torqueman2002
Well-known member
That is one sturdy grinder and probably conservatively rated at 1/3 HP.
I found this information in a 1951 Sears tool catalogue, which I think I found on OWWM site.
let's see your craftsman block grinders
- Thread starter emeraldcoupe
- Start date
I found this information in a 1951 Sears tool catalogue, which I think I found on OWWM site.
Rabid Badger
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Damn, that's over $500 in 2018 dollars.
carlbush
Member
Hi All,
I am a new member and, to be up-front, I joined because I have an old grinder that I want to sell but have no idea what it may (or may not) be worth. I did not realize, until reading this forum, that these grinders have such a devoted following. Mine is in rough shape and needs cosmetic restoration but it runs like a scalded dog! It is a Sears Craftsman model 397-19410 and it is mounted on a pedestal. It was my wife's grandfather's grinder and he lived at the beach, so it has seen better days. I have NOT cleaned it or done anything else to it since I received it. It has been sitting unused in my garage for more than 10 years. Again, it looks rough but it runs like a champ. Any assistance on the value of this grinder is greatly appreciated.
A couple of pics
Cheers, Carl
I am a new member and, to be up-front, I joined because I have an old grinder that I want to sell but have no idea what it may (or may not) be worth. I did not realize, until reading this forum, that these grinders have such a devoted following. Mine is in rough shape and needs cosmetic restoration but it runs like a scalded dog! It is a Sears Craftsman model 397-19410 and it is mounted on a pedestal. It was my wife's grandfather's grinder and he lived at the beach, so it has seen better days. I have NOT cleaned it or done anything else to it since I received it. It has been sitting unused in my garage for more than 10 years. Again, it looks rough but it runs like a champ. Any assistance on the value of this grinder is greatly appreciated.
A couple of pics
Cheers, Carl
Negen
Well-known member
Link didn't work for me security tools in android blocked it.
Sent from my G8141 using The Garage Journal mobile app
carlbush
Member
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bubinga
Well-known member
drivesitfar
Well-known member
Negen: welcome to GJ. as is that old 1/3 block of yours on it's original stand won't bring much cause looks like it's been sitting outside for it's lifetime. that said some of the members here have bought some that looked similar and spent some time to make it look better than new. welcome to GJ.
Hemi: some of the PRE BLOCK old Craftsman grinders have a date stamped or written on the badge. I just moved one that I own that is similar to yours yesterday and i'll see if I can see a date and post it. I think mid 50's was the newest and after WWII seems like when they went to that style after the earlier ones were run off motors with belts.
Hemi: some of the PRE BLOCK old Craftsman grinders have a date stamped or written on the badge. I just moved one that I own that is similar to yours yesterday and i'll see if I can see a date and post it. I think mid 50's was the newest and after WWII seems like when they went to that style after the earlier ones were run off motors with belts.
Negen
Well-known member
Left-tilt
New member
First post, long time reader:
I picked up this pair, a 1/2Hp and 3/4Hp, yesterday based on the advice from this thread for 42.50$ a piece. Both are in decent shape, no cooling trays but everything else is there including the original stones. I've been saving up for an 8" Taiwanese Jet, because the shop I started in considered that the gold standard for modern, non-Baldor, grinders. I think these run smoother and stronger than a 1hp Jet.
My question is; which one do I paint and restore, and which one to I use for a Franken-Grinder. I'd like to weld up new covers to fit an 8" Aluminum wheel and an 8" brush, and build up a better, non-OEM tool rest, but realizes this will likely cannibalize on of these poor guys beyond restoration ? I'll mostly be using these to sharpen metal cutting tools and wood cutting tools, cleaning up parts, and putting a beveled egde on small welding pieces. Open to any ideas.
I picked up this pair, a 1/2Hp and 3/4Hp, yesterday based on the advice from this thread for 42.50$ a piece. Both are in decent shape, no cooling trays but everything else is there including the original stones. I've been saving up for an 8" Taiwanese Jet, because the shop I started in considered that the gold standard for modern, non-Baldor, grinders. I think these run smoother and stronger than a 1hp Jet.
My question is; which one do I paint and restore, and which one to I use for a Franken-Grinder. I'd like to weld up new covers to fit an 8" Aluminum wheel and an 8" brush, and build up a better, non-OEM tool rest, but realizes this will likely cannibalize on of these poor guys beyond restoration ? I'll mostly be using these to sharpen metal cutting tools and wood cutting tools, cleaning up parts, and putting a beveled egde on small welding pieces. Open to any ideas.
