Links to Products I recommend (affiliate): Dewalt 6” Bench Grinder: amzn.to/3WxHHVf (Excellent for the money. Includes surprisingly good tool-rest.) Grinding Wheel Dresser: amzn.to/4fvWTLd (Tiny, but it works.) Grinder Wheel Dressing Stick: amzn.to/4cea68I (A cheap but effective alternative for dressing grinder wheels.) Dewalt Medium Wire Wheel: amzn.to/3SG2BAh (Good value; works well.) Replacement Grinding Wheel: amzn.to/3LUL0B2 (Affordable; reduces vibration.) Safety Glasses: amzn.to/46BK4Li (This style is so comfortable, I forget I’m wearing them.) 3D Printer File for upgrades to Dewalt Grinder: www.rexkrueger.com/store/p/dewalt-grinder-adjustment-and-spacer-kit-for-3d-printing Other Products (affiliate): WEN 6” Grinder: amzn.to/3yEx8HT (A weak and flimsy grinder…that will work in a pinch). Shopfox 6” Grinder: amzn.to/4fAwb43 (A generally good tool that only takes 5/8” wheels.) Narrow wire wheel: amzn.to/3WDbewE (Fits the narrow arbor of the Shopfox grinder, but not very well.)
One thing i appreciate about this channel is that it has become clear over the years, when you suggest a popular brand (like this dewalt), we know you aren't shilling for them. You've suggested many cheap options over the years, so when you suggest using the popular brand we can be confident its entirely because its legitimately the better product
Rex would be a horrible person for a big tool company to sponsor in many ways. He doesn't do dumb flashy stuff, his fans are either beginners or enthusiasts of hand tools which we mostly buy used or make. I can see little mom and pop shops sponsoring him though.
I bought a used Baldor 6 inch grinder from the 60’s for $100. It runs as smooth as glass and takes close to 2 minutes to spool down. Vintage is the only way to go.
That's if you can find one. I buy a lot of used tools and I don't see decent bench grinders come up very often. If a bench grinder is decent folks tend to hang onto those themselves. If someone is selling a bench grinder look it over carefully.
Hi Rex! I've gone down the rabbit hole of trying to balance bench grinders. One thing I've found is that while stones can be balanced (especially with an adjustable aftermarket balancing hub like a OneWay), wire wheels basically can't be, and will always make a bench grinder shake like crazy. If stability is essential, you want to run two stones on the grinder and keep the wire wheels on a separate machine entirely.
I don't have a ton of experience with different grinders, but every one I've used has been fairly cheap, a 1960's 5" Sears model, a 90's craftsman similar to the ones in this video, and at a shop I worked at a much larger craftsman model. None of them had vibration issues, but all of them had two grinding wheels, or a grinding and a cut off wheel. Put the wire wheels on a different machine and save some trouble.
Balancing wire wheels is easy. Drill and tap 3 equidistant holes in the steel flanges and use bolts and nuts to balance the wheels. Add weight to the hub until the wire brush wheel stops in no particular position. Remove the other wheel while doing this. I use a 3m conditioning wheel opposite the wire wheel. The cheap Harbor Freight grinder runs dead smooth.
I don’t know if anyone mentioned it yet but for the safety, two items were missed. 1, stand to the side at start up in case the wheel is out of balance or damaged since last turning it on. Always perform the “ring” test before installing any wheel - if it rings, install it; if it thuds, throw it out. We learned this at an adult education center, C-TEC, in Newark, Ohio. I have three of various sizes: a 25 year old Harbor Freight, and two Chinese ones I inherited. I’ll set them each up with different wheels for both wood and metal work. Great video.
The ring test is only useful for natural stone wheels. The more common white or pink wheels are manufactured and don't benefit from the ring test. I'm not sure about the grey stones, but I'd guess that they are manufactured as well. The ring test is essential for the natural stones, to detect a hidden, internal fracture, so it still has a place and I'm glad you brought it up.
6" wheel times 3400 rpm = ~8.6 m/s or ~31 km/h or ~19 mph peripheral speed, you might think if you are stupid enogh to forget the Pi. But if you remember to multiply the diameter by Pi you will get: 6" wheel TIMES PI times 3400 rpm = ~27 m/s or ~98 km/h or ~61 mph peripheral speed. Not AR15 speed, but it can hurt you anyway. And the things it can throw at you might be even heavier and sharper than a bullet. I (almost :) ) always use gloves while grinding.
