Belt Grinder Advice

[Gundog48]

I'm after a very basic belt grinder for my bladesmithing work, as a bench grinder just isn't going to cut it. I'm not after the real industrial £700 units as they are both excessive, too big and too expensive for my needs! I've seen a few of the POS ones going cheap with really thin belts that look like converted bandsaws, but they are a bit too thin and don't really look up to much. I've considered building a simple vertical grinder with a half horsepower motor directly driving a pulley with the belt going over another further up. That gives me a nice flat belt area which is what I'm after and I'll be able to use a nice wide belt and should be easy to build.

However I was scouting around on the Bay and stumbled upon a NuTool 370W belt grinder/ disk sander. It's not going to be that good, and I've heard mixed things about NuTool, but it is going incredibly cheap (I should be able to get it for £20). It takes 4" belts. Is this going to be useful as a knife grinder or is it simply too weak? It seems spot on for my scale and needs, just so long as it is man enough! What do you think?

[knots]

Watts = Amps x Volts. Using a variation of this formula my I calculate that a motor consiuming 370watts @ 230 volts results in a current requirement of 1.6 amps . The smallest fractional motor that I have requires 4.4 amps @ 115 volts. That motor is 1/4 HP. If it were powered by 230 volts I would expect it to require 2.2 amps.

Sounds like the motor on the machine that you are considering is likely rated for around 1/5 HP which, in my opinion is to light for the work that you want to use it for.

There are a number of belt belt sander machines normally used for wood working that can be pressed into service for metal work. I used an old hand held belt sander clamped in my vice for a couple of years when no other machine was available. Hopefully others will join in and help you discover other options.

[Rich Hale]

You could use a ball mounted on a trailer hitch for an anvil but in a short time you will wish you had an anvil..Four inch wide underpowered wood belts will be like that ball. At minimum a grizzley belt grinder buffer thta uses 2" x 72" lis aboiut the best for the money unloess you make one from some of the grood plans availeaqble, and if yoiu have the skills and equiment to do that..The Grizzley does not have a way to slow speed down but will get you going..If mine went south today I woudl order another one..

[bottles]

Have you looked at buying a KMG grinder or making one? Here is a link for someone in the UK (I presume you are here) who makes different types of grinders depending on budgets. Think they start around £500 going up to around the £1k + depending on set up.
www.downlandengineeringservices.com
He also sells wheels etc to make your own.
Andrew

[Gundog48]

Thanks for the advice, that was what I was really expecting. I don't produce enough blades to warrant any serious kit, but the point of power tools is to make the job faster, which something that was too lightweight just wouldn't do. That Grizzley is exactly the kind of design I was thinking of making myself, although I'd probably be limited to a half horsepower motor. I'm collecting materials to build a lightweight tyre hammer, so this should get me in good practice! I've got some time tomorrow so I'll take a look at doing a few drawings!

[WayneCoeArtistBlacksmith]

Check out the NWG plans from www.USAKnifemaker.com ($25.00 plus shipping) or my DVD at www.WayneCoeArtistBlacksmith.com (plus shipping for out of the US) and build your own. Looks like you could get your wheels from www.downlandengineeringservices.com. You could also download the free EERF (that is FREE spelled backwards) plans from www.wilmontgrinders.com.

[MOblacksmith0530]

If you are going to be limited to a half horsepower you won't be able to run a 2 inch belt with enough speed and power to get anything done. Either upsize the motor or downsize the belt and drive wheels. The grizzlies are 1.5 or 2 horspower and I can stall them when grinding a large axe. If you try to go too small you will be disappointed and then you will either give up or have to redo it and it will cost more in the end.

[knots]

You will need a totally enclosed motor for your grinder build unless the motor is somehow enclosed in a dust free enclosure. A totally enclosed motor is the way to go. Most of the motors that I have purchased for my machines and machine conversions have been purchased from electric motor repair shops. Generally these shops are small businesses and keep in inventory of used motors which they are willing to sell reasonably. If you live in an industrial area one of these shops could be near you. Also used equipment sellers usually have a bunch of motors lying around. Big savings on motors are avaiable if you know where to or take the time to look.

I agree with previous advice. If taking the trouble to build a belt grinder, build one that is bigger than you think you need. My Wilton has a one horsepower motor which I consider barely adequate. Bigger and more powerful is better . Good Luck, keep us posted on your progress.

[VolcanoForge]

You can probably find one pretty quick on craigs list. I was looking for a 2" x 72" and stumbled upon a 4" x 108" that came out of a glass shop. Ended up getting it and about 30 new belts for $200.00. Works fine and much cheaper than buying or building a new one.

Good thing about building one though is that you can make it to fit your needs.

[rockstar.esq]

I searched long and hard for a solution to the same problem. I ended up getting the Grizzly. It's a 1HP motor without speed control. The 2 x 72" long belt doesn't heat up the stock anywhere near as fast as the 4x21" belt sander I used for a few projects. The no-weld plans seemed like a good option until I figured out that all in, you're spending more than the Grizzly costs. The no-weld machines are more flexible, but this is my hobby and my time to puruse it is short as it stands. I'd rather be smithing than building a grinder. I can certainly see why it appeals to so many, it just wasn't for me.