Bench Grinder Heaven

[David Wadstrup]

After an incredible amount of deliberation, I recently purchased my first powered grinder. I had spent literally months pouring over the various sharpening posts here, trying to figure out which set-up would work best for me. You know... the Tormek vs. dry grinder vs. WorkSharp vs. fill-in-the-blank debate. In the end, I went the dry grinder route. But the one I bought is not your typical dry grinder. Not by a long shot.

A small company called Toycen Industries recently began making a best-of-all-worlds bench grinder they call the Tradesman. It features an incredibly quiet, variable speed DC motor with the option of either 6" or 8", 1.25" wide CBN wheels(I went for the 8".) Because it's so new, I had a really tough time finding reviews and feedback about it on the internet. And given the steepness of its price tag, and that the machine sounded almost too good to be true, I was nervous and unsure about buying it. Which is why I'm writing this post today. I wanted to post my experience for those people who might be looking for unbiased feedback. So they'd feel a little less in the dark than I did.

Anyway, I LOVE this thing. It really is the best of all worlds! I love the quietness. I love the fact that it runs incredibly smoothly, with no vibration. I love that it's maintenance free -- no wheels to dress, true, balance, etc. I love that it doesn't spit out the dust that other kinds of dry grinder wheels do. I love that I don't have to worry about the wheels fracturing. I love that I can remove more metal faster by running it at a higher speed during initial grinding, and then slow it down to take the grind all the way to the edge without fear of overheating the blade. I love that it is made by a small, North American company with all of its parts made here in North America. I love how helpful the guys behind the machine have been(believe me, I threw at least a hundred and one questions at them over the course of a few weeks.) I love that this machine seems like it'll last a lifetime. The only thing I didn't love was the tool rests. So I took them off and replaced them with a couple of OneWay rests(they are the stoutest I could find, with absolutely no flex in them.)

I guess that's everything I have to say. I couldn't be happier about my decision to take the plunge with this machine, and I hope someone out there finds this mini "review"/tool gloat helpful. If it's a tool you've been considering, feel free to get in touch with me with any questions you might have. And, just for the record, I have absolutely no affiliation with the maker of this machine.


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Best,

David

[Chris Griggs]

That's an incredible looking piece of machinery. You should shoot a video of it in action.

[David Weaver]

That is a serious piece of machinery, and a serious "neener" post.

And I'll bet that the quality will never get better than the early ones.

[David Weaver]

The turners downstairs can probably give a good idea of the life of CBN wheels, though i don't know that I'd trust their advice on coolness of the wheels since they use a lot of HSS (that's something you can figure out on your own, anyway).

I've heard good things about them, but my grinder gets used for too much beat-around stuff.

I do like that unit, even if for no other reason than when the guy's running it, it's making no noise at all until he sticks something against it. It's hard to not appreciate finely made gear like that.

[George Beck]

Thanks for sharing this. I was just on the phone with Jeff Toycen. I sent him some scrapped planner knives to play with(HSS). The tradesman grinder can also accept all Tormek accessories so it may be useful in sharpening HSS planer knives and scissors and such, which is my interest. I like the idea of the Tormek but it can be slow and the wheel needs constant attention to keep it true if your using jigs, such as planner knives. Ron Hock reviewed the tool on his sharpening blog http://hocktools.wordpress.com

[David Weaver]

I am kind of surprised that nobody has made a knock-off wheel for the tormek that is just a round electroplate 200 grit diamond hone on a cheap cast pot metal wheel. I'd have figured someone would've brought such a thing about from somewhere in the third world.

[David Barnett]

I am kind of surprised that nobody has made a knock-off wheel for the tormek that is just a round electroplate 200 grit diamond hone on a cheap cast pot metal wheel.

For all its advantages, there are problems using dry diamond and CBN wheels of this type on steels which is why you don't often see these in the home shop or small production environments such as Larry Williams' Old Street Tool. Needless to say, crowning the rims is challenging, too.