Great video! I recently inherited the Delta benchtop grinder that I gave my Dad back in the 1990s. It's heavy, has little vibration, and was very lightly used. I used it to sharpen my scratch awls and fix some damaged chisels and scrapers that I picked up. 16:10 When I use a wire wheel to clean small parts, I prefer to hold the part with pliers or vise grips so my bare hands don't accidentally get tagged. I NEVER wear gloves if my hands are anywhere near a spinning tool because the glove could get snagged and pull my hand into the tool.
My grinder is a 1973 Craftsman. It had a wobble problem, maybe as much as 1/8 inch. Got a replacement from Sears, same problem. I literally went through every grinder they had and the last one was true. Turns out the arbor was ground at an angle . Put a wire wheel on the fine wheel side and been happy ever since. Tool rest barely useable from new. It does have a water trough on the front and a light. Couple summers back I picked up two off the curb, a Craftsman and something else. Both worked fine, gave the Craftsman away, nobody wanted the other. It still works fine.
I know people don't like to bother with safety glasses, and 99.9% of the time you probably don't need them. But that 0.1% is very important. I've worn corrective glasses for most of my life, so I often didn't bother. One time after a quick go with the grinder, I noticed a spot on my glasses. Taking them off, I saw a shard of metal had punched and/or melted its way halfway through near the center of the lens. It's the only time in my life that such an incident happened, but I can only imagine what would have happened if I hadn't been wearing anything.
For a specialist application my lab needed a precision diamond saw and grinder. The available models started at around $30k and went up.. we decided to build our own starting with modifying a bench grinder. Had the same problem with vibration and wobble and the speed was too high for the blade and wheel. Eventually found a guy who had tried the same. He used a motor used in machines for sharpening blades on fleece shearer combs. More powerful, the right rpm and less vibration. To get the precision grinding needed he inserted a large nylon pad and used three adjusting screws to true the wheel after it was bolted on. He was selling them for $15k and still making a profit and they were better than the $30k competitor because he addressed all the faults in it making it much easier to use.
I just put grade-8 wing nuts off the shelf on the tool adjuster. I also put washers in between the two halves of the tool rest joint to make the adjustment smooth instead of the detents that are in there stock.
Good video. I have several of these grinders. One thing that happens to most Taiwanese and Chinese grinders is that because they use shielded, not sealed, bearings, they get rough after a year or two. The grinding dust gets past the shields and ends up inside the bearings, ruining them. The good news is that they are very easy to replace and are of a common size. To replace them, remove the wheels and guard shields. Undo the bolts/screws that hold the end bells onto the grinder and carefully slide them off. The armature will probably come with one of them - that is ok. Punch out the old bearings and get the part numbers. Order new SEALED bearings with the same number and replace them. Put the whole mess back together and viola! Problem solved. The sealed bearing should last for years.
As a toolmaker for 25 plus years who has precision ground all tool steels, from H-13 to A-2, even on a bench grinder, you need to dress grinding wheels often to prevent load up of your wheel, and to remove from the wheel, imbeded steel particles. This helps clean and true your wheels, and let's them grind cooler...
I have a WEN grinder but it is a few models up - heavier, better tool rests, variable speed, 2.5 amp and came with a light. It was about $130 i believe and is actually pretty good! I have other options for wire wheels and buffers and whatnot where the guards aren't as critical. Good video Rex!
I have a Ryobi one that, looking at the WEN model, definitely seems like a rebadged variant of the same model. I also think it's likely a slightly better model than the one in the video. At least here, I've never had the motor stall on me from just regular usage. Mine vibrates significantly only when it's starting up or slowing down. I think there are resonant frequencies, and thankfully fully up-to-speed doesn't hit any.
Have had a 1960's 5" Sears grinder that did all the work I needed it to growing up and until recently. Inherited a craftsman grinder of some larger size I've used lately, but the 60 year old Sears one still gets the job done. It was good enough for my grandfather, a machinist working large lathes and mills back in the day, and it's still good enough for me today.
I bought a Creusen for 20 bucks and restored it. It looked terrible, but after a paintjob and some new bearings it ran like new. I have another one that was my grandfathers that got the same treatment. If you want to put the work in it, it might be worth it. There is not much that can go wrong with grinders.
We went to goggles for grinder use, as all too often a particle has enough energy to strike near the glasses and bounce into the eye. A full face shield, in almost all cases, is not impact-rated and is not adequate for protection from a serious impact. It does handle the nuisance material nicely though. Protect those eyes! They don't grow back very fast.
been woodworking for years, keep coming back to your basics to brush up on my knowledge and learn new things. Thanks for the continued effort Rex. Keep em coming!
