Ok - I went over to Midwestknifemakers on Saturday to check out the prototype of the NWGS (No Weld Grinder-Sander). Tracy Mickley and I spent about an hour discussing this grinder that he built using the plans that he developed and is currently selling.
He had the proto mounted to 1 1/2 inches of plywood setting on a pair of sawhorses (this was just for demo purpose only). He had the grinder equipped with Rob Frink's drive and idler wheels as well as all tool arms demo'ed had Rob's contact wheels. Additionally he had three step pulleys set up on the machine giving the grinder three speeds. This grinder was Rock Solid and Vibration Free during operation of all three speed options and with all attachments. This grinder is a really simple and easy to build design and will use any of the name brand tooling arms if you have them. If you are looking to build a new primary grinder or a second grinder you couldn't go wrong with this grinder and you don't need to be a Machinist to complete the build.
Spent some time wandering through the shop and he has really expanded his inventory to include almost every thing a person needs for knife making or grinder building- I walked away with a really great bargain! Guess who won't be waiting for supplies or paying for shipping anymore (ten minutes from work).
Anyway back on topic. This grinder is not as pretty as some of the name brands but is very functional and adjustments take seconds not minutes. This design puts having a decent grinder (or two) in reach of almost everyone because it’s built with very basic equipment and supplies. Oh I almost forgot Tracy is working on designs for some different tooling arm attachments to fit this grinder.
Sorry for the lengthy review but I was impressed!
He had the proto mounted to 1 1/2 inches of plywood setting on a pair of sawhorses (this was just for demo purpose only). He had the grinder equipped with Rob Frink's drive and idler wheels as well as all tool arms demo'ed had Rob's contact wheels. Additionally he had three step pulleys set up on the machine giving the grinder three speeds. This grinder was Rock Solid and Vibration Free during operation of all three speed options and with all attachments. This grinder is a really simple and easy to build design and will use any of the name brand tooling arms if you have them. If you are looking to build a new primary grinder or a second grinder you couldn't go wrong with this grinder and you don't need to be a Machinist to complete the build.
Spent some time wandering through the shop and he has really expanded his inventory to include almost every thing a person needs for knife making or grinder building- I walked away with a really great bargain! Guess who won't be waiting for supplies or paying for shipping anymore (ten minutes from work).
Anyway back on topic. This grinder is not as pretty as some of the name brands but is very functional and adjustments take seconds not minutes. This design puts having a decent grinder (or two) in reach of almost everyone because it’s built with very basic equipment and supplies. Oh I almost forgot Tracy is working on designs for some different tooling arm attachments to fit this grinder.
Sorry for the lengthy review but I was impressed!
