Delta variable speed grinders - good enough?

For $20, get the 8". Bigger is better when it comes to grinders, all else being equal.

Bigger is pretty much better - agreed. I got the 6" Delta for $79 with one grey 'regular wheel' and one white aluminum oxide wheel. It's been good to me.

At our last club meeting a fellow demonstrated sharpening woodturning tools on a 1" belt sander. I have read about this and I'm sure it's already been debated here ad infinitum, but he made a beliver out of me. People brought tools that had been sharpened on a grinder and in one or two passes he could shave hair off an arm with them.

I've been practicing at home and while I can't yet get them that sharp I certainly am getting sharper edges than I got on a grinder.

He is also of the don't use jigs school, saying you will get sharper tools without jigs because you will learn out to hold the tools and will sharpend them more often.

Earl

Sounds interesting - somewhat new to turning, very new to sharpening. What do you use to sharpen with a belt-sander (i.e. what grit(s), etc.)?

Dave

Thanks both, I'll definitely do the 8 over the 6 if I get one of these. I think my primary concern is whether the ElCheapo/Baldor dichotomy is just about longevity of the machine, or significant impact on good edges the whole time. I'm fine with throwing out a $100 grinder in 5 years if it works well enough for that time. Thanks again!

Peace, Sanaka

I find that philosophy absolutely untrue. Its simply a matter of personal disipline. I have taught many people and there is one thing I hammer into them incessantly...SHARPEN OFTEN. When they would call me over to help on a particular cut, they know the first thing I'm going to ask them is if they just sharpened their tool. "No? Sharpen your tool and THEN call me." They have all got in the habit. Yes, we use jigs, but since we do it so often, it becomes second nature and the setup is done without thought (and therefore quite quickly).

Now, on the other hand, learning to sharpen freehand does have its advantages. For one thing, one can sharpen their tools on almost any grinder setup without worring about how different grinders/jigs are setup. One thing I've learned is that if I am going somewhere that requires me to bring my tools, I also bring my grinder and jigs.

Peter Teubel Milford, MA

He basically used just 120 grit. I should add that he also used one of those cleaning blocks often to keep the belt free of grit. You would have to see pictures to know how to do it. At least the way he did it, he had the belt sander at a little above belt height where he could really see what he was doing and where he could hold the chisels, etc very steady.

I'm new to this, so look around for better info. I have done wood carving for a while and know that many of the expert carvers now use only sandpaper on thier chisels. The method is explained somewhere on the internet and it really works well. So it may apply to power sharpening as well.

Earl

My cop out on anything I say is that "I'm a newbie." I hope I can get a little more mileage out of that, so I'm certainly not going to disagree. In fact, I'm still trying everything to find out what works for me. The only tool I really have big trouble sharpening is my new and prized fingernail ground bowl gouge. (That one tool turned me from a total bowl clutz to a simi-bowl clutz). I just can't seem to get that big of roll freehand. Do you have a specific, hopefully homemade, jig you can recommend for this tool?

Thanks, Earl

Yea, I kind of like sanders over stones myself. I find that they promote a lighter touch on grinding, so are less likely to overheat the edge. Also, it is quite possible to get much finer grits for sanding belts at a reasonable price.

It does take some time and practice. One thing that sometimes helps is to sand at 90 degrees to the edge, instead of holding the tool so the edge is "cutting" the belt.

He may have a point. However, I think that it is a good idea for a person to use jigs until they can get their muscles trained to hold the tool at the correct angles. Some folks never get it..which is not at all a problem...and some folks get it after sharpening once. Now...I have to say that while I will sharpen skews and flat gouges w/o a jig, I REALLY prefer a jig when trying to touch up a fingernail grind. It is just harder than it is worth to get that complex turning motion right when doing it free hand. "flat", "straight" edges, though...those are much more feasible to do freehand. Regards Dave Mundt

Earl I have a quick to make, home made jig for that bowl gouge on my web site. Look under sharpening.

I would rather teach presenting the tool properly, regardless of the sharpness angle, over trying to make the same angle. Some folks hone freehand, which changes the starting angle of their gouge by changing their carefully jigged edge. If they concentrate on the proper method of making shavings rather than iron filings, they'll be better off in the long run.

Plus, if you have a slow-speed grinder, a soft binder wheel and HSS, you can lay the bevel against the wheel and simply rotate as if against a honing stone. Almost impossible to make a mistake with such light pressure. Not satisfied? may have to press the offending part against the wheel to take off more. Works for me.

Thanks. I copied it and will make it tomorrow. Still can't see quite how you get the "roll" for a fingernail gouge, but I will build it and play with it with the grinder off. Looks like if you got the base correct you could use it on either a sander or a grinder. I may just try both.

Earl