Fantastic content, genuinely useful. Contained all the things my old brain ever thinks to mention when asked about grinders and some additional details I wouldn't have thought of as well. All with clear visuals. I haven't bought a new grinder in years so the info about current budget models is also something my own advice would fail to cover. Overall a top notch introduction. Perfect for passing on to anyone interested in setting up a solid basic work area for life's tasks. This is the kind of straightfoward, practical stuff that really helps a community. Deep appreciation to Rex & the patrons. It may not be as exciting as a new wondertool or fancy project; but this is absolutely quality stuff.
I was thinking of buying another grinder since I sold my other grinder which was a big mistake. I only sold it because I needed space in my shop. It was a grinder with it own stand. You gave me some good information on what to look for. Thank you
Thanks for the tip about temporarily mounting the metal vise and grinder in the wood vise. I just changed my shop setup and have been trying to figure out some kind of temporary mount for those!
I kept two grinders attached to a piece of 2x12 with about 24” in between and put pull handles centered next to each grinder to pick up the board and move it to where it was needed. I had a fine wheel and buffing wheel on one grinder and two coarse wheels on the other. One side didn’t have a tool rest to get in at odd angles. The dressing wheel and cords will wind up and shove under the carry handles and the whole thing will stand up at a 30 degree angle or so. I did find out the hard way not to use your dressing stone backwards because it will unscrew the shaft that retains all those little hardened star things and they will come flying off and stick into your safety glasses. Never forget the safety glasses. Those little metal things are hardened, and sharp as hell
The problem with the grinders and vibration is primarily mass. Of the grinders you reviewed, the Dewalt had the greatest mass. That's why Baldor grinders are vibration-free or near to vibration-free. Having a heavier, stiffer base helps with vibration.
What great timing. I've been needing to pick up a bench grinder for quite some time for multiple uses but just keep putting off doing any research into them. Don't know if I'll end up with one of these three or not but either way, I appreciate an info dump from a trustworthy source who knows their stuff.
thank you Rex . if i may ( background ) navy trained machinist work on sub-tender. at the trade 10yrs. yes grinding wheels will explode ! if the grinding wheel is clogged up the glue that binds the grit will release . wheel blow up . use a wood handle ( i use the wood handle of one of my files tap and listen for a clear ring . if it just thuds then the wheel is bad do not use it , it will have a good chance of blowing up not good .hope that helps
One thing that helps with a grinder that vibrates is that you can improve that a bit and it is not hard to do. If it is new and has some vibration put a pencil line at the center loosen the nut and turn it a bit clock wise or counter clockwise and retighten the nut. Start it and see if it vibrates less or more than before. You can find the best spot that runs better. You do this again when you replace the wheel. As a woodturner I use the 8 inch soft wheels mostly sharpening the gouges and other turning tools. If it needs reshaped again I use the coarse ones.
Thanks for the great grinder review. Yes, yes, absolutely: please offer the Dewalt spacer and adjustment kit. I have a Dewalt grinder, I purchased the Dewalt wire wheel and noticed the rubbing issue when I tried to install it so I left the guard off. Your kit will solve the problem so I can put the guard back on. And for adjusting the tool rest, so far I have lived with it. Adding your kit adjustment parts will make adjustment easier.
You can get away with vibration by making a ring with 3 threded holes spaced at 120°. Thread in or out bolts at different hights and this way you can balance out the wheel so its dead on. Alternatively (better idea) use that balancing ring with an app that measures vibration amplitude at opperating speeds - you just place your smartphone on top of the motor and accelerometer measures Hz and Amp. Fiddle with screws amuntil amplitude is the least and you are golden.
I've been shopping for a grinder for my shop-in-progress and the timing of this video couldn't be better! And I would definitely buy the 3D printed upgrades.
Great video! I got my dad’s old Montgomery Wards ball bearing bench grinder, and your video got me interested in getting it mounted and a new wheel. It has 1/4-20” bolts for the guards and decent tool rests, and spins super smooth.
I love your videos as they are full of great information. I also don't know anyone with a 3d printer so a kit with all the green stuff would be brilliant. I'm looking forward to part two.❤😊
Love to watch how others do things, despite doing this for 25 years, I might still learn a thing or two. I have a bunch of old bench grinders I picked up at yard sales and shops that got rid of them. Now I have a hobby of refurbishing old machines. It's a great hobby to have and to learn from since my old hobby became my job.
Quite surprised about the follies of the Wen grinder, seeing as they've been crushing the low end entry level tool space. Thanks for doing what you do Rex
I've used cheap grinders at work. I made my own using a very old motor, several types of wheels, pillow block bearings, a long 1/2" bolt as shaft, and pulleys. Good project to your needs.
