Hi all. I am new to the Tormek community. I bought a very good condition used T4 last month for 300. It included a grindstone that measured out at about 188 mm. Also included was the standard knife jig and stone grader along with the honing oil and compound. The unit is about a year old and I have the original receipt.
All I can say is WOW! I should have tried this years ago. Now it seems I have jumped down the rabbit hole head first. In a month I have acquired a new original stone, diamond truing tool, Angle Tool, an XB 100 horizontal base, and have fabricated a frontal vertical base. I thought I would share my simple design.
I didn't have access to a drill press, so I opted for a design I could build with just a jigsaw and battery drill. I used 2" by 1/8" flat bar aluminum and 1/2" all thread. I managed to find a piece of all thread that was slightly smaller in diameter than the rest of the 1/2" pieces. This allowed me a very strick tolerance fit that is tighter than the fit with the fsctory guide bar rods that I assume are 12mm.
I cut 3 pieces of flat bar a little wider than the horizontal base piece. I drilled two 1/2" holes into two of these to a tight fit with the guide bar. My holes were just a tad too close so I had to make them a little bigger. The result was just right. The guide rods slid into the plates with absolutely no play.
The crux of my design was to use narrow jam nuts to mount the 1/2" guide bars by bolting these two plates together. With my holes just right, the jam nuts trued the all thread to another perfect no tolerance fit with the horizontal base that is built into the T4. I mounted the XB-100 base to the third plate and after leveling it, pulled it all together with #10 bolts. This part was harder than I thought, but I got it right. The guide rod is just a schoche out of parallel with the machine. You have to magnify the level bubble to tell the difference. It wont matter much as I plan on using the front base for honing and perhaps some larger knives edge trailing.
I am a busy father of three, so I ask for forgiveness in advanced for bypassing the search method.
I am seeking the best threads on alternative aftermarket grind stones. I would like to go to coated CBN or Diamond wheels to forego the grading and truing of the grindstones. I bought the new grindstone to use solely as a 220 grit and have the older one to keep smooth. This is working, but it is a bit of a pain calculating and adjusting the guide bar everytime I change my stone.
My other goal is to use a series of 8 inch honing wheels for a progression of honing grits. I caught a glimpse of a thread on using paper wheels and would like to figure out the best way to fit them to the machine.
My other idea is to glue velcro to one honing wheel and make a series of velcro backed leather strips for the progression.
I know I shouldn't fit too many subjects into one thread but here goes. The unit is already registered and had been sent back by the original owner to deal with out of balance stone rotation. Will Tormek honor the warranty even if I am not the original owner? If so, how do I get it transferred?
Thank you in advance for any help offered.
All I can say is WOW! I should have tried this years ago. Now it seems I have jumped down the rabbit hole head first. In a month I have acquired a new original stone, diamond truing tool, Angle Tool, an XB 100 horizontal base, and have fabricated a frontal vertical base. I thought I would share my simple design.
I didn't have access to a drill press, so I opted for a design I could build with just a jigsaw and battery drill. I used 2" by 1/8" flat bar aluminum and 1/2" all thread. I managed to find a piece of all thread that was slightly smaller in diameter than the rest of the 1/2" pieces. This allowed me a very strick tolerance fit that is tighter than the fit with the fsctory guide bar rods that I assume are 12mm.
I cut 3 pieces of flat bar a little wider than the horizontal base piece. I drilled two 1/2" holes into two of these to a tight fit with the guide bar. My holes were just a tad too close so I had to make them a little bigger. The result was just right. The guide rods slid into the plates with absolutely no play.
The crux of my design was to use narrow jam nuts to mount the 1/2" guide bars by bolting these two plates together. With my holes just right, the jam nuts trued the all thread to another perfect no tolerance fit with the horizontal base that is built into the T4. I mounted the XB-100 base to the third plate and after leveling it, pulled it all together with #10 bolts. This part was harder than I thought, but I got it right. The guide rod is just a schoche out of parallel with the machine. You have to magnify the level bubble to tell the difference. It wont matter much as I plan on using the front base for honing and perhaps some larger knives edge trailing.
I am a busy father of three, so I ask for forgiveness in advanced for bypassing the search method.
I am seeking the best threads on alternative aftermarket grind stones. I would like to go to coated CBN or Diamond wheels to forego the grading and truing of the grindstones. I bought the new grindstone to use solely as a 220 grit and have the older one to keep smooth. This is working, but it is a bit of a pain calculating and adjusting the guide bar everytime I change my stone.
My other goal is to use a series of 8 inch honing wheels for a progression of honing grits. I caught a glimpse of a thread on using paper wheels and would like to figure out the best way to fit them to the machine.
My other idea is to glue velcro to one honing wheel and make a series of velcro backed leather strips for the progression.
I know I shouldn't fit too many subjects into one thread but here goes. The unit is already registered and had been sent back by the original owner to deal with out of balance stone rotation. Will Tormek honor the warranty even if I am not the original owner? If so, how do I get it transferred?
Thank you in advance for any help offered.