New 1200 grit CBN wheel today

[Reed Gray]

With the CBN wheels, they are not needed for safety because there is zero chance of the wheel ever blowing up, which as near as I can tell is why they are on in the first place. I keep the inside part on for some minimal dust containment, though I don't know how much is will actually contain. I kind of cringe when I see grinders with no wheel shroud on. They do put a lot of fine dust into the air that does not just fall down from gravity, but floats like wood dust does and can do. My preference would be a spacer so I can put the outside guard on, which would totally enclose the wheel, then a slow flow type of dust collector to pick up 98% of the metal fines. There are specialized dust collectors for standard grinders, but they are pretty expensive. This is part of why I am using the lapping fluids on my tools, to see if it helps keep the dust down.

robo hippy

[John K Jordan]

I have my grinders mounted much like Reed's, on plywood. I use the plywood for stability, flexibility to move things as needed, and to fasten down the wolverine and Tormek bases. At one time I clamped the plywood to a wooden bench but found it is not needed. (I also don't want to drill holes in the stainless steel tables!)

I also discovered the castings on the Rikon grinders are sloppy. (And the light on the 1-hp is worse than worthless - shame on them.) My 2-cents is the guards aren't needed for the CBN wheels although some kind might be good for dust collection. The stock guards would be too small for the CBN wheels I have, though.

This is an older picture of part of my sharpening station showing the 600 CBN wheel on the Tormek. Since this picture I've replaced the CBN on the grinder with one with 90-deg corners instead of radiused edges and replaced the two traditional grinding wheels with CBN wheels including one 80 grit for rough tool shaping. I kept the metal-polishing wheel.

tormek_A.jpg

One of the grinders in the picture is the old no-name that Woodcraft used to sell and the other is a 1/2 hp Rikon. I thought the 1/2 horse was under-powered so bought a 1-hp Rikon when it was on sale.

You want a great grinder - look at Metabo. I got one for my little welding shop and have a grinding wheel and a coarse 8" wire brush I use to clean up steel before welding. A wire brush will really test a grinder! I have this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0054M9546

JKJ

[Bill Boehme]

I would think that with a metal grinding wheel, aluminum or steel, if you add water, the filings will rust as well, but don't know....

So, who cares if the steel swarf (or dust in the case of the Tormek) rusts? . The water tray on my Tormek is permanently brown on the lower part of the inside because of rust. I have a supermagnet glued on the bottom outside of the water tray and essentially all of the steel particles collect on the inside over the magnet. Since the wheel is being continually bathed in water there is very little swarf that remains on the wheel itself ... Just a slight bit of discoloration that has no effect on the performance of the wheel.

The stone on my Tormek isn't too far from needing to be replaced and I've been considering getting a CBN wheel, but didn't think that I would like the 600 grit wheel so this information about a 1200 grit wheel is very timely and much appreciated. I also wanted to be able to run the wheel in water to eliminate the dust problem.

[Steve Mathews]

... I'd like to find something like Trend Lapping Fluid in a large enough quantity that I could use it instead of water....

You might want to try HoneRite Gold Honing Solution. It's highly concentrated and mixes with water.

http://www.boratool.com/hone-right-gold-250ml

[Reed Gray]

Steve, I was looking at that, and on the can, it says that it is specifically for water stones. Their other product, which smells like mineral spirits is intended for oil stones. Do you know if there are any performance differences?

robo hippy

[Steve Mathews]

Steve, I was looking at that, and on the can, it says that it is specifically for water stones. Their other product, which smells like mineral spirits is intended for oil stones. Do you know if there are any performance differences?

robo hippy

I just started using HoneRite Gold for sharpening bench chisels and hand planes after viewing a few videos by Rob Cosman. That's what he uses on his ceramic and diamond (steel backed) stones and mentions it frequently. It's expensive and sometimes hard to find because it seems to go out of stock quickly. A little bit goes a long way though as it's in a concentrated form. Sorry I don't have any comparisons to offer as I'm just getting started with this sharpening obsession.