I got a porter cable bench grinder. 10 years old and still working great. Cheap as dirt when I bought it. As a mechanic here is the philosophy handed down to me by my father from his father. The tool that gets the job done reliably is the tool you want. Buy cheap and only buy better when the cheap breaks. The amount of “cheap” tools I have that never fail me definitely out numbers the expensive tools.
I have the 8'' variable speed Hercules bench grinder but haven't used it much, so far so good though. I cut down the vibration a lot by just using some spray adhesive to stick some thicker, grippy toolbox drawer liner to the bottom of a piece of melamine and then mounted the grinder to the melamine. I've done this to my bandsaw, 12" disk sander, drill press, and planer too and it works surprisingly well! Cuts down the vibration and your tools won't slide around without having to actually mount them to something!
I assume the transparent factory guards are plastic (polycarbonate), I also assume when you say they get 'dirty' you mean that over time the grit scratches the plastic making it opaque. Are my assumptions correct? If so, would a piece of glass (laminated glass?) work? Or is there too much risk that you might shatter it sending high speed shards against all parts of you body? Or do you actually mean that dirt and dust and grit build up and it makes it hard to see immediately? Thanks!
Good information. I have a makita grinder and is very stable and doesn't vibrate. The problem is the angle pads. I have the idea of 3d printing the platform but I don't know.
This is so great and helpful! Will the second part of the video regarding sharpening chisels be released soon? Also, I bought the Powertec 60 grit you recommended in description to go with my new dewalt. Do you not recommend using the wheel the dewalt comes with? is the powertec better or safer for any reason?
It will be out in a few weeks. I had a death in the family and I'm just getting back to that video. Regarding the wheels, if the stock wheels work, then you can use them for years before you use that new wheel as a replacement. Thanks for watching!
I've been stalking grinders for a long time, without knowing if I needed a good tool rest or not sure to take the plunge (even though they're cheap-ish). This will help a lot!
wheel balancing is an interesting project to deal with vibrations, and it is something that can be done with relatively little effort... a simple masonry drill bit lets you remove mass on the wheel to make it lighter on that side, and cut down the vivration... every surface grinder owner/op on youtube is obsessed with wheel balancing... and a lot of that translates over to the bench grinder
12:41 agreed. Any grinding, polishing or sanding machine operator needs to get proper eye protection and ear protection. Respirators and dust masks even if there’s a particle/dust collector is also advised.
I bought a no name grinder at a garage sale. Almost exclusively use the wire wheel, I did replace both wheels. I haven’t even bolted it down, smooth and powerful!
I still have my father's bench grinder that he bought for his automotive shop in the early 60's. It runs so smooth that when you switch it off it continues to turn for an unbelievably long time. You just can't buy that quality today at any price.
I just last week had to replace the stone on my machine at work. It's an older Porter Cable HD machine however the stone arbor bushing broke free from the stone from vibration. A notably dangerous situation for sure at the speeds these machines spin at. Good Stones are also a major consideration imo. As for the stand we have a 4"x 4" tube on a plate base filled with sand. It dampens all the vibration while adding some mass to keep it from dancing around.
One of the best bench grinders iv ever seen was actually a home made grinder consisting of a dryer motor pullied to the grinding stone. No respecting shop will ever use such a setup but it was butter smooth
Good video. Those star wheels are replaceable, bought some at Grainger in the past. I use the diamond dresser on my grinder no problem. one thing I advise when putting on new wheel is to stand on the side when first start, that is most likely time to have problem. Used to have a eight inch Sears that was a monster, ran so smooth you couldn't hear it run. armature burned out and had it rewound because they had discounted parts but it burned up again. Now have the Dayton six inch which is pretty good grinder but I added the Savanah tool rest which I love for ease of adjustment.
That's odd. I have the 8 inch version of the WEN, both the slow and the high speed (I use the slow speed for grinding and the high speed for wire wheel and polishing wheel). I have not noticed excessive vibration, and both seem to have plenty of power. They were closer to $100 though so maybe you get what you pay for.
I have a machine shop and I actually have 2 grinders. I have a 4 inch ancient craftsman bench grinder and an 8 inch baldor pedestal grinder. I keep course wheels on both sides of the craftsman and an extra fine wheel and a course wheel on the baldor. For me personally if I only had one grinder I’d go with a course wheel and I can’t decide between a wire wheel and an extra fine wheel. You’d probably get a little more usefulness out of the wire wheel. If you want wheel that will last forever and are very high quality you have to go with one from Norton. Norton is the king of abrasives and they make really really high quality stuff. You’re gonna pay a pretty penny for it but like I said it will last years before it fully wears down, in fact the wheel will probably outlast the cheap grinder. The baldor grinder is also the best grinder I’ve ever used, although go figure, they are not at all cheap and I don’t even know if they are made any more.
