KMG vs. TW90 (objective comparison)

Mooseyard said:
I only have experience with the TW90, and I have to say it is great. It is very quiet, and very well built. It tracks very well. I do wish that the platen would tilt back like the KMG instead of just being vertical. I have no complaints with the TW90. I really don't see the price difference. If you were to take a KMG , add a Leeson 2hp, VFD, the platen, small wheel, and 8" wheel, KMG horizontal grinder, another Leeson 2hp and another VFD, I think you will find the TW90 to be a good deal.
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Very well put! People think it is extremely overpriced. It is because the TW90 comes soup to nuts. Most purchase the KMG as a basic setup w/ step pulleys so they are spending $900+. If they put the total package together they would see the cost rise fast. Yet still not as smooth, quiet and a two position machine as a TW90
 
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Fred.Rowe said:
One reason I purchased two KMG's over time is that they came unpainted. No frills; I think of Army Jeep instead of Hummer, when talking KMG. A solid machine that is easily tweaked and can be built on. I know the TW90 is a beauty, but at twice the price it would have to make coffee in the morning for me to consider it.
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It is NOT twice the price. It cost more because it comes Soup to nuts where as you can get a KMG bare balls. When I purchased my first KMG that is exactly how I bought mine. Platen, 8" wheel and step pulleys. If you were to buy the top of the line package from KMG the price would be up there. Yet still not as smooth, quiet and not a two position machine.
 
I'd rather have a dedicated kmg horizontal grinder sitting next to my Kmg then have to mess with switching the tw-90 to horizontal every time I wanted to use that feature. And I could get both for the same price as a tw-90. To ea h his own though. I love my Kmg and would buy it over the tw-90 every time.
 
The noise thing is key for me. I had the table next to travis at g4 we talked alot about grinders. One of the amazing things is the noise. He had the grinder on for demos and i couldnt hear it at the next table. So another plus there.
 
Everyone has a favorite and thats the great thing with having choices. But just an FYI: The TW90 does take a whole 3 second to change from horizontal to vertical. Having to mess with it is not part of using it. It can be changed quicker than you could get to a different machine.
 
Kentucky said:
We stll grind on a Coote, so you all make me sick :D
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The Coote is a darn good piece of equipment! A quality knife is made by a quality maker, not the machine. I have a TW90 because I make a good living and it is what I wanted. I am still learning and would gladly give my machine up for some of the talent here!!!
 
Is the flat platen on the TW90 fixed in the vertical position?
 
I have had both a KMG and now a TW-90. Both are a rock solid machines. But I prefer my TW-90 so much I eventually sold my KMG, because I needed the space in my shop more than I need two grinders.

To me it is more user friendly to the person grinding, and with all the attachments and versatility the possibilities with machine are only limited by the person using it.

The price for a decked out KMG is about the same as a standard TW-90. The KMG has the advantage that it can be bought piece meal and assembled according to budget, but is about the same price if you bought everything that comes with the TW-90.

I really like how safety features were put in the TW-90. I have been slapped by a 36 grit sanding belt. It sucks. I like that I can adjust the plate to keep sparks out of my face as well.

Last week I had my flat platen surface ground flat again, using the surface grinding attachment, and will add glass to the platen. The guide wheels on the flat platen are adjustable to accommodate the extra thickness of the glass.

Tapering tangs is a breeze with the surface grinder attachment.

Flipping the machine over to grind horizontally is a matter of seconds and the machine is just as rock solid.

Ideally having a dedicated machine for each job is the way to go. However I don't have that kind of space or budget. I paid a little more upfront and got a machine that fills the role of three other machines.
 
I have a KMG as well as a Dozier. I would gladly add a TW-90 to my shop. In fact, I was on the phone with Travis this morning talking about it.

I hate to say it, but if you can't see the difference, then you're probably not going to benefit from it.

Those that are on a budget will always be looking at the KMG. It is a get-the-job-done tool.

Sometimes though, for me anyway, I need more than just "get-r-done"...I need higher performance, quality, reliability and versatility. I have made a half-dozen or so fixtures for my Dozier and a total of zero for my KMG. I use it as a brute workhorse and do my finer stuff on the Dozier. The TW-90 is the same. It is not just a workhorse...it is much more.


One thing that hasn't been mentioned.....KMG is belt-driven. The TW-90 is a direct-drive.

If you have never used a direct drive belt grinder then, once again, you're not going to understand/appreciate it.



How is it that the TW-90 is being labeled as "Pricey"?
Seems like a real bargain to me. Each of my grinders has cost me 3500-4000 with all the add-ons included anyway. If you want everything the TW-90 can do (apples-to-apples) you're going to spend the same amount building/modifying a KMG. *shrug*
 
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Open air sports model KMG.
 
Leethal Cutlery said:
I also like the bigger tooling arms on the kmg and the fact they are steel and not aluminum.
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I have a "tree" loaded with steel tooling arms with wheels, MAP, Platens, etc....and I wish every one of them was lighter. I switch stuff around a lot and since there's no-one else around in my shop to see how macho I am lifting these things to head-height over and over again...I get no satisfaction doing it. :D

Having steel tooling arms has not made the KMG have better tracking...nor has the added weight cut down on vibration, etc.

If Travis thought it would improve the grinder he would use it.

I'm sure he gets lots of questions about it - as he did from me earlier today. I found his reasoning persuasive. And you have to let the results talk for themselves. I haven't really heard anyone say they bought a TW-90 and was so disappointed with it that they sold it and bought a KMG.
;)

Dan
 
I didn't mean that in a sense of breaking the small ones. I like my tools being over built and heavy duty. I have read we're several people have complained of the aluminum tooling arms getting chewed up by the screw that holds it in place. That's what I meant by I like steel arms better. I know you aren't gonna bend the aluminum ones

Also I'm not bashing the tw-90. I have respect for Travis and his innovations. But for me, I like my kmg and get great results with it. The metal table mine is mounted to has hard rubber under each leg so it's as smooth as anything else I've seen and I couldn't be happier
 
I currently grind on a Grizzly. I will be getting a new grinder in March and have read probably every review and thread out there. Ive done some grinding on a KMG and Bader and both are superior machines. I will be able to purchase any grinder I want and narrowed it down to TW90, Wilmont Tag, and KMG along with a horizontal KMG. Price wise they are very comparable, within 500.00 or so. After making a list of what I want Ive decided to go with the Wilmont. My garage is my shop so size was a large consideration. Having one grinder that can do it all in a smaller footprint was the main decision. It really was a toss up between the Wilmont and TW90, I just like the platen, tool rest system better on the Wilmont. That and Chris is a great guy to deal with. I will be doing a review when I receive it, from unshipping to finishing a knife.
 
Thanks for the feedback folks, very educating

I haven't had time to read everything yet Eric but this was my main concern.

javand said:
... a properly setup KMG (stock), and a TW-90, will perform the basic functions of grinding, equally.
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This is the thing that bugged me the most. I can see the other advantages but I got the sense from some reviews that it was somewhat superior as far as basic grinding is concerned and by a large margin.

Bottom line, will it make me better at the grinder by a large margin, large enough to justify the added cost regardless of the little ways it can make my life easier. (better tracking:it's not like my KMG tracks bad, quiet: my dust collector is way louder anyway, versatile: I found out that having to change setup gets old real fast so I will probably to the dedicated machines route, etc...)

I really appreciate all your input on this.

PS: Peter, you can be sure I will take you up on that offer. I should be able to visit you before then too so maybe I can convince you to bring 2 back in your luggage. ;-)
 
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