Hand Powered Grinders

[Binderminder]

How about showing off your hand cranked grinders? Here's one I picked up about five years ago from an antique store. It was a tad overpriced, but being something of a steam power nut I had to have it based on the brand , "Governor". Any others out there?

 

[d42jeep]

Here is my Dunlap grinder. We found it at an estate sale in Mill Valley, CA in 2017. The cool thing about it is that it works in either direction with tool rests on both sides of the stone. I found a Dunlap box to store it in.
-Don

 

[2oolhound]

I used to use these in the late 60's and 70's for working where there was no power. Wish I'd kept that stuff. I have a rail road one I'll post some pics of that I've picked up in last 5 years but never used.

D42jeep are those oil detent balls on the top? Looks like you can remove the plate to lube the gears. That's the nicest looking one I've seen.

 

[Cleave]

I have a couple in the shed. They're a lot faster than a hand stone, and don't overheat the blade like a high speed bench grinder. You just have to control the work in one hand while cranking with the other.

 

[Binderminder]

d42jeep: Nice grinder! The Dunlap label on the box says "Approved Tools", what does the legend on the grinder's label say?

That box almost looks like it was made for the grinder, but my guess is it's for a portable circular saw.

Brian

 

[2oolhound]

Here is my railroad grinder, not the greatest photos but I was too busy to set it up better.

 

[Pexto]

2oolhound, what kind of wheel is that on your Keystone? I have a Keystone grinder that looks nearly the same, but has a normal grinding wheel (7" IIRC). That, and the tool rest on mind is different.

 

[2oolhound]

To be honest I don't know. I'm not even sure how/why/when I acquired this thing. I know I've been kind of missing the ones I used to have long ago so that's likely what prompted me to buy this one. One of these days I'll go over it and have a closer look at the wheel but there's a lot of projects in front of this one.

 

[Tostal]

You just have to control the work in one hand while cranking with the other.

Or find a willing helper.
I've thought of getting a monkey who previously worked as an 'Organ Grinder' - he'd know what to do.
Plus he'd work for peanuts...

~T.

 

[2oolhound]

That was good!

 

[Tostal]

~Tostal

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Or find a willing helper.

They were a two-man operation in the Army during WWII. Here's one mounted on some kind of low bench or stool, but they were clamped to the tool and spare parts chests at 2nd echelon maintenance depots, too. The guy with the helmet on is cranking, the guy without is working on sharpening something it looks like.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I've got a wooden box for a WWII hand grinder kit (no grinder!), a few grinders, and some references to post as I get around to it.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Here's a Luther I have with nifty lube ports, which are shown on a grinder in a wartime manual I have.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Here's that wartime empty grinder box I mentioned. The light blue stencil is hard to read, but it's, "U.S. / BOX, TOOL, GRINDER". It's missing some kind of cross piece to help hold the grinder itself in that center compartment. The loading plan on the lid shows where accessories and related tools are stored. One of these days I should get more serious about completing it.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Some excerpts from an Ordnance Dept catalog with a nice rendering of a grinder with two lube ports just like the grinder on my bench. Also an entry for a grinder in a chest. It's the same as the Corps of Engineers grinder chest above.

 

[2oolhound]

They were a two-man operation in the Army during WWII. Here's one mounted on some kind of low bench or stool, but they were clamped to the tool and spare parts chests at 2nd echelon maintenance depots, too. The guy with the helmet on is cranking, the guy without is working on sharpening something it looks like.

You don't see hand printed photos like this much anymore. You can see how the darkroom tech dodged the light below the helper's helmet which must have cast too dark a shadow on his face. Photoshop and computers have made this type of alteration more perfect today. Back then you would have had to keep trying more prints until you got the dodging tool, time, distance just right. Often a perfect one went to press but the seconds survived and were pinned up on a wall or given to the people in the photos etc.

Here's that wartime empty grinder box I mentioned. The light blue stencil is hard to read, but it's, "U.S. / BOX, TOOL, GRINDER". It's missing some kind of cross piece to help hold the grinder itself in that center compartment. The loading plan on the lid shows where accessories and related tools are stored. One of these days I should get more serious about completing it.