[Chris Vandiver]

It will be interesting to hear how the CBN coated wheels hold up in use(manufacturers claims aside)over time. Does the CBN coating break down and become dull(like daimond stones)or does the coating stay sharp and crisp for a long period of time? Looks like a great grinder, that's for sure.

[David Weaver]

For all its advantages, there are problems with using diamond and CBN wheels of this type on steels, which is why you don't see more of these or diamond discs used for dry grinding and sharpening other than for gravers, and so on. Needless to say, the crowning the rims is a challenge, too.

Yes, definitely problems for high speed diamonds. I'll bet they'd work pretty well going through a water bath at 90 rpm on a tormek, though. I see your point about crowning the rims, though. I can imagine the chinese could make wheels that would have a hollow surface and be totally usless. Plus, they'd have to do a precision job on the hole in the center of the wheel so that it has a grip on the tormek arbor.

[David Barnett]

Yes, definitely problems for high speed diamonds.

Not so much high speed as the wrong speed, so variable speed is a must as getting this wrong can wreak hell on the wheels, pulling loose the abrasive media. For casual or day-to-day grinding of woodworking tools in a non-production environment, I find older technologies more forgiving. And for those who might assume I simply don't like superabrasives—I've used a lot of electrobond abrasives and love the stuff. For gravers, sure. For drills, endmills, some tool bits, okay. For hard materials other than steels, absolutely. For woodworking tools, not so much.

The idea's worth exploring and developing, of course, and I will be eager to learn if this company's found solutions with which I'm unfamiliar. Didn't know the obstacles had been overcome, but then I don't know a lot of things.

[David Weaver]

Ditto on the old technologies. I still am using brown al-ox wheels on a high speed 6" grinder. It's definitely my favorite thing to use, and the brown wheels are slightly better than gray while still adhering to my cheapness.

[george wilson]

David Weaver,you ought to get a 36 and an 80 grit
white wheel for your grinder. You'd never go back to the old wheels. And,don't buy those cheap Camel brand wheels. Get Norton. The camel wheels I have used did not last too long. Too soft. That was years ago. Are they better now?

I have a 200 RPM vertical/horizontal flat disc grinder. I sharpened a steel knife and a white ceramic kitchen knife on it today. Started with a 260 grit,and finished with a 1200 grit. Plenty sharp enough for food. The Ceramic wheel was literally razor sharp when I got it. I am not going to bother to get it that sharp,though I have the means. By now I've resharpened it several times.

[Prashun Patel]

I have a cbn on my grinder and a diamond plate wheel on my worksharp. Ive used them both on plane and chisel blades. The cbn i have had for about 2 years. I shapen gouges primarily on it (hss). It is as good as the first day.

My diamond ws plate is new but it is great too. They are both very aggressive, so you uhave to use a light touch. However this also means less time on the steel so for an impatient guy like me it means i dont overheat.

Everyone says diamond is for carbide and cbn for hss but both work ok for me on hss and lower carbon steel. YMMV.

How slow does your grinder go? Slower is yor friend w these wheels.

[Prashun Patel]

I hope you have a lathe because it would be a sin to have that set up and not to carress a bowl gouge with it.

[David Barnett]

CBN's great on HSS steel, but I wouldn't want to hog off large amounts with it, such as starting from scratch on a bar of M4. For sharpening and light regrinding, though, for honing thin section gouges with a feathering touch, that works. And if one considers diamond wheels consumables and can work them into routine grinding of carbides and ceramics, I certainly think that's a viable way to go.

For grinding hardened steels on diamond discs, such as HSS alloys which most engravers routinely sharpen dry, I use at least a water drip, but that's because my faceter's made by the same company that makes those dry horizontal disc grinders for engravers.

I suppose I'm just dubious of gains for the average hobby woodworker or tool maker, but that just me, maybe.