Show us Your Vintage Bench Grinders!!!!

[Steve from Socal]

That is beautiful. What is the approximate total weight, stand and all the bells n whistles? 650?

I think it is heavier than that, near 1000 pounds?. There is a lot of cast iron.

 

[Ultradog MN]

I finally found some 14X3" grinding wheels that were under triple digits.

Beautiful machine!
I'd love to find a deal on some 2x12" wheels for my big ol grinder. Got a secret source you can share?

 

[ALLFAST]

I think it is heavier than that, near 1000 pounds?. There is a lot of cast iron.

I thought I was being conservative at 650( even backed down from 700). That’s beastly .

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

I picked up this 8" B&D bench grinder at a coastal swap meet over the weekend. It is a 3/4 hp and runs good. I did have to rebalance the wheels to smooth it out. This one is model 4326 probably from the mid to late 70's. B&D made what looks like the same grinder at least into the 60's but used a different model number. With all the guards intact and a dealing vendor I couldn't pass it up. One pick fresh from the swap meet and a second cleaned up a little. Ed.

 

[ALLFAST]

I picked up this 8" B&D bench grinder at a coastal swap meet over the weekend. It is a 3/4 hp and runs good. I did have to rebalance the wheels to smooth it out. This one is model 4326 probably from the mid to late 70's. B&D made what looks like the same grinder at least into the 60's but used a different model number. With all the guards intact and a dealing vendor I couldn't pass it up. One pick fresh from the swap meet and a second cleaned up a little. Ed.

Fantastic finds Ed. The BDs are very interesting style wise, yet sturdy.

My maternal great grandfather was a steel superintendent for Bethlehem Shipyard (in San Francisco from about 1925) and was hired by Todd Seattle when the Great Depression hit. He returned to Bethlehem SF for the WWII buildup and left them around 1948.

Both my great grandad and grandfather were both heavily involved in WWII ship building and post war ship repair for decades afterwards…My 86 year old mother ran the office in the later years and would give her right arm for that Bethlehem Brass Plate! It’s very COOL.

Thanks for sharing that

Cheers,


Shawn

PS, my grandfather was Edwin/Ed as well.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

My maternal great grandfather was a steel superintendent for Bethlehem Shipyard (in San Francisco from about 1925) and was hired by Todd Seattle when the Great Depression hit. He returned to Bethlehem SF for the WWII buildup and left them around 1948.

Both my great grandad and grandfather were both heavily involved in WWII ship building and post war ship repair for decades afterwards…My 86 year old mother ran the office in the later years and would give her right arm for that Bethlehem Brass Plate! It’s very COOL.

The swap meet was Saturday in Astoria and the wife and I go up the day before and check out some of the local antique shops on Friday. We stay by the bridge in a river view room. Love watching the big ships slide silently by. We got to town early and hit up an estate sale first and then went down to our favorite local shop that always has great items. The Bethlehem supply equipment badge was one of the first things that caught my eye. I've bought from the stores owner several times before and as luck would have it he was there.

We chatted a while and when I asked about the Bethlehem supply badge he cut me a bit of a deal. It was the best thing I found all weekend and there were quite a few neat items picked up that trip. I've got it on the wall with several other equipment badges that are mostly from construction and mining equipment. I haven't found much info yet on the Bethlehem Supply division. A very neat story on your family's association with the Bethlehem shipyard. Ed.

 

[ALLFAST]

The swap meet was Saturday in Astoria and the wife and I go up the day before and check out some of the local antique shops on Friday. We stay by the bridge in a river view room. Love watching the big ships slide silently by. We got to town early and hit up an estate sale first and then went down to our favorite local shop that always has great items. The Bethlehem supply equipment badge was one of the first things that caught my eye. I've bought from the stores owner several times before and as luck would have it he was there.

We chatted a while and when I asked about the Bethlehem supply badge he cut me a bit of a deal. It was the best thing I found all weekend and there were quite a few neat items picked up that trip. I've got it on the wall with several other equipment badges that are mostly from construction and mining equipment. I haven't found much info yet on the Bethlehem Supply division. A very neat story on your family's association with the Bethlehem shipyard. Ed.

Howdy Ed!

Yes, Astoria is a neat place. A former coworker retired to there and loves it; sounds like you’ve got it dialed in for the perfect little getaway spot that it is.

Those pictures are very interesting. Thanks for posting them up. If you Google Bethlehem Steel history you’ll find a very deep and dark vortex of folks ( spouses, kids, grandkids, etc) who were related to former BS employees, or former workers themselves…there’s a handful of FB history threads that are remarkable.

TONS of positive and fascinating stories about their iconic plant locations and all the amazing work that was involved!

Have a good weekend and be safe!

Cheers,

Shawn