Lugs you would cry if you could have seen how I adulterated a complete WWII signal corps Speed Graphic 4x5 camera kit I'd bought in the 70's in excellent condition and complete. It was my 1st large format camera and I actually tried to hide the fact it was ex military. I took some cool shots with that camera like macro shots of flowers, steam trains, architecture and even a beautiful shot of Princess Dianna. Now in hind sight I wished I'd preserved the original haliburton case instead of gutting it and painting it black so it looked "modern" so I didn't look like some hack using old army surplus gear

I hope someday you can complete this grinder set.

AND tostal, I thought Metabo was "born yesterday" but your grinder proves otherwise. Nice!

Lastly, I don't remember sharpening or grinding specific items but I remember how I used to get these grinders just screaming and then let go and they'd keep spinning for some time while you sharpened. Otherwise you had to keep one hand on the tool held tight to the rest while cranking continuously with the other hand to do any type of work with them.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

You don't see hand printed photos like this much anymore.

Wow, I'm impressed. I cropped the blank parts above and below.

Lugs you would cry if you could have seen how I adulterated a complete WWII signal corps Speed Graphic 4x5 camera kit...

Nah. Okay, I might've winced a little. Haha. We were all young once. Different mindset. Different time, too, with an Army-Navy store in every town. Seriously, though, despite my penchant, I am not one of those WWII hobby puritans. Have you ever seen my laptop bag? I cannibalized about a dozen different things to make that. Link to a BEFORE photo showing all the pieces here and then scroll down one more post for the AFTER photos.

I used to get these grinders just screaming and then let go and they'd keep spinning for some time while you sharpened. Otherwise you had to keep one hand on the tool held tight to the rest while cranking continuously with the other hand to do any type of work with them.

I still occasionally do both. But the most I use them for is very small jobs. Cleaning up a mushroom on a chisel or removing a little burr on a wrench. Followed by a coarse file and a smooth file. It takes forever, but I'm not in a hurry and I enjoy the oldtimey feeling. If I had to do major work or a lot of repetitive tasks for a real fab job or something, it would be trying.

 

[RTM]

With a piece of string, a piece of wood, and some coordination, you can make a foot pedal for those. Alternatively, if you will keep it in the same place, two sticks can make a foot pedal that takes less coordination to run.
Especially nice for one person work that requires lotsa grinding.

I bought a powered grinder to make up for my lack of coordination and an appropriate mounting place.

 

[2oolhound]

Lugs, Nice, I like your laptop bag, it's awesome!

Perhaps it's me who is a little devistated over what I did to my speed graphic case. I remember how difficult it was for me to tear out all of the metal interior support structure for the various components. I struggled with that plan for a while before I did it. I got good use out of the case afterward but now I'm being haunted by it often enough.

RTM, That's it! A wood foot pedal. I've always envisioned hooking it up to an electric motor but I like this idea! Thanks! Now I'm picturing it outside connected to a springy sapling with foot control as well.

 

[Moldyjim]

I have my father's SpeedGraphic camera and box setup he got after WW2. Traded him a new SLR for it back in the eighties.
I've never used it, but he even had a Polaroid back for it. Found some of the old Egg size flashbulbs for the collection at a sale a few years back.
I'll probably pass it down to my son some day.

 

[2oolhound]

They are great cameras and were a pretty cheap way to get into large format photography back then. As I recall the front tilts, swings and racks up and down. The back racks up and down and tilts. I think the super speed graphic also has swing on the back. Plus they have a focal plane shutter allowing you to use a lot of shutterless lenses.

I snapped a shot of the ID plate on my case:



Do you have the flash for yours? That really gives them the old news photographer look. Film companies look to rent these especially if you have flash bulbs for their period films. Very nice cameras.

 

[givemethewillys]

Here's mine that I just cleaned up, it's a speedo sharpener. The stone disintegrated when I was taking it apart, so I picked up a leather wheel off of Amazon. I'm going to place it near my chisel sharpening station in the woodshop to give it that last stropping. I like it!

 

[WisJim]

One of my hand cranked grinders.

 

[RTM]

Dang, with those gear ratios, it must fly.

