Homemade 2" x 72" grinder

[FishingMan]

Im thinking of building a 2x 72 belt grinder. Im thinking of doing square tubing for the frame. I might just buy the d platen. Anyone got any good plans or ideas?
Im going to use a three phase motor and a vfd so its variable speed.

 

[jh1990]

Look up Jeremy Schmidt on YouTube. You can purchase his plans for like $20.

 

[crugg65]

Yeah I saw one on YouTube that I liked and was made out of 2” stock. It leaves you with the option of installing a variable motor but they use a farm duty motor and bought their own D plates. Just type in 2”x72” belt sander build and scroll down to “Old Hickory Forge” is the site’s builder. I think one of the two guys was on Forged in Fire!


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[sqznby]

Here is a simple yet effective design that's easy to build.

http://dcknives.blogspot.com/p/2-x-72-belt-grinder.html

 

[crugg65]

Here is a simple yet effective design that's easy to build.

http://dcknives.blogspot.com/p/2-x-72-belt-grinder.html

I just looked over your link and quite impressed! Thanks for the info!


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[Bigblue&Goldie]

I'm about 75% of the way done with a 2 wheel 2x48" grinder. I bought my wheels from kadrmaskreations.com and they're very nicely machined.

 

[sqznby]

I just looked over your link and quite impressed! Thanks for the info!


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Any time my friend, glad to help out

 

[FishingMan]

Thanks for all the info guys. So many options

 

[Balor]

I'm about 75% of the way done with a 2 wheel 2x48" grinder. I bought my wheels from kadrmaskreations.com and they're very nicely machined.

Give us a look at it Bigblue

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Give us a look at it Bigblue

I don't have any pics right now to share, but here is what it looks like. Based on other designs I found online I drew this up in Fusion 360. At this point I need to finish the platen and work rest. I have the remaining hardware and belts showing up this week. Hopefully in the next 2 weeks I'll have it done and I'll do a write up.

 

[sqznby]

Bigblue&Goldie very nice, lookin forward to seeing the end result.
What motor did you use?

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Bigblue&Goldie very nice, lookin forward to seeing the end result.
What motor did you use?

Thanks, hopefully it works well. It's a Baldor CL3509. 56C size with base, 1HP, 115/230V single phase (I have it on 115V), 3,450RPM, TEFC. I'll just be using it for general metal fab, so I opted out of variable speed. I know the knife makers prefer variable speed.

 

[kazlx]

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/grinder-plans.1479460/

downloadable plans with a layout for waterjet. Drill and tap a couple holes and assemble the whole thing.

 

[rattle_snake]

Another option is to buy a grinder w/o motor. Not completely home made, but some assembly required.... Still have to build a stand, motor mount, pulley drive, wiring and so on. I bought a Coote and built the rest.

 

[sqznby]

Thanks, hopefully it works well. It's a Baldor CL3509. 56C size with base, 1HP, 115/230V single phase (I have it on 115V), 3,450RPM, TEFC. I'll just be using it for general metal fab, so I opted out of variable speed. I know the knife makers prefer variable speed.

From the looks of it, it will
Nice motor. I'm with you. Mine will be used for the same purpose, to remove material.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/grinder-plans.1479460/

downloadable plans with a layout for waterjet. Drill and tap a couple holes and assemble the whole thing.

Nice, I like that, especially since its made of 1/2 plate.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Another option is to buy a grinder w/o motor. Not completely home made, but some assembly required.... Still have to build a stand, motor mount, pulley drive, wiring and so on. I bought a Coote and built the rest.

Yeah, based on Coote's prices I'm maybe coming out $100 ahead and his will work properly right out of the box. When you make your own grinder the wheels and hardware begin to add up if you use nice stuff. Not to mention I will want to have it powder coated as I **** at painting. I also have a lot of time into mine which negates any kind of "savings". Unless you just want to build something, there are some great buys out there. I've seen some really "economical" builds that presumably work fine, just look rough.

If you go the build route plan on doing a lot of design as you go. The CAD work helped, but when I did the drawings I didn't have any physical parts to work with, so I've had to tweak some things as I go. My original intent was to make it weld free with very basic machining. So far the only welds will be some weld nuts for the work rest angle knob and the tracking adjuster knob.

 

[z-edition 006]

Why not go your own route on the design. Make something spesial only you have in the world. I did mine with only a few basic tools.

Here is my diy 2x63" grinder:

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

^Your's turned out super nice!!!^

 

[rattle_snake]

Yes, very nice Z. Perhaps made with a few basic tools but obviously a non-trivial machine made at a high level of quality/craftsmanship.

