Slow Speed Grinder Recommendation needed

[Herman Trivilino]

Thanks Jeff.

Huh.  That's a good idea to polish up the USB.  Mine in a little "hangy" and I always have to jiggle to make a fine adjustment.  Rather frustrating.  I've also thought about applying a dry coat teflon, or dry coat silicone.  Or maybe let a coat of teflon dry and then apply a layer of silicone for extra smoothness.

I've always used furniture wax, applied with #0000 steel wool. 

[Rhino]

Everyone,
Thanks for the good advice on polishing.  I'll give polishing a try on a grinder.  I've previously polished using a dremel but it is too small so I don't achieve a smooth look over a large area.  Much appreciated. 
Rhino

[CleanCut]

Has anyone used the "Universal Tool" attachment with a bench grinder? This is the tool that attaches to the bech grinder to provide a belt with a wide range of textures. Do I recall that it is promoted on a US web site where Jeff has his Tormek information?

[Herman Trivilino]

Here are a couple of threads on the topic

http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=1672.msg7733#msg7733

http://forum.tormek.com/index.php?topic=1713.0

[Ken S]

I recently read about a new design dry grinder from a Canadian company.  (sorry, I don't remember the name)  It has a variable speed DC motor with speeds from 400 to 4000 rpm.  It apparently runs quite smoothly.  It has steel wheels with some kind of boron compound inset.  It's almost as hard as diamond, but the binder is not effected by heat.  And, it is compatible with the Tormek jigs.  The one downside is cost, around twelve hundred dollars.

However, combining a Tormek wet grinder with one of these would be an ideal set up.  Superb tools, each doing its preferred function.

Ken

[CleanCut]

Thanks Herman and Ken. My post about "Universal Tool" should have been about the "Multi Tool" belt grinder. My apologies. However, it is as described in my post. It attaches to a standard bench grinder. I was wondering if it has advantages over the bench grinder for "shaping" HSS in preparation for sharpening on the Tormek.  It costs more than $200.

[Herman Trivilino]

I've had my eye on that MultiTool attachment, too.

http://www.sharptoolsusa.com/?target=category&catID=7

You won't be able to use the BGM-100 with that attachment, so that means you won't be able to use the Tormek jigs.

I would guess that this will run cooler than a standard bench grinder and it will remove metal faster.  It also has what the manufacturer advertises as "three contact options".  You probably also have a greater variety of grits with the belts than you'd get with bench grinder wheels.

[CleanCut]

Yes Herman, sharptoolsusa is a link to the MultiTool. There is some other discussion on the Forum (search MultiTool). I agree with your conclusions.

[Ken S]

Why wouldn't the Tormek jigs work with the multi tool?

A support bar would have to be placed where the jigs could be used with the belt direction moving away from the tool being ground to prevent ruining the belt. 

If the multi tool was mounted horizontally, the support bar would have to be in the equivalent of the vertical position.  Some shimming might be necessary to get the bar to a workable height.

All this would require some thought.  However, it shouldn't be all that difficult, expensive or time consuming. 

I have an old (ancient?) Dayton belt grinder revived from a neighbor's garage sale for twenty five dollars.  it is missing the disk sander parts and needed new pulleys, belt and wiring.  I put another thirty dollars in pulleys and belt.  I had a usable cord on hand.  It is a usable and useful tool now.  It is nowhere near being in the same league as the multi tool, however, it does the job for me.  If I did not have this, I would look very seriously at a multi tool.  It seems a fine adjunct to the Tormek.  With the variety of belt grits available, the tool is quite versatile.

Ken