 

[2oolhound]

WisJim that thing is a beauty! I'd like to see a shot from the other side showing the guide set up. Wow.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

One of my hand cranked grinders

Open gear beaut!

 

[wrenchguy]

Jim, sickle sharpeners count too. Got some? Too dam cold in the barn for me!

 

[WisJim]

2oolhound asked to see the other side of my grinder.

 

[WisJim]

A couple of pictures of a sickle grinder, for grinding the sections on a sickle bar mower. There were made to be clamped to the steel wheel of an early (usually horse drawn) sickle bar mower, so that the cutting edges could be touched up in the field.

 

[2oolhound]

Thanks for the extra photos. The tool rest looks like it has some options for mounting. What a nicely cast piece. I'd love to find something like that in the wild (even though I don't have room for one).

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I found this a few weeks ago and posted it on the Garage Sale thread, tentatively identified as some kind of dresser, though I wasn't at all positive.





It looked like an antique dresser to me, in terms of the cast iron handle and the shape of the shielding around the business end. But I had never seen one fitted with a stone wheel before, usually cutters of different shapes (regular, corrugated, stepped, diamond point, etc) for trimming, truing, and shaping an emery, carborundum, or corundum wheel. Or the tube or cartridge and diamond point type for finer dressing.

GJ member @gamescastspencer identified it as a "crackerjack dresser", and sure enough, that term got some hits in several vintage trade mags, including this funky two-hander from Desmond-Stephan!



I am starting to get the feeling they are kind of unusual and rare as a type. They don't show up in any of my 1930's or 40's general hardware catalogs, and they were not specified in any wartime tools manuals. But I have more digging to do.

In the meantime, does anyone recognize the initials "M&S" in the M&S Manufacturing, Hartford, Conn. branding?

 

[2oolhound]

That's cool Lugs, I've never seen anything like it. Mine have the multi wheeled metal star shaped dressers which I assume are carbide metal. I have a diamond as well but that's a first.

In the meantime, does anyone recognize the initials "M&S" in the M&S Manufacturing, Hartford, Conn. branding?

*** rings a bell but I've never heard of M&S either.

 

[RTM]

In the meantime, does anyone recognize the initials "M&S" in the M&S Manufacturing, Hartford, Conn. branding?

Lugz

In a spot check of Hartford city directories from the Library of Congress, I looked at directories from 1925 - 1955 or so, hitting roughly every five years. I looked in the yellow pages under Abrasives (only after after ~1940), and the various flavors of Grinding, and didn't find anything with two names starting with M & S. Saw a Mochau, and a Stengelin, but never together.

I'm guessing Hardware Mfg's might be a good category, other clues where it might be found? Was thinking Importers too, but hoping not to go there.

 

[wrenchguy]

Images from FB-MP, Might be some tool logo/trademark interest with box marking.

 

[d42jeep]

My wife spotted this hand grinder at a garage/yard sale yesterday. I wanted to find one that looked like one used in WW2 and this one is pretty close. I’m grateful that Outlaw was nice enough to leave it behind.
I added a stone to it today that I pulled off of a Craftsman block grinder. Not correct but better than nothing.

 

[d42jeep]

d42jeep: Nice grinder! The Dunlap label on the box says "Approved Tools", what does the legend on the grinder's label say?

That box almost looks like it was made for the grinder, but my guess is it's for a portable circular saw.

Brian

After almost two years here is an answer to the question. I didn’t want to rush into it. Sorry for the wait.
-Don

 

[d42jeep]

Here is a little one I picked up lately.
-Don

 

[Moldyjim]

They are great cameras and were a pretty cheap way to get into large format photography back then. As I recall the front tilts, swings and racks up and down. The back racks up and down and tilts. I think the super speed graphic also has swing on the back. Plus they have a focal plane shutter allowing you to use a lot of shutterless lenses.

I snapped a shot of the ID plate on my case:



Do you have the flash for yours? That really gives them the old news photographer look. Film companies look to rent these especially if you have flash bulbs for their period films. Very nice cameras.

I do, I think both the large and the smaller reflectors.

 

[d42jeep]

Here is a Keystone grinder I found at a yard sale in Minden NV on Friday. Are Keystone grinders related to Keystone brand hand tools?
-Don