Tension Spring flew off my Esteem Grinder

M

Maelstrom78

Joined
Sep 21, 2013
Messages
1,574
And I will be darned if I know where it landed. Does anyone have any idea what spring I could substitute? I tried to look up Esteem grinders and I am not sure if he is still in business since I couldn't find anything current.

Thanks!
 
Looks like he has a contact number listed on his Facebook page, though I'd probably just look for something that looks like it would fit from McMaster-Carr:

www.mcmaster.com

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.
www.mcmaster.com www.mcmaster.com
 
Measure the stubs the spring sits between.
Go to a good hardware store with a spring assortment bin. You will find a drawer with compression springs.
Pick one with an ID that will fit over the stubs. Try and get one that looks about the same as the one you lost, but if in doubt, get a couple different tension weights. They will likely let you bring back the ones that don't work.
Once you get it all up and running again you will discover the missing spring sitting right behind the grinder.
Note - too much tension is not as big a problem as too little.

Tips on finding things in a cluttered shop:
1) Clean the shop out - Take everything movable outside and set it down on a big tarp. Blow off/out all the equipment. Clean out the shop of dust, scrap, and debris. Put everything back that you need and either store away or discard stuff that you don't. Toss all those odd scarps of metal and wood that you were sure you would need someday. That day never came and likely never will.
2) When looking for a thrown item, first look in the direction you thought it went. If that doesn't find it, look in the opposite direction. Sometimes it didn't really go anywhere at all and is right below/behind/next to where it fell off.
3) Look under cabinets and such. Things love to roll under them. In the same way, look behind things where the object may have fallen out of sight.,
4) This is the best tip I can give people - When something gets sent flying by a grinder, flex-shaft, or tool, close your eyes and listen. You will hear sounds as it hits things. Was it a metallic, dull, sharp, padded, soft, etc. sound? Look at the things that make that sound and follow the trajectory of the bounce. If you heard a sharp whap and then a metallic tap, it probably hit the wall and landed on a metal surface below that wall. If you heard a sharp cling and a very dull tap. it likely hit a machine or other metal object and bounced to the floor. With practice you will learn to discern the trajectory and even hear it skitter across the floor and under a cabinet.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Measure the stubs the spring sits between.
Go to a good hardware store with a spring assortment bin. You will find a drawer with compression springs.
Pick one with an ID that will fit over the stubs. Try and get one that looks about the same as the one you lost, but if in doubt, get a couple different tension weights. They will likely let you bring back the ones that don't work.
Once you get it all up and running again you will discover the missing spring sitting right behind the grinder.
Note - too much tension is not as big a problem as too little.

Tips on finding things in a cluttered shop:
1) Clean the shop out - Take everything movable outside and set it down on a big tarp. Blow off/out all the equipment. Clean out the shop of dust, scrap, and debris. Put everything back that you need and either store away or discard stuff that you don't. Toss all those odd scarps of metal and wood that you were sure you would need someday. That day never came and likely never will.
2) When looking for a thrown item, first look in the direction you thought it went. If that doesn't find it, look in the opposite direction. Sometimes it didn't really go anywhere at all and is right below/behind/next to where it fell off.
3) Look under cabinets and such. Things love to roll under them. In the same way, look behind things where the object may have fallen out of sight.,
4) This is the best tip I can give people - When something gets sent flying by a grinder, flex-shaft, or tool, close your eyes and listen. You will hear sounds as it hits things. Was it a metallic, dull, sharp, padded, soft, etc. sound? Look at the things that make that sound and follow the trajectory of the bounce. If you heard a sharp whap and then a metallic tap, it probably hit the wall and landed on a metal surface below that wall. If you heard a sharp cling and a very dull tap. it likely hit a machine or other metal object and bounced to the floor. With practice you will learn to discern the trajectory and even hear it skitter across the floor and under a cabinet.
Click to expand...


My shop is in desperate need of a cleaning so even if I don't find it it is way past due.

Haha on throwing out all the little scraps of things. I am guilty of that for sure!
 
It's a shame that Brett is no longer making the Esteem Grinder. It was simply the BEST grinder out there for the money. It's built on the Bader BIII platform and accepts all of the Bader accessories. Just think of a Bader on steroids. Built like a tank.
That said, the coil spring is .800" ID. .200" diameter coils and 4" long.
 
Karl B. Andersen said:
It's a shame that Brett is no longer making the Esteem Grinder. It was simply the BEST grinder out there for the money. It's built on the Bader BIII platform and accepts all of the Bader accessories. Just think of a Bader on steroids. Built like a tank.
That said, the coil spring is .800" ID. .200" diameter coils and 4" long.
Click to expand...
Hey thank you very much for the dimensions sir.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top