belt sander quandry

D

dozuki

Joined
Apr 4, 2006
Messages
77
I am thinking of getting a belt sander for stock removal and am looking to keep the price as lowe as i can. I was looking at the craftsman 2x42 it has the disc and the belt. has anyone used or have ant other suggestions.
 
Up to a year ago that was my belt grinder and you can make knives with them. There are alot of belt choices available for it also, just about as many as a 2x72. Even after getting my 2x72 I still use the 2x42 alot for wood and profiling guards and pommels. It will work better if you get rid of the platen that came with it and put a 1/4" thick mild steel one in it's place. The platen it comes with is stamped and is not flat. It also flexes as you put pressure on it and it's too wide to utilize a 2" belt's edge. It's speed is too fast for some types of grinding but I found how to get around those issues.

I bought mine for $99 brand new and it is still a very important tool in my shop. I know others don't like them but I do not regret starting out with it. You have to start somewhere and a 2x42 will give you a much better idea of what grinder to move up to.

After all you can never have too many grinders.
 
[dozuki]
I am using CRAFTSMAN 2X42. Not long, but made several blades on it. Get the proper belts like 40-50 for roughing and 120 for accurate work. Several 240 belts for fine surfacing. That will do, does for me at least.:rolleyes:
For disk I use 60 grit and mostly to flaten long surface. But it also could be used for hollow rginding. Not the best approach though. Too big radius for thick blades. Will do well for 1/8.
I like this machine so far, may be a little weak, but still do the job.
 
For the money its hard to beat. I have used it to make about 8 knives on it so far. Im in nursing school full time, so knife making is on the back burner. The first thing I did was order a ceramic platen from www.elliscustomknifeworks.com and fixed it to the metal platen. I have tweeked it here and there. I would love to have a coote or a KMG but for now the craftsman will have to do. Jantz has belt in many grits for the 2x42. The major problem with the craftsman is it is not adjustable for belt speed.....so after about 220 grit I go to sanding by hand because it removes too much material. Hope this helps.
 
Should be getting mine Monday. Finally decided this was the budget machine to start out with. Ordered some belts from Supergrit. Great prices.
 
If it was like mine it'll get you started with some modifications. Namely the platen, I welded a piece of 3/8" thick stainless to it, would have been better to just fab a new one and put ceramic on it. After grinding some meat off my thumb when a 36 grit belt sucked it between the lower wheel and cast houseing I cut that part of the houseing away to expose the lower wheel. After I got the bleading stopped! Also I cut the top of the housing away to expose the upper wheel, makes it a lot more usefull for handle work. Not long after the warenty went out so did the motor. I put a 1 horse TEFC 3400rpm on an oak block to get the rite hight and it's been running ever since. After I upgraded to a Coote I gave it to my father and he uses it once in a while for wood working. If I had it to do over I'd mount the motor further back so that it'd take 2x72 belts. Bigest problem is the speed, but it'll teach to to grind in a hurry, or to make scrap in a hurry! After switching to the coote with step pullies I cut my finishing time in half or better.
 
It sounds like to me that the craftsman may be the one to start with. I'm only getting started and now i can look foreward to getting a better machine in the future once I have a couple blades under my belt. Thanks for the help. I'll be looking at supergrit to get my belts. It seems like everyone says good things about them.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top