Beginner tool set, live center etc.

I gotta' tell you that grinding lathe tools is not that hard to do. If I can then you can. Why not join us on the model tools thread and the guys will help you along. I know it is easier to just buy carbide tooling and that is certainly an option; lots and lots and lots of hobby guys do it and that says a lot. On the other hand, I would guess that many carbide using hobby guys haven't bothered to learn to grind a good HSS tool and that leaves them with only one option - carbide. Personally, I prefer to have the choice.
 
Join us on the dark side! Read the book of mikey and blame him for your corruption when you build a 2x72. It's fun, and the tools work great.

Or maybe I'm just weird, but can't it be both? :)
 
I am definitely interested in doing that ...I just have not read the whole thread regarding it yet ...before I asked to be a part of that effort. Even if I did get into carbide tooling I felt I wanted to learn to sharpen HSS first. I have a good quality Baldor grinder as well as a nice Wilton belt/disk sander. Wouldn't those be approrpriate for this? Or am I going to need yet another tool??
 
I'm sure you can get one of your grinders to work, it sounds like you have some good ones. But is building a tool ever "bad" around here? :grin:

If you are interested, get on the model list and see what you're getting into. Find the PDF in the thread and read that. It's enough to get you going. There's other info in there that's worth a read through, but don't feel like you have to read the whole thing to get started.
 
Headrc said:
I am definitely interested in doing that ...I just have not read the whole thread regarding it yet ...before I asked to be a part of that effort. Even if I did get into carbide tooling I felt I wanted to learn to sharpen HSS first. I have a good quality Baldor grinder as well as a nice Wilton belt/disk sander. Wouldn't those be approrpriate for this? Or am I going to need yet another tool??
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The Baldor should work. Can you show us the Wilton so we can see if it would also work? A belt sander is a bit easier to grind with but a bench grinder will definitely work. As you work on how a tool is ground, try to understand how it works and why you're grinding it the way that you are. No tool does it all; you will eventually sort out what works best for you.
 
I could not find a picture on the web this evening of my Wilton sander .....but it is identical to the one in the attached video ....I believe Jet and Wilton are the same company. Although I think my disk is larger than the one on this one in the video. You can see it here

So do I really need to pursue the 2x72 grinder when I already have this?
 
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Your sander will not allow you to grind the very important rake angles so either use the bench grinder or purchase/build a belt machine suitable for tool grinding. A 2 X 72 is THE best option but there are cheaper ways to go.

This is the smallest one we know will work if you use ceramic belts, build a good tool rest and incorporate a ceramic platen liner. @TerryH, @Ken from ontario and @BGHansen have them: https://www.amazon.com/Palmgren-Bel...d=1532318076&sr=8-1&keywords=2x42+belt+sander

Another one that @Aukai and @darkzero have is the Jet 2 X 42. You can see it here: https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/help-me-decide-on-a-1-x-42-belt-grinder.70410/

And then there are the 2 X 72 gang that @ttabbal, @Alan H, @Z2V, @ddickey and many others have. I'm in green envy mode every time one of them shows them off because this is the ultimate tool grinder as well as the most useful type for metal work in general.

The requirements a belt sander must have are a good tool rest settable to precise angles that allows unrestricted access to the belt on at least the right side and preferably also the left side of the belt; a flat and long-wearing platen (ideally a ceramic glass platen liner) and enough power to drive a belt when grinding tool steel. 1/3 HP is okay if you use ceramic belts, 1/2 HP is better and up to 2 or 3 HP is often used on the big 2 X 72's.

Finding a belt sander that can be set up for all of this is not that easy. I've looked at them for many years and the choices are few. Those listed above are known to work and which way you go depends on your budget. Keep in mind that the vast majority of HSS tool grinding guys like and use bench grinders, not belt sanders, so you are not limited by the fact that you already have a very good Baldor grinder. Belt sanders for tool grinding are just easier to get good results with; since I need all the help I can get, this is the way I prefer to go.

PM the guys I pointed out above if you have questions. All of them have proven to be really helpful to everyone on the forum. I, too, will help if I can.
 
Well that is disappointing on the sander ...considering the cost of it etc. compared to these others. So I guess I am going to go the route of my bench grinder for now and see how it goes. Is it because the belt on my sander is so wide and the disk is so large? My sander has a 1 HP motor BTW. Thanks again Mikey
 
It's that you can't grind around the corner of the belt. One of the grinds requires the tool to be held off the edge with the bulk of the tool behind the belt. You need to have the belt right on the corner and have space there for the tool.

You could just use the bench grinder for that one and use the belt for the others if that's easier for you. Particularly if you have a decent rest on your grinder.
 
Just backing up what @ttabbal said. The tool has to come right up to the platen on the right side for right hand tools and the left side for left hand tools. Your sander has a wide band of metal that is sitting right where the tool must be, preventing you from grinding the rake angles. This is what eliminates most belt sanders from becoming tool grinding sanders.

CRW_4584.jpg

Go with the bench grinder; it will be fine.
 
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