On Wed, 27 Dec 2017 12:49:37 -0700, Bob La Londe
wrote:

I know the knife guys are all gungho about the 2x72 belt grinders these
days, but I was wondering how many other metal works really like using
these. Seems like some guys like to use them for both steel and wood.
Oddly what I have heard seems backwards. They grind fast with steel and
slower with wood.

Do you have one? Do you use it often? Are you on the fence about the
cost, but would use one if you had it?

I have a 1x30 that gets a fair amount of use, and a 4x36 that doesn't
mostly because its gutless. I probably use my 1x30 as a belt grinder
about the same amount as my bench grinder.

I can build one if I want. Of course if I really wanted I imagine I
could put a bigger motor on my 4x36 too.

I built one for my middle son. He doesn't use it as much as he would
like, having an intern wife and a toddler son. He has slowed it down
and used it on wood recently (making Christmas presents), but didn't
tell me how it worked.

I built it with interchangeable tool arms, one a large urethane tired
wheel, and the other a flat platen with guide rollers either side.
There's a steering roller on the top which works very well. The belts
can be adjusted side to side within ~1/16", and stay true after an
adjustment. It's mounted on a bell crank with a pneumatic cylinder
actuator used to adjust belt tension (via regulator) and release the
belt for changes (3-way valve).

The motor is an old 1 hp 3 ph somebody gave me, and I put my spare
Rockwell vfd on it to provide the 3 phase and adjust the speed.

Ben built the frame out of 1-1/2 pipe and 1" sq tube, so that the
frame is manifolded together and serves as the air reservoir, charged
with his small compressor. The reservoir lasts at least one day, the
regulator bleed rate is very low.

It was a lot of fun to design and build. I don't think I'll build
another unless we move. My current shop is too small. My wife wants
to be closer to the grandson, and we have a lot of relatives in the
Houston area, so that might happen, but not unless we can find the
right place with a good shop building and a place for my special needs
son.

We'll see.

Pete Keillor