Which Bench Grinder

[brianhabby]

I have just taken delivery of a Beal Wood Buff from Toolpost. It's a set of three buffing wheels for use on a bench grinder.

So I am looking for a suitable bench grinder that I can dedicate to this task. I had originally thought I would buy a cheap one such as Silverline or the one currently on offer at Aldi (both under £30.00). However it seems they will not be up to the job as the Beal system requires something at least 1/2 horsepower and these cheap ones don't come close.

So having a look round the web I have found the following:

Record Power RPBG6 370W @ £59.99 + £5.95 shipping total £65.94

Sealey BG150XL/96 @ £68.00 with free shipping

Toolzone PW057 @ £40.95 +£9.95 shipping total £50.90

Am-Tech AMV0950 @ £36.04 + £8.50 shipping total £44.54

Does anyone have any experience of any of the above. My inclination is to go with the Am-Tech one as it's the cheapest but have no idea if it's any good.

regards

Brian

 

[marcus]

I used to have the record and thought it was pretty good for the money. Nice and quiet and seemed sturdily built. No experience of the others.

 

[paulm]

Are they the 8" buffing wheels you have Brian, or the smaller ones ?

Not sure it's a good idea to use the 8" ones on a bench grinder like those, they all spin at around 2800 to 3000rpm which is way too fast for a buffing wheel, particularly given the extra wheel diameter which means the peripheral speed on the wheels would be greater still . The site says that 1750 rpm is the preferred speed and you would be around double that !

Not sure what would result from the increased speed but wonder if the construction of the mounts and/or the mops would not be up to it and might be dangerous, even if the buffing is not adversley affected which it may be as the loose mops "harden up" when spinning fast.

I use my Chestnut versions on the lathe where I can control the speed, and sometimes a slower speed is better as the mops remain softer and can be used on more intricate shapes, they "harden up" as the speed increases.

Cheers, Paul

 

[brianhabby]

Thanks for the replies.

Paul, I had misunderstood the speed requirement, thinking that 1750rpm was the minimum required but reading your post make perfect sense. I was thinking of setting up something dedicated to the job but I think I will do as you suggest and use the lathe until I find the perfect solution.

Is it possible to get a variable speed bench grinder? Probably not

regards

Brian