Wanting to upgrade from my 1x30

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buffalo01

Joined
Oct 13, 2016
Messages
333
Hello everyone, recently I have been tossing around the idea of upgrading my belt grinder to something that will hog off metal a little faster. I am currently using a little harbor freight 1x30 which has been miraculously reliable after aver 2 years of use and lots of knives.
i was looking at the palmgren 2x42 and reviews seem to be good with it as long as you are willing to modify some things. The main concern I have is that it is still a 1/3 hp motor and Im not sure that will really give me any advantage over what i have. The other one I was looking at was the grizzly g1015 2x72. I really like this one because i work in my garage and since it has an arbor for a buffer I could get rid of my grinder to have more room. But I am also a quadriplegic with very limited arm movement so and the tool rest looks pretty high up for my reach. And even though it would allow me to get rid of my bench grinder, the grizzly looks HUGE and I only have a small space to work in my garage.
I think if the palmgreen would be powerful enough I would be happy with it but really not sure, not to mention the price difference. This is not a full time job for me, I might make a dozen knives a year at most but right now it can take FOREVER to grind out anything over a 3 inch blade. (though I have made blades over 8 inches before on it :)
Please leave your thoughts and suggestions here on these grinders or any others that would be a good upgrade without going to a huge 2x72.
 
Hey, I am using a Metabo BS 175, it will hog off material quite fast with a zirkonium belt (still haven't tried ceramic). My understanding is, it is quite popular with hobbysts in Europe. Down side is you need to build a table and no belt speed regulation.
 
Take a serious look at building a 2X72 grinder from a basic chassis (Reader or other) and adding features as your needs grow. You can start with a single phase yard sale motor and a step pulley, and then get a three phase motor and VFD when a good deal comes up.

The Reader chassis is fully assembled has a great flat platen, work tables, and a spare arm and shaft for a contact wheel, for $595. Add the wheel kit and you have a grinder ready for a motor and belt for $795. It is a top grade machined unit made in aluminum , not some cheap bolt together machine. IT also will flip to horizontal.
https://reederproducts.com/shop?olsPage=products/rps101-grinder-chassis

You can pick up a motor and VFD package for a very reasonable price from some of the online sellers. I have seen them for less than $200. With creative scrounging and a Chinese VFD you can do it for $100. While 1.5 to 2HP is nice, 1HP will run your grinder for most hobby knifemakers. You can always get a VFD that will handle 2HP and run a 1HP motor on it until you find a deal on a bigger motor.
 
When I started knife making I had severe back pain & set up my www.cootebeltgrinder.com 2 x 72” so I could sit down to grind. So I have some frame of reference to your position. All All my grinders are setup to work sitting down.....Still have that Coote belt machine & you can get a 1 1/2 motor and step pulleys that will give you slower speeds at finer grits. It shows how to to a hinged board to change the pulley... I use Link belt .. Harbor Freight sells it... the tower tilts and you/have someone belt build a lower mount so you can have a proper reach to the Platen .. the Coote can be bought with a 8”-10” wheel that you can hollow grind on or just use to jog off metal like I do .. I prefer FFGs.. The Grizzly can be set up in the same way. But No variable on speed. I had a Grizzly that I ended up with in a machinery buy. They work! A noob I was teaching wanted it so bad I sold it to him since I had three other 2 x 72” machines. A hardcore, Coote & another. Whatever you do! Get a 2 x 72” the belts cost less per square inch. Run cooler & last longer .. you’re also welcome to PM me, or here if you have any questions about setup for sitting down with your new machine. Glad to help if I can! PS, unless you want to grind 8” or more blades all day. A 1hp with Ceramic belts will work fine. Stay safe! Have Fun!
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Take a serious look at building a 2X72 grinder from a basic chassis (Reader or other) and adding features as your needs grow. You can start with a single phase yard sale motor and a step pulley, and then get a three phase motor and VFD when a good deal comes up.

