Weighing down bench grinder stand

[TexasAggie09]

Hey guys,
Long time lurker, first time poster here. I must say that I love this site as well as all things tool-related. Unfortunately, so early in my career, I don't have near as many fancy or old/valuable tools as some on here but it's a work in progress!

Anyway, I was given an old Black and Decker 6" bench grinder and I bought a cheap stand for it. The problem is, the stand isn't heavy enough and it tends to walk sideways when using the grinder. I can't bolt it to the floor because I'm temporarily in a rent house and don't particularly want to drill into the concrete.

Does anyone have a good way to add some sort of weight to the bottom? I do have a few bags of quickrete lying around...I thought about somehow making a form and creating a thick "disk" of concrete that I could sink some bolts into but I'm not sure that quickrete is up to the task of withstanding the vibrations without cracking...

Any ideas?

Here's a sample picture of the type of stand I'm talking about...

 

[Davefr]

Fill the column with concrete and then place this under the feet.

http://beta.mscdirect.com/product/09415761

 

[PCO6]

I've filled the column with concrete and had good results. With a stand like the one picture above I usually have 2 of the legs closest to me and 1 pointing back so I can use one of my feet to stand on the pedestal.

 

[TexasAggie09]

Thanks guys, I'll have to mix up some concrete later and fill it up and see how it does.

 

[Jagmandave]

I think it would be smarter to fix the vibration that's causing it to walk - they're not supposed to do that......

My bench grinder runs so smoothly you can't even feel it, but my other grinder has a worn wheel and vibrates like crazy - dressing (truing) the wheel will often fix the vibration.

 

[G_P]

Set the unopened bags of quikrete on the 2 legs in the back?

Sent from my C5120 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Stephenw]

Drill holes in the floor and use "drop in anchors". When you move, drive the anchors down into the slab and smooth over the holes with mortar.

Note that it will not be an invisible repair.

 

[lilredex]

I think it would be smarter to fix the vibration that's causing it to walk - they're not supposed to do that......

My bench grinder runs so smoothly you can't even feel it, but my other grinder has a worn wheel and vibrates like crazy - dressing (truing) the wheel will often fix the vibration.

Couldn't agree more, with this advise. Indexing the wheels has been covered on here, previously.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=69346

 

[ClrkLndeKmt'su]

I've bolted them to a big truck or fork lift brake drum before, if you have access. Lol

 

[A_Pmech]

Bolt it to a heavy duty truck brake drum and fill that column with punchings from the local fabrication shop.

 

[ganymede]

Depending on how strong the motor is and how bad it wobbles, adding more weight may not stop it. I'd try truing everything up.
Balancing the thing may make it last longer too.

 

[Jagmandave]

The other thing to check is that the wheel fits the arbor properly, if it's loose it can cause vibration too......

 

[BD1]

Bolt it to a piece of plywood large enough so you will stand on it. Or you could do the same with steel.

 

[neblinc]

How temporary is temporary? If you are going to move soon, no use filling the stand with concrete to make it heavy to move. Place the 2 bags you have over the legs for now.

Randy

 

[TexasAggie09]

Sorry for the delayed reply and thanks for the information. I haven't done anything with this yet since the original post other than truing the grinding wheel. The problem is with the wire wheel that I have on the other side. Even with a new wire wheel, it seems nothing fits right and makes it wobble. There is a large mounting area for wheels where there are no threads and such a skinny thing like a wire wheel doesn't even come close to filling that gap to let the nut tighten it down. When I got it there were lots of washers stacked up to take up the gap as well as a plastic bushing that sits in the bore of the wire wheel and two large convex fender washers to sandwich the wire wheel. All of this throws it way out of balance. What's the correct way to mount this wire wheel?

BTW she spins vibration free without the wire wheel on...

 

[Bobf]

I have two long shaft blower motors with arbors bolted to a plate which is welded to a 3" pipe which is welded to a old 16" truck rim. There is enough junk/remnant metal on the wheel to further hold it down. I've seen old tires filled with concrete with studs sticking up for stands for vises, buffers, grinders, and even volley ball nets

 

[Jagmandave]

Maybe you need to buy a better grade of wire wheel? One that fits the arbor correctly.......

I've bought wheels at Harbor Freight and they don't fit the arbor well and vibrate like crazy, I had a machine shop make a bushing so I could center it properly and even then it still shook.

I bought a new wire wheel from Grainger - smooth as butter from the get go.

 

[lilredex]

You could check the balance with a simple device as shown here:

http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/threads/40475-A-Poor-Man-s-Grinding-Wheel-Balancer

A high sided cake pan could even be sustituted. A sheet metal screw placed correctly would likely take up the imbalance.


Even if you start out with a balanced wheel, through use, it will need help in the balance dept.

 

[Shadowdog500]

Pour a 25 lb. bag of shot down the center tube.

+1 on "why is it moving around?" I have one set up on a similar stand and it don't move. I've seen people put thier foot on the front foot pad when they lean into a grinder.

Chris

 

[evintho]

Bolt it to a piece of plywood large enough so you will stand on it. Or you could do the same with steel.

What he said^^^! A flat plate of thick steel bolted to the feet will help it stay in place as well as being able to stand on it.

 

[Jomo]

If it were me, I would try bolting it to some heavy plywood 3/4" or more. With the plywood piece being at least 3' x 3'.

Oh BTW, Welcome to GJ!

 

[Jswain]

I used a 16" rim/tire and some 3/8" allthread. I welded the allthread to the rim then put some nuts on to hold the base down, but you could drill through the rim to hold it as well. IIRC the 16" was a tad too small so If you were going to go that route you may want a 17" rim, I just bent the allthread 90 degrees and welded it on. Keeps the grinder very sturdy, and easy to roll around.

 

[Gregg33]

Drill holes in the floor and use "drop in anchors". When you move, drive the anchors down into the slab and smooth over the holes with mortar.

Note that it will not be an invisible repair.

Anchors don't cause as much damage as you might think. Wedge style 3/8" anchors will be plenty. When you install them, drill much deeper than needed. Then when you move, just pound them in below the surface with a punch, all you will be left with is 3 small holes, which can be filled with gray caulk or any type of mortar/ cement patch if you want.