I never usually comment on videos, this is only like the second or third one I've ever left, but I've had this problem for a while and nowhere seems to have an answer-so I figured I'd ask here and see if you have any advice! (Or, if not, hopefully another commenter will 🤷🏼♂️) I bought a cheap grinder a few years ago which had the useless, non-adjustable tool rests and I ended up buying the Veritas one, which is great EXCEPT for the fact that it gets clogged up with dust and swarf almost immediately. Now, if I spend over £50 on a little jig I'm gonna make sure I look after it as best I can, so I keep all the threads greased and the parts where the protective coating has worn off waxed to prevent rust, but that just adds to the gunk! At the moment I'm having to disassemble the entire thing and use isopropyl alcohol and an old toothbrush to clean it after every use, followed by re-greasing the threads and re-rustproofing. Is there any way to stop it getting so grimey and clogged up? It's not even as if it's just cosmetic damage-it prevents the tool holder from sliding properly and stops the angle adjusters moving smoothly, and the little bits of metal scratch even more of the protective coating off! It may seem like a tiny problem but it's bloody annoying!😅
I bought the Dewalt about 6 months ago. I would love to get that kit for the wing nuts and spacer. I had bought a wire wheel, I just haven't installed it yet.
Great, and useful video! I was considering some grinders from Harbor Freight as a budget friendly option. Would be interested to see if you would ever do reviews of the ones from HF.
If you haven't checked it out already, The Den of Tools channel did a comparison review of a few of the HF ones (plus another one I think?) within the last year or so.
Thank you @rex Kruger -I wish you would take the next step toward the "lil' bit more expensive" grinder $129 or $!59 and what you get at that price point versus these three. But all GREAT information!
I have one, a cheap one, that I converted to basically a polisher for my knives, planer blades and chisels. I rarely us the stones. I do my basic grinding of blades with my Work Sharp System.
I bought a cheap grinder years ago, vibrated so much I gave to my father-in-law. He liked it for the little use he had. I bought a better one, lower speed. It still vibrated some. I found it was much better NOT bolted down. If I really needed to bolt it down I would use some kind of rubber mount.
The quick and dirty? If you need accuracy, always look at the table or support system. I am having a local mechanic build me a simple articulating arm with a table to adjust angle and placement. If you are grinding HSS, get variable speed and keep it slow so you don’t overheat it. Wen has a better unit for their Tormek knock off for that.
Funny thing about DeWalt and a short story of their confusing marketing. I have the DWE6423 which is compatible with the DeWalt AirLock-system, and I´m quite satisfied. To handle dust collection I got the DXV30SAPTA and thought that all was well. It was not. They are not compatible in any way, not even with adaptors that DeWalt themself sell. The problem is the girth of the hose, 35-38 mm on tools and 46 mm on "the not professional tools" that they sell. Around 200 dollars for a "non professional vac" to 800 dollars for a "real" shop vac is a break for me. Their response on a forum was that the only option was to target the professional items for getting stuff to work together. No more DeWalt. Would be great if you brought this up since you seem to be the voice of the people :) Thanks for great content!
I don't know what brand it is the labeling disappeared years ago but it's an old 2-speed grinder that pops picked up from Kmart in the mid-1960s and it's still going going strong
Those cheap ones are all quite safe. My friends had bought one for their shared workshop and I was looking it at one other guy who also works in heavy metal working. We laughed at power ratings and both said that it's really likely that it's too unpowered for any serious work. My friend began to grind steel with it bogging it down immediately. He had welding gloves and he just laughed and grabbed the disc with his hand and stopped it. It was hilarious looking to stop grinder my hands from full speed and with his manic laughter "Take this piece of s back where you bought it" 😂
I've had the wen for 10 years and use the hell out of it. I have it on pedestal with sand inside and rubber feet. It has a wire wheel and a grinding wheel. It bogs a little bit if you really dig in. It works just fine. Don't believe the bs that it is terrible. It has served its purpose no problem.
I got the DeWalt a few years ago. First one, the vibration was nuts. I took it in to a distribution center down the road and they agreed to exchange it. The second one was muuuuuch better.
Great tips as usual - unfortunately for me, the choice of grinders came a few years too late because I bought the Wen and then bought a better tool rest. Oh well, an extra cost but my limited budget made the $109 DeWalt out of the question at the time. Thanks for recommendations of the star dressing wheel (which I need to buy), a coarse/wire wheel (from your video of a few years ago), and the jig to clamp down the grinder in a vise (which I will build next).