The Reader chassis is fully assembled has a great flat platen, work tables, and a spare arm and shaft for a contact wheel, for $595. Add the wheel kit and you have a grinder ready for a motor and belt for $795. It is a top grade machined unit made in aluminum , not some cheap bolt together machine. IT also will flip to horizontal.
https://reederproducts.com/shop?olsPage=products/rps101-grinder-chassis

You can pick up a motor and VFD package for a very reasonable price from some of the online sellers. I have seen them for less than $200. With creative scrounging and a Chinese VFD you can do it for $100. While 1.5 to 2HP is nice, 1HP will run your grinder for most hobby knifemakers. You can always get a VFD that will handle 2HP and run a 1HP motor on it until you find a deal on a bigger motor.
Click to expand...

Rhinoknives1 said:
When I started knife making I had severe back pain & set up my www.cootebeltgrinder.com 2 x 72” so I could sit down to grind. So I have some frame of reference to your position. All All my grinders are setup to work sitting down.....Still have that Coote belt machine & you can get a 1 1/2 motor and step pulleys that will give you slower speeds at finer grits. It shows how to to a hinged board to change the pulley... I use Link belt .. Harbor Freight sells it... the tower tilts and you/have someone belt build a lower mount so you can have a proper reach to the Platen .. the Coote can be bought with a 8”-10” wheel that you can hollow grind on or just use to jog off metal like I do .. I prefer FFGs.. The Grizzly can be set up in the same way. But No variable on speed. I had a Grizzly that I ended up with in a machinery buy. They work! A noob I was teaching wanted it so bad I sold it to him since I had three other 2 x 72” machines. A hardcore, Coote & another. Whatever you do! Get a 2 x 72” the belts cost less per square inch. Run cooler & last longer .. you’re also welcome to PM me, or here if you have any questions about setup for sitting down with your new machine. Glad to help if I can! PS, unless you want to grind 8” or more blades all day. A 1hp with Ceramic belts will work fine. Stay safe! Have Fun!
Click to expand...
Alright guys I will start looking into that! I had tossed it around but my dad insisted that it by the time I bought everything i would end up with the same cost as just buying one, and hes the one that will have to help me put everything together after I buy the parts so I listened to him. Ill keep an eye out for motors. My brother actually has an old treadmill that I figure the motor will work?
 
FredyCro said:
Hey, I am using a Metabo BS 175, it will hog off material quite fast with a zirkonium belt (still haven't tried ceramic). My understanding is, it is quite popular with hobbysts in Europe. Down side is you need to build a table and no belt speed regulation.
Click to expand...
Im looking at that now! It would be much more space efficient than a 2x72... That is a major concern because I am basically in a 12x6 area at the largest and I already have a bandsaw, drill press tool boxes etc out there. Will normal 2x40 belts work on it or will I need metric? And how long do the belts last? I also do not have a 240 volt outlet out there lol
 
buffalo01 said:
Alright guys I will start looking into that! I had tossed it around but my dad insisted that it by the time I bought everything i would end up with the same cost as just buying one, and hes the one that will have to help me put everything together after I buy the parts so I listened to him. Ill keep an eye out for motors. My brother actually has an old treadmill that I figure the motor will work?
Click to expand...
Treadmill motors work on 110v household current. Have used a few TM over the years. Just to check, all motors have a metal plate with HP, Volts etc idea is a TEFC, still I’ve used open motors for many years..
 
buffalo01 said:
Im looking at that now! It would be much more space efficient than a 2x72... That is a major concern because I am basically in a 12x6 area at the largest and I already have a bandsaw, drill press tool boxes etc out there. Will normal 2x40 belts work on it or will I need metric? And how long do the belts last? I also do not have a 240 volt outlet out there lol
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong, I would love a 2x72 grinder, but I can't justify the cost yet. 40 inches belts should work I think, it seems that all the big producers do all different belts in this size. I also CA glued a small platen (20x5cm) to it and am about to build a small table. I will update with pics if interested .
 
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