EBAY Small Wheels and Attachment

A

Augus7us

Joined
Oct 9, 2014
Messages
694
Hey Folks,

I've been eyeing the small wheel attachment and wheels on ebay. I couldn't find anything searching the site for small wheels, save one post from 15 years ago.

The only issue I really see is that they do not have the rubber backing on them like the wheels from Beaumont. In a perfect world I would buy the wheels from Beaumont, however the price difference is astronomical! No doubt the bearings and finish is probably superior on the Beaumont wheels but minus the rubber is there really that much of a difference?

Anyone have any experience with them?
 
Not sure what size wheel you are looking at but I have some smaller ones(1",2",3") made from water pump bearings. The problem with the all metal ones is that with belts over 220 or so they hop pretty bad and leave lines in the tang. I've been thinking of coating them with something. Maybe a big piece of heat shrink. I will say, as someone here pointed out to me, my grinder is running 4500 sfpm so that probably has something to do with it. I have an 8" serrated wheel from Chicago rubber and have no complaints.
Augus7us said:
Hey Folks,

I've been eyeing the small wheel attachment and wheels on ebay. I couldn't find anything searching the site for small wheels, save one post from 15 years ago.

The only issue I really see is that they do not have the rubber backing on them like the wheels from Beaumont. In a perfect world I would buy the wheels from Beaumont, however the price difference is astronomical! No doubt the bearings and finish is probably superior on the Beaumont wheels but minus the rubber is there really that much of a difference?

Anyone have any experience with them?
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Small wheels need to run much slower. If VS or the ability to drop the belt speed in half ( or lower) isn't available, don't use them.
 
I don't like a hard small wheel, they need a little give or they leave chatter lines. At the very least I'd stick some rubber tubing on it or similar.

They need to run quite slow, for both the bearings and the person doing the grinding.
 
Try to find some kind of tubing to cover the wheels. It shouldn't just "fit over". It should be snug/tight. Try things like surgical tubing or vacuum hoses (for cars, not houses).
 
I bought the small wheel attachment and a couple small wheels for my kmg off of ebay. They work great and fit great. I only do this for a hobby right now though. If you are using them a lot I would recommend the good wheels. The steel wheels work really good but you will feel the belt splice as it goes around.
 
you can make some small wheels from sanding drums there are many tutorials on the inter webs
 
Thanks for the input gentlemen. Because the price is so much cheaper I think I'm going to pick up a set that includes the small wheel attachment and see if I can't get something from the art store to dunk them in. I'm sure there is some type of rubber that would evenly coat the "wheel" section and allow me to cut away the rest. A thin even coat would suffice for now, something that would give a little. Not likely as good as the Beaumont wheels but for now and for something like a third of the price I think it will be worth a try.

Interesting input on the speed, I have a VFD and didn't plan on running them at mach 1, but it is good to know. My plans are to build a permanent horizontal 2x72 and leave them on one corner of that. I don't see them getting used much in my shop vertically, not a the moment anyway.
 
I just got the small wheel holder and a 3/4" wheel from knifegrinderparts. I am very happy with them.
 
Wrap a few layers of duct tape around small metal wheels - for hobby use this holds up ok, but I never use a small (<1") wheel over 1,000 SFPM anyway. Slow speed helps.

Ken >
 
Thanks for the input guys, good stuff and I appreciate it. Sandeggo those are the ones I was looking at and I'm glad to hear you are having success with them.

Ken I like the duct tape idea but I think I'm going to try to find something more permanent first. I know I can get stuff for molds at the art store like latex so I'm going to stop in and see if they have something a bit more rigid and heat resistant to dunk them in. I'm envisioning something like making a candle. If I come up with something half decent I'll let you guys know, otherwise I'll use tape.
 
Augus7us said:
Thanks for the input guys, good stuff and I appreciate it. Sandeggo those are the ones I was looking at and I'm glad to hear you are having success with them.
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I found him on instagram, the machining on the small wheel holder is great and Chaz's customer service is fantastic. The bolts fit so tight I thought they were pressed in. I drilled and tapped 2 3/8" holes in a piece of 1.5" square aluminum I had and was up and running. I got the carbon steel wheel and he cut me a break on it. Most his wheels are stainless now. I only got the 3/4" one cause that's the size I'll mostly be using.
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I wonder if the plasti-dip that's used to recoat dishwasher racks would hold up well.
 
I plan to pick up a set from Chaz soon. Pretty sure his bearings would be the same if not better quality. Basing things off my KMG, Beaumont just uses cheap chinese bearings.
 
I will say that I wish there was something in place to capture the wheel into the holder. For example I used to operate an industrial tubing notcher that was essentially the same as a small wheel attachment. The wheels would slide in but there was a ball detent to keep the wheel locked in. With these wheels you'll have to pull the wheel out when changing belts or you'll drop it. Already did that...
 
I have a Wilmont LB1000 fixed speed so is it not a good idea to run small wheels with it? I have no idea what the belt speed is, just curious if anyone else is running them without vfd.
 
I have some 1 inch wheels that I used to make my flat platen. I also use them for contours. They are intended for water pump bearing but work great on my grinder. I don't have a VFD and my grinder is screaming at around 4400 sfpm(3450 rmp and a 4 3/4" drive wheel). You also can get the bearings for next to nothing.
Justin Presson said:
I have a Wilmont LB1000 fixed speed so is it not a good idea to run small wheels with it? I have no idea what the belt speed is, just curious if anyone else is running them without vfd.
Click to expand...
 
Sandeggo said:
I will say that I wish there was something in place to capture the wheel into the holder. For example I used to operate an industrial tubing notcher that was essentially the same as a small wheel attachment. The wheels would slide in but there was a ball detent to keep the wheel locked in. With these wheels you'll have to pull the wheel out when changing belts or you'll drop it. Already did that...
Click to expand...
Ha, ive pulled my wheels out of the bucket a few times myself
 
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