[John K Jordan]

I just started using HoneRite Gold for sharpening bench chisels and hand planes after viewing a few videos by Rob Cosman. That's what he uses on his ceramic and diamond (steel backed) stones and mentions it frequently. It's expensive and sometimes hard to find because it seems to go out of stock quickly. A little bit goes a long way though as it's in a concentrated form. Sorry I don't have any comparisons to offer as I'm just getting started with this sharpening obsession.

I wonder if it's similar to the recirculating coolant I bought for my metal-cutting horizontal. It comes concentrated in a gallon jug and you mix it with water. I was afraid it would rust the blades eventually but after 4 years I haven't seen any rust.

JKJ

[Reed Gray]

Woodcraft does carry it, not sure who else. I would think for any CBN grinding wheel I would want an oil based lubricant, but they probably all work. The owner of the Woodcraft store that hosts our club meetings used it in his demo. No idea really, I have tried WD40, and it works, no way to accurately compare though...

robo hippy

[Steve Mathews]

I wonder if it's similar to the recirculating coolant I bought for my metal-cutting horizontal. It comes concentrated in a gallon jug and you mix it with water. I was afraid it would rust the blades eventually but after 4 years I haven't seen any rust.

JKJ

I read somewhere that water is ideal for keeping ground metal in suspension and allowing the abrasive to do its work. Apparently oils have a tendency of preventing fine abrasives (4000 grit and above?) from making contact with the surface being abraded. The problem with water however is it promotes rust. I think the main purpose of HoneRite is to allow the use of water while addressing one of its downsides by adding corrosion inhibitors. That's my current take on it for the time being. According to the HoneRite label, HoneRite Gold "Makes Water Non-Corrosive" - "Use with all brands of powered wet stone grinding machines, Japanese water stones and diamond whetstones."

Edit: I forgot to mention that in the context of this thread and 1200 grit media the benefits of HoneRite Gold are probably lost in my opinion. Just about any liquid including oil based stuff will work just as well with the later providing corrosion protection.

[Steve Mathews]

Woodcraft does carry it, not sure who else. I would think for any CBN grinding wheel I would want an oil based lubricant, but they probably all work. The owner of the Woodcraft store that hosts our club meetings used it in his demo. No idea really, I have tried WD40, and it works, no way to accurately compare though...

robo hippy

Yes, Woodcraft is a good source for HoneRite Gold. They frequently sell out of it though, probably because of their ties to Rob Cosman and his endorsement of the product. Amazon is also a good source. It may be a little cheaper and I believe its currently on Prime.

[Jim Seyfried]

I see that Ken has a new "affordable Spartan CBN" wheel. The difference for the 10" wheel is that it doesn't have the 1" flat side. There have been a few occasions that I have used the side of the stone, for the back of an old chisel for instance, but not really for sharpening edges. Just wondering if others find the side of the wheel useful or something you wouldn't miss.

[John K Jordan]

I see that Ken has a new "affordable Spartan CBN" wheel. The difference for the 10" wheel is that it doesn't have the 1" flat side. There have been a few occasions that I have used the side of the stone, for the back of an old chisel for instance, but not really for sharpening edges. Just wondering if others find the side of the wheel useful or something you wouldn't miss.

Jim, I've had three Tormek wheels with grit on the side, the original (of course), a 600 grit CBN, and a 1200 grit CBN I use now. BTW, for my use like the 1200 grit the best, especially for my spindle gouges. I do use the side of the wheel occasionally, mostly for flattening the tops scrapers. I did use the flat side of the water wheel more for things that now shouldn't be ground on CBN such as the unhardened sides of screwdrivers. I do occasionally use the 90 corner at the edge of the wheel for sharpening special purpose tools, again, mostly scrapers. I've thought of using it to sharpen drill bits but I haven't tried that yet.

However, I don't use either the corner or the side enough to prevent considering a wheel without side grit. I do have a 600 grit wheel (with corners and flat sides) mounted on an 8" 1/2 speed grinder so I could use it instead if needed. If budget were an issue or if I didn't already have CBN wheels I'd be tempted to try the new plastic CBN wheels.

JKJ

[Pat Scott]

Woodturners Wonders now has a Spartan CBN wheel for Tormek grinders for $179.95, with grits of 200, 400, 600, 800, 1000, and 1200. The Spartan line has a "tough nylon" core instead of aluminum or steel. For that price why by a stone wheel?