms are 1.5", and it "seems" there are more options available with 1.5", but might be just as many with 1-1/4".
 
1 1/4" would work fine, main thing it is a standard size carried in any metal yard. 1.6 inches is just not a standard size, as it works out to 40.75 mm.
 
Guys, this really is "small fries"! I can buy a 24" 6061 1.25" bar for less than $17! A 24" 1.5" for less than $20! And if you have a 1.6" opening, can get a 1.5" and a .1" spacer!! This really is not a problem.....at all....like none! Almost like people are trying to disagree for the sake of it! Are some of you dumbocrats or something!

"This is a joke btw..:D"
 
shaolinfox30 asked for opinions on this belt grinder. several of us saw several issues: how the tension arm was mounted, how the motor is mounted, threaded aluminum tool arm with stainless bolts and non standard sized tooling arms. for long life, it is best to use a high hardness inserts in aluminum. there are other grinders available for a little more money that do not have these issues.
 
LOL! OK, cool! I'm glad you got all those "issues" cleared up. I'm sure the thousands of people out there running these grinders for any length of time, would like to know...so they can hurry up and go buy a much more expensive grinder. Because we all know it's ALL about how much your tools cost! Not the skill you have or the blades you create! LOL! Fell free to spend as much as you wish. I prefer spending my money on materials. $2,$3,$400 may be nothing to some. Awesome! But it sure is to many of us. And even $200 is enough CPM3V steel for many blades. See, I like spending my extra money on quality steel, & materials. Instead of junk to forge and grind on my $3600 grinder! LOL.

"Nother joke btw....so don't get triggered, haha":D
 
this is what my tools cost: I have about $1500 invested in my Wilmont LB1000, that total includes 3 motors, a VFD, a second drive wheel, 3 spare tooling arms, and the electrical wiring. the LB1000 design is such that I can change out the motor in 10 minutes. 800rpm motor for finishing, 1720 rpm motor for general work, and 3450 rpm motor for "Hoggin". all my tooling arms are thick wall 1 1/2" tube and I have had no issues with them. I did replace some nuts with Nylock nuts so that they would never loosen on their own.
 
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