 

[FishingMan]

I bought a set of Jeremy's plans.i like his design because the grinder can be used horizontally or vertically.

 

[StormcrowAz]

I bought a set of Jeremy's plans.i like his design because the grinder can be used horizontally or vertically.

Just re-assembled mine after painting. Still need to wire it up and figure out how to make it track correctly.

20200108_174327

20200108_175107

 

[nutjob]

I really like Jeremy's design. When I saw the Radius jig he has, I purchased the plans for the grinder.

Does any know if he has files that can be sent to a water jet company to speed up assembly?

EDIT: I emailed Jeremy and he did send me the DXF file.

Kevin

 

[FishingMan]

Stormcrowaz nice work. Did everthing go smooth building it? Any tips on the build

 

[bullnerd]

Stormcrowaz nice work. Did everthing go smooth building it? Any tips on the build

Click on ERnies place at the bottom of his post, its towards the end.

Very nice job on the grinder.

 

[StormcrowAz]

Stormcrowaz nice work. Did everthing go smooth building it? Any tips on the build

Thank you! And absolutely not. But mainly because I’m a knucklehead and not a professional of any type. And you know, life’s a learning experience. Overall it hasn’t been too bad, though.

Taking your time to make sure everything is square is probably the biggest thing. I really wish I would have read up more on tapping holes before I jumped in. I would have tried the “put the tap in the drill press to start your threads” trick as I don’t think all of mine are as straight and true as they should be. I’m sure that will come back to bite me here shortly, but hopefully I’ll be able to adapt and overcome without too much difficulty. Having the parts pre-cut is nice, but take the time to inspect them before accepting them. The ones I got left a lot to be desired and ended up having to spend time fixing a bunch of them. I probably wouldn’t want any of them to have the bolt holes pre-cut and would drill them in myself. Also, when I welded the main hinges on I used vise grips to hold them together while tacking them in place. It made for a really tight fit and cause some cuss words when trying to get the base tube and tilting tube part afterwords. To do over I’d still clamp them together for straightness, but probably use one layer of those Coke-can shims in between for a little bit of clearance.

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: I know bigger is better, but i've got a Baldor 3/4 buffer that can almost take my hand off so wondering if this 3/4 Baldor motor might work as a start for a 2 or 3 wheel grinder?

Storm: again nicely done and love the horizontal option.

 

[FishingMan]

So take my time,triple check for square. Stitch weld it to minimize warping. Pray it comes out right lol.

 

[catalytic]

ALL: I know bigger is better, but i've got a Baldor 3/4 buffer that can almost take my hand off so wondering if this 3/4 Baldor motor might work as a start for a 2 or 3 wheel grinder?

Storm: again nicely done and love the horizontal option.

^^ Short answer: Yes. I have (factory-installed) 1hp on both of my Burr Kings. If you read the knife forums, you might think you need 2+hp, which I think is a bit ridiculous. While it's true that on mine you can't push steel into them with all your might like the guys with 3hp can, you probably don't want to do this unless you're in a huge rush to make knives from blanks, and mine still grind scary fast. The older Burr Kings in the '60s had 1/2hp or 3/4hp depending on the model -- it's plenty of power to grind some steel.

Also, with 3/4hp, you can run it on a 15amp circuit, which may be a very convenient 'bonus feature'.

 

[kazlx]

Also, an actual Baldor or Leeson or something that’s 3/4 isn’t a cheap import 3/4. There a huge difference in power and torque.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

That motor will work power wise, but you want to figure out what SFM you are going for. I opted for 1hp 3,450 RPM motor on my 2 wheel because I wasn't going to be able to overdrive the drive wheel and I wanted max SFM.

 

[drivesitfar]

Fish: good luck and take a lot of pictures to post when you have time if you would. thanks in advance for starting this thread.

CAT: thanks for the good words

KAZ: with today's #'s on Chinese made grinders I wonder if a 1hp even compares to a 3/4 older like new baldor?

BBG: i couldn't see the brand of your motor so do tell?

ALL: one of my local guys built this one with a kit from one of the teachers at a local community college and I liked it. i think he's using a 5 HP Baldor, but he does heavy steel grinding and I think he loves Tim Allen. if I recall he has 20 different grit belts hanging at the ready.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Mine is a Baldor TEFC. I spent the coin and I'm glad I did. So far in testing it's super well balanced.

 

[drivesitfar]

 

[The Cobbler]

Why not go your own route on the design. Make something spesial only you have in the world. I did mine with only a few basic tools.

Here is my diy 2x63" grinder:

you cut the mild steel with that router? impressive