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carlbush
Member
Negen, I think drivesitfar thought my post was yours (since you quoted mine) ... anyway, I was trying to figure out a value on my old 1/3 HP grinder on pedestal so I may advertise it locally.
Negen
Well-known member
In that condition I would pay 20-25$ for if you restored it I would pay 100-125$ for it. But that is me. Pictures did finally work. But garage journal uses some strange redirect thing that gets blocked by the security filters in my phone.
Sent from my G8141 using The Garage Journal mobile app
Sent from my G8141 using The Garage Journal mobile app
Left-tilt:
I don’t see how fabricating a custom guard and rest has to involve the existing parts. They just unscrew, right? Take them off and don’t use anything but the machine screws for attaching your custom guard. Make it from other material. Three critically-spaced holes to drill and it replaces what’s on there now. Probably have to add washers to the machine screws if your new material is thinner-walled, because the tapped holes are blind.
I don’t see how fabricating a custom guard and rest has to involve the existing parts. They just unscrew, right? Take them off and don’t use anything but the machine screws for attaching your custom guard. Make it from other material. Three critically-spaced holes to drill and it replaces what’s on there now. Probably have to add washers to the machine screws if your new material is thinner-walled, because the tapped holes are blind.
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Left-tilt
New member
Excellent point. I was going to try splice the guard in half and use the existing mounting points but your idea saves a lot of unnecessary work and will likely look a lot better. I'll post what I come up with.
Any concerns on using the 3/4HP to run 8" discs if I make new guards? I think this model ran 7"ers stock.
Stuggling to find a stand, so just built a couple. Nothing fancy. Wanted to share a pic of my 1hp and 3/4 (with sanding wheel). The 1hp I've had for a few years now (i think) and gets used all the time. The 3/4 i bought this past summer and finally got around to building a stand.
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[/ATTACH]Kind of stumbled upon this buying a belt sander on craigslist, $75. Everything works like new. And it's very hard to buy stuff like this in az for decent price, if you even find it, not an industrial city (phx), nor an old city either, so all this vintage stuff goes for more.
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bubinga
Well-known member
No, Those Stands Are NICE!!
That is one sturdy grinder and probably conservatively rated at 1/3 HP.
I found this information in a 1951 Sears tool catalogue, which I think I found on OWWM site.
And heavy! I bought one last year and just started to tear it down for a cleaning.
drivesitfar
Well-known member
ALL: speaking of PRE BLOCK grinders. this 1/3 HP is as stated built STOUT & HEAVY and i bet it will out perform any 1/2 or maybe 3/4 HP grinder today. it's dirty and my label is pretty scratched up, but someone was asking about dating theirs and I think I can see a 48 stamped on the badge of mine.
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I recognize that 3/4! Nice looking setup
Thanks, Man!
Nice setup! Nice stand! I agree that this grinder has an underrated 1/3 hp. Here is mine. Pic is a bit deceiving because i had started to tear it down, but i do have the side guards and tool rests. Missing cooling tray and eyeshields though.
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Drives, FWIW the next generation of pre-block 1/3 hp had even more power (draws more amps)
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I love all these golden oldies too, but nearly any quality modern grinder will outperform any of these old ones. The tech has just improved so much over the years.
I respectfully disagree. I've used modern grinders at work and they don't have the same power as the old boys do.
I've recently used a friends 3/4hp dewalt, and it kills my old 1/2hp craftsman I just listed here. Came with the stand no less. Really cool. But, just doesn't have the legs that his has. But in fairless, a cheapy ryobi or wen would pale in comparison to mine, buy they have no power to begin with.
MissileBear
Well-known member
I've used that 4.2 Amp, 42 pound, 3/4 HP rated DeWalt and was not at all impressed. Their HP rating doesn't make sense (do the math with the rated amperage vs output).
For comparison:
My Baldor 8107W grinder tips the scale at 100 lbs with wheels, rated at 8.6 Amps(115V), and is also rated at 3/4 HP. This model was produced within the past 6 years or so.
My 1950's B&D Model 74 is close to 70 lbs, rated at 3/4 HP, and pulls 9.87 Amps. The weight savings on this one is due to the cast aluminum body. I cannot stall it and would put it on par with my Baldor.
