Disc Sander recommendation? "VFD? Reversiable?"

I don't understand people wanting to buy complete disc grinders. Buy a motor and VFD from a cheap source, and get a 9"disc from Beaumont. You will be in to it about $500 or so compared to the $1100 Beaumont wants. I have a 9" 1hp reversible, variable speed grinder. Being able to use sheets of paper is a huge plus. The grinder rarely goes over 40% (700 RPM) on the VFD. I spritz the disc with Windex. It keeps the dust down, keeps the blade cool and makes the paper last much longer. A work rest on a disc would be a huge hindrance to me. It would prevent me from being able to position the blade properly when grinding. Paper on a disc will last maybe 5 minutes or so.
 
It depends what you use it for. A disc without a work rest is almost useless to me, because I do very little bevel grinding on it and mostly use it for getting good, flat surfaces for mitered multi-part scales.

I've tried using it to flaten bevels prior to hand sanding and it does reduce the amount of time spent hand sanding, but it's also the single easiest way for me to screw up a plunge line so until I figure that out, I really only use it on the flats of a blade.
 
I've got both a shop made 8" and a 12" (from the Canadian equivalent of grizzly)

Apart from using it as a power lap, I rarely use the 8"
I use the 12" 15-20 times a day.
Like kuraki I use it mostly for handle work. Probably 90% of my knives either have a tapered tang or dovetailed bolsters, and those are very hard to get a good fitup on without a disc sander with an adjustable table. I use it for flattening scales too.
12" discs are more expensive, but they last a lot longer as well. I use klingspor blue zirconia discs in 100 grit, and even with the amount of use it sees I'm only replacing the disc once every month or two. Wood and brass isn't very hard on them.

You can also get 12" discs about half the price of retail if you buy them by the case of 25.


The choice really comes down to what you want to do with it. Both styles have their purposes and are better suited to different tasks
 
The work rest needs to be quickly and completely removable. a miter slot can also be helpful. The Nielson system is the best, quickest, and most versatile disk money can buy. The Beaumont rest has no rival, but it lacks a miter slot. It's also handy if you can go from vertical to horizontal. Vari.-speed and for./rev. are a must if you are grinding or flattening bevels.
 
Greenberg Woods said:
What grits do you like to have on hand? I was thinking 60, 100, 220 ad 400.
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Right now, I primarily use my disc for finishing after I've already taken things up to or past 120 with a belt, so I'm normally using something like 220, 320, 400 and 600 using SC paper. Having some lower grits for the disc isn't a bad idea either though, especially for shaping handles and what not.
 
I use it only on flat surfaces. Retouch the tapered tang and the blade plate. I use paper sheets from 80 to 1000 grain and I use a VFD that is the same that I use on belt grinder. I have a switch on the electrical circuit that enables the use of one or the other grinder.
 
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