Scheppach Tiger 2000

[catface]

evening all, add my happenyworth. buying advice for Scooby :

Ive had a scheppach tiger 2000 for about 2 years. Points of note are as follows :
- fill water trough to approved level (about a pint of water), you do get some water run over the body of the grinder 7 over the bench. Solution - mount grinder in an old baking tray.
- the stone grader doesnt appear to make much difference, large surface areas still take a long time to regrind. (especially planer blades).
- despite having the planer blade jig accessory, I've never managed to get planer blades straight (so they go to the local professional who does a good job of it). Blades upto 2 inch are ok (planes , chisels).
- unlike bigger machines the angle is not repeatable, so you will either loose a lot of material from the tool for each resharpen, or rough out on the machine then hand hone the cutting edge at a higher angle on a grind stone (what I do now).
- otherwise machine is reliable and has developed no slop or faults. Talking to others it appears that the Tormek is still the better machine (despite appearing almost identical to the Tiger). If chosing between these two I'd now go for the Tormek.

 

[ivan]

Why is the angle not repeatable?

All you need is a slip of wood to position the rest the same height above the wheel, (should you have moved the rest to the horizontal position). In fact if you do this, the angle is easily set by the amount the blade extends from the guide (like an eclipse honing guide for a flat stone). Even works with Tormeks! Quicker and more accurate than the plastic thingy.

 

[catface]

hello ivan, the angle repeatability problem - you do have to get the tool distance sticking out from the tool rest exactly the same each time, (with tool rest remaining at same angle), to get the same tool angle. Even a small error in stick out & the angle is not the same. Not very important for smaller tools with not much metal needing to be removed, but try it on a planer blade 12inches long, where the wheel ends up cutting on the rear of the bevel not the front or full bevel surface. What should be a quick resharpen then becomes a long "push it back and forth until its done", or, an attempt to relocate the blade veryslightly further back into tool holder. Despite using various setting aids I've never found it very accurate, hence the comment. Good on you if you can get it to work better. I've probably been spoilt through using good quality engineering tools in a previous existence. Regards, Catface.

 

[Streepips]

Read through all the posts re the two makes of whetstone grinders with interest.
I have a Tiger2500 and am very happy with it. Industrial grade machine that will run all day if required.
Prior to buying this I understood the Tormek to be acknowledged as the market leader with a great following and contemplated buying one, although very expensive.................but not as expensive as cheap tools ! Then the Scheppach Tiger range appeared on the market. Now bearing in mind that I really like Scheppach kit, having a TS2500 saw and an HM260 planer thicknesser, both bought new (at separate times) and a Scheppach dust extractor system I have good experience of the quality of this brand and have always been impressed with the level and quality of engineering and the good service/technical support if needed.
I was intrigued by the statements from such as Rutlands and the other dealers that the jigs were interchangeable between the brands and models.

 

[ivan]

I can see the difficulty, Catface; it's quite easy to set the projection of a chisel or plane blade, but the jig for P/T knives would be tricky!

 

[RogerS]

I recently bought a Scheppach Tiger 2500 and took it out of the box this evening to have a play.

I'd be interested to know just how much fettling aka messing about I am expected to do before I can use it.

The grinding wheel is eccentric by about 1mm and slopes by 1mm across the face relative to the jig bar (which I have to assume is the reference point since there seems to be no method of adjusting this). Is this normal as I am totally unimpressed so far.

Roger (totally hacked off)

 

[mailee]

I have the tiger 2500 too Roger and have to admit that mine is fine. Sounds like you have a friday night one there mate I am sorry to say. I have found mine to be brilliant even after using the 'Veritas MK 11 giude I find this system so easy. I could never get my chisels sharp enough and square by hand sharpening but now I can keep them in tip top condition in just a few minutes. :wink: I do however have the problem with the water runoff with wider blades but just put up with this. :wink:

 

[RogerS]

Mailee - that was my conclusion

I'll contact the suppliers but do you know who handles Scheppach in the UK?

 

[ivan]

Roger, is the tool rest bent? Assuming the shaft was not damaged in transit, and bore of the wheel is also undamaged so it fits the shaft closely, the 'wobble' is due to the manufacture of the grinding wheel. This is fairly normal, as the wheels are fired in a kiln and like bricks, distort somewhat in the process. Eccentric and lateral run out of ~1mm is quite good on a 10" wheel!

A means of truing the wheel is an essential part of any grinding kit - (even more essential on a high speed dry grinder) and must be used to true the wheel before any grinding takes place. No attempt to correct lateral wobble is necessary. I think only the most expensive (£370) tormek is supplied with a truing tool - but it's an essential bit of kit right from the start for any powered grinder.

Still pleased with my 2500 for 150 quid; if you're nifty at metalwork a £5 diamond wheel dresser (for dry grinders) can be jigged up to do the job at a more emotionally satisfying price than the wetsone equivalent.

 

[DaveL]

Roger,

I have the Jet machine, it comes with a truing jig, the old style one and the first thing you are told to do after setting the machine up is to true the wheel. As Ivan says there will almost certainly be some run out due to the manufacturing process.

I have now upgraded to the new truing jig, it is much better.

 

[RogerS]

I spoke to MTS Power Tools who in turn spoke to NMA. I'm delighted to say that NMA offered to send me a truing jig foc and it arrived today. Tried it out and the wheel is not square and true.

So a big thumbs up to NMA. ccasion5:

I have a few questions re using the Tiger.

1) Dressing the wheel. Do folks dress it to a coarse grade, grind a few chisels then redress it to a finer grade? Or don't you bother?

2) How long does it take to dress the wheel?

3) If you're sharpening a smallish chisel, do you slide it back and forth across the stone so as to avoid wearing a groove in the stone?

4) How do you ensure that you get the end of the chisel sharpened to 90 degrees? I used my square to set the chisel square to the toolrest but ended up with the edge canted over at an angle.