The late-70's Craftsman Commercial 1/2 HP grinder pulls 6.7 Amps and weights 40 something pounds. The non-Commercial 1/2 HP pulls 5.1 Amps and is similar weight. Both have all aluminum body components and sheet metal covers for weight savings.
I think it's also worth pointing out that electric motor technology (single phase) has not changed much since these were all manufactured. A bench grinder is pretty much just a mounted motor.
My point is, the numbers for new and old grinders tell the story....that DeWalt has inflated the 3/4 HP rating as a selling tactic. I would not clump the Chinese made Dewalt as a high end grinder, and did not myself experience the performance that any of my other old/new grinders produce. Not bragging, but I own 10 bench grinders at this point and the Baldor is the only one younger than I.
The love for these Craftsman block grinders is due to their performance. It seems odd to me that you aren't experiencing the same thing yourself...maybe that block has an issue?
drivesitfar
Well-known member
MB: great post! yep the old blocks are up there with my Baldors as my go to workers.
ALL: I owned a few of the newer delta 1/2 hp I doubt could out perform a 1/4 HP block and they went up for sale almost as soon as I got them in a package deal. sure there are other great old grinders besides Craftsman blocks and pre blocks, but at this price point they are really hard to beat for performance and looks takes our precious blocks to the top.
some of you might not know of the VINTAGE GRINDER THREAD that you should look at if you want to see some other OLD KEEPERS. of course some of those you can't find parts for so BEE CAREFUL if you buy one that needs some work if you don't own a lathe.
ALL: I owned a few of the newer delta 1/2 hp I doubt could out perform a 1/4 HP block and they went up for sale almost as soon as I got them in a package deal. sure there are other great old grinders besides Craftsman blocks and pre blocks, but at this price point they are really hard to beat for performance and looks takes our precious blocks to the top.
some of you might not know of the VINTAGE GRINDER THREAD that you should look at if you want to see some other OLD KEEPERS. of course some of those you can't find parts for so BEE CAREFUL if you buy one that needs some work if you don't own a lathe.
I think you need to define "quality modern grinder" before making that statement. With the exception of Baldor, I don't believe there are any quality-oriented grinders available new for purchase. If you include the dozens of grinders that were available AFTER the block grinders---ie, Wissota/Milwaukee, Dayton (Taiwan versions), Rockwell, etc---then I agree. But only Baldor has survived, and everything else is just overpriced junk.
MissileBear
Well-known member
Baldor is now owned by Swiss multinational company ABB. Don't know if production will continue state-side or not.
Yeah I was more meaning that, and I'd throw in jet grinders as well. No ryobi, hf, wen, grizzly, etc. I've also heard good things about the metabo.
I may have been remiss about the dewalt, but when I used it, it was pretty new and was rock solid. Now its longevity, idk, probably typical chinese trash. I was probably overstepping making that rash comparison saying it killed my craftsman haha, as there's nothing wrong with it and it's a solid unit, although for an inexpensive unit, I'd say it'd get most by.
Like I said, in az there just isn't much of this stuff, and ppl want a small fortune most it of the time, and of course ebay will fleece you, so for cost to performance (and the unknown of what the previous owner did to it or how much it has left), there's some value there with a warranty, new etc.
The market's just crazy here, and most ppl will just go out n buy a jet or a baldor if they want shop quality and not deal with the headache of searching forever and paying inflated prices for 50 year old units (if they don't care of the intrinsic value of vintage units).
I should have been more specific as what I meant including price to performance, market, warranty, average user vs shop, etc.
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MissileBear
Well-known member
That one is a 6" wheel.
Yeah, but my craftsman (works great) is only rated at 4.4 amps, where the dewalt is 4.2, so not much difference. Plus the dewalt was pretty new, so it had that going for it. But like I said in my other post, I overstated by saying killed it, I was probably just surprised with how decent it was.
Have you tried finding the eyeshields? Seems next to impossible to find.
Rabid Badger
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Dang!! Nice job! I really like the color.
torqueman2002
Well-known member
Rabid Badger
Well-known member
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x2
What colors are those?
Thanks guys.
This is the paint I used:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002YVWLA
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0019K1YD2
I was going to use the usual gray but the wife saw the red and insisted.