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Thread: Direction for bench grinder????

  1. #1

    Direction for bench grinder????

    I have a double end mandrel, a couple of norton grinding wheels and a 1/2 HP 1750RPM motor raring to go... I just can't figure out what direction to have the grinding wheels spin, toward me or away from me?

    Can anyone offer any suggestions?

  2. #2
    Towards you.

  3. #3
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    This is woodworking; they go the most dangerous way.








    Mark Rios

    Anything worth taking seriously is worth making fun of.

    "All roads lead to a terrestrial planet finder telescope"

    We arrive at this moment...by the unswerving punctuality...of chance.

  4. #4
    Wow, that was quick.. thanks amigos. That's what I thought but wanted to be sure...

  5. #5
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    Looking from top down:

    - For grinding - toward you.

    - For buffing or polishing - away from you.

  6. #6
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    What Hoa said!
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hoa Dinh
    - For buffing or polishing - away from you.
    That runs counter (no pun intended) to everything I've seen, including the video for the Beall buffing system.
    Why would it be different for buffing/polishing vs grinding?
    Last edited by Lee DeRaud; 07-04-2006 at 3:23 PM.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud
    That runs counter (no pun intended) to everything I've seen, including the video for the Beall buffing system.
    Why would it be different for buffing/polishing vs grinding?

    Cause buffing's not dangerous. If you slip while buffing, all you get is a shiny finger or two. If you slip while grinding, whatever you are grinding gets thrown back at you and stabs you. Then your arm gets ripped out of its socket and beats you to a pulp while it goes round and round.







    (Sorry. Must be in a weird mood today)
    Last edited by Mark Rios; 07-04-2006 at 3:32 PM.
    Mark Rios

    Anything worth taking seriously is worth making fun of.

    "All roads lead to a terrestrial planet finder telescope"

    We arrive at this moment...by the unswerving punctuality...of chance.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rios
    If you slip while grinding, whatever you are grinding gets thrown back at you and stabs you. Then you arm gets ripped out of its socket and beats you to a pulp while it goes round and round.
    Oh. I always assumed the rotational direction for grinding was picked so the sparks were directed down into the pile of sawdust at my feet.
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  10. #10
    Join Date
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee DeRaud
    That runs counter (no pun intended) to everything I've seen, including the video for the Beall buffing system.
    Why would it be different for buffing/polishing vs grinding?
    I use my bench grinder for sharpening chisels & plane irons. My post reflects only to what I've learned in sharpening.

    In grinding, you want the body of the chisel to act as a heat sink to dissipate the heat from the tip. You don't care much about rounding over the edge of the chisel because you're going to hone it any way.

    In buffing & polishing, the danger of over heating it not that great. You want the wheel to rotate away so it doesn't round over the edge.

  11. Quote Originally Posted by Jim Hinze
    I have a double end mandrel, a couple of norton grinding wheels and a 1/2 HP 1750RPM motor raring to go... I just can't figure out what direction to have the grinding wheels spin, toward me or away from me?

    Can anyone offer any suggestions?
    Grinding: towards you ie.. rotating towards your foot. Counterclockwise on the right wheel and clockwise on the left wheel. Note that the locking nut on the right wheel is threaded right hand thread so it actually tightens with use. Left wheel will have a left hand thread so it also tightens with use.
    Buffing: same. Almost all grinders and buffers come prewired this way.

    If some choose to reverse their rotation, then they also risk having the wheels/buffs come loose as the nuts are being "loosened" with use.

    Safety note: When starting up a bench grinder, stand aside. This is specially true in a shop that has more than one person. Reason is that if the wheel is defective, or one of the others in the shop has accidentally bumped one of the wheels with a piece of metal as they were walking by, the wheel maybe damaged enough to where it will disintegrate when turned on and the pieces will come flying out at your face.

  12. #12

    Buffing?

    In buffing, there is the danger of item being buffed catching on buffing wheel, and being snatched from your hands. Ouch!

  13. It is vitally important that the sparks from the wheels fly in the direction of your eyes. This is the new OSHA standard and is a built in safety feature which forces you to wear your safety goggles.

    That just in from the department of redundancy department

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