I've got the connections figured on an old 1/8hp, 1,435 rpm tumble
dryer motor, and I can source a suitable grinding wheel from
Axminster. But pls can anyone suggest a source of a suitable spindle
(and a drive belt as well) onto which I can mount the wheel. No
continuous use requirement.

I'd love a truly DIY solution to this instead of having to buy
something - any chance that a bicycle wheel bearing could work??
(Apart from a drill press I have no other bench machinery suitable for
metalwork, so pls no advice that requires any metal turning etc!)

Thanks

John

John Forbes wrote:
I've got the connections figured on an old 1/8hp, 1,435 rpm tumble
dryer motor, and I can source a suitable grinding wheel from
Axminster. But pls can anyone suggest a source of a suitable spindle
(and a drive belt as well) onto which I can mount the wheel. No
continuous use requirement.

I'd love a truly DIY solution to this instead of having to buy
something - any chance that a bicycle wheel bearing could work??
(Apart from a drill press I have no other bench machinery suitable for
metalwork, so pls no advice that requires any metal turning etc!)


While I applaud (and share) your diy spirit, sometimes cold logic comes
into it. Given that you can buy a 6" 150W twin wheel grinder, complete
with wheels, for £12-£15, is there really any sense in making one?

--
Grunff

"Grunff" wrote in message
...
John Forbes wrote:
I've got the connections figured on an old 1/8hp, 1,435 rpm tumble
dryer motor, and I can source a suitable grinding wheel from
Axminster. But pls can anyone suggest a source of a suitable spindle
(and a drive belt as well) onto which I can mount the wheel. No
continuous use requirement.

I'd love a truly DIY solution to this instead of having to buy
something - any chance that a bicycle wheel bearing could work??
(Apart from a drill press I have no other bench machinery suitable for
metalwork, so pls no advice that requires any metal turning etc!)


While I applaud (and share) your diy spirit, sometimes cold logic comes
into it. Given that you can buy a 6" 150W twin wheel grinder, complete
with wheels,

and, IMO more importantly, with suitable safety guards. Exploding wheels are
impressive enough even with the guards. I wouldn't want to be in the same
room as one that didn't have proper guards.

for £12-£15, is there really any sense in making one?

--
Grunff

nightjar nightjar@ wrote:

"Grunff" wrote in message
...
John Forbes wrote:
I've got the connections figured on an old 1/8hp, 1,435 rpm tumble
dryer motor, and I can source a suitable grinding wheel from
Axminster. But pls can anyone suggest a source of a suitable spindle
(and a drive belt as well) onto which I can mount the wheel. No
continuous use requirement.


Would it really be powerful enough for a bench grinder? 1hp = 746 watts
so 1/8hp is only 93.25 watts plus you would have losses in the belt and
pulleys - bench grinders have the wheels mounted on the motor spindle so
don't have those losses. Even a 150W bench grinder like Grunff mentioned
isn't that powerful.

and, IMO more importantly, with suitable safety guards. Exploding wheels are
impressive enough even with the guards. I wouldn't want to be in the same
room as one that didn't have proper guards.


How true. When I was an apprentice back in the '70's someone did the
classic of trying to use a surface grinder without turning on the
magnetic table. One of the fragments of the exploding wheel passed
straight through both sides of one of those modular offices and embedded
itself in a masonry wall (about 20' from the machine). Ever keen to drum
safety into us they had the apprentices in the wood shop make a nice
wooden glass-fronted case which was fastened to the wall over the wheel
fragment with label describing the dangers of grinding wheels. OK, this
was an 8" wheel on a multi-horsepower 3000rpm machine but I still
wouldn't want to be stood in front of a 6" wheel on a 150W bench grinder
when it let go.

for £12-£15, is there really any sense in making one?

--
Grunff

John Forbes wrote in message ...
I've got the connections figured on an old 1/8hp, 1,435 rpm tumble
dryer motor, and I can source a suitable grinding wheel from
Axminster. But pls can anyone suggest a source of a suitable spindle
(and a drive belt as well) onto which I can mount the wheel. No
continuous use requirement.

I'd love a truly DIY solution to this instead of having to buy
something - any chance that a bicycle wheel bearing could work??
(Apart from a drill press I have no other bench machinery suitable for
metalwork, so pls no advice that requires any metal turning etc!)

Thanks

John

Sorry to break with tradition, but I'll try and answer the OP's question

Try Picador at http://www.picadoreng.co.uk/
looking for plummer blocks or speed shafts.

Regards

Bob

"Bob Minchin" wrote in message ...

Sorry to break with tradition, but I'll try and answer the OP's question

Try Picador at http://www.picadoreng.co.uk/
looking for plummer blocks or speed shafts.

Regards

Bob

Thanks for that, Bob.

Point taken re safety, but for a start most bench grinders run at
circa 3,000 rpm, so at most I'll be doing half that speed (comparable
to the 1,425rpm of what Axminster calls a "Slow-running Grinder"). In
fact, since I'll only be doing hand-tool sharpening where speed of
metal removal is not the primary requirement, I'd probably want to run
it even slower by using a larger diameter pulley wheel on the spindle.
I'm sure that Tormeks run at something very low - 90rpm??

I concede that if there's a flaw in the stone then there is a
likelihood of catastrophic failure, but under the usage scenario I
have in mind: 1) low rpm and 2) very low stress imparted to the wheel
from light grinding of chisels etc, I'd be content with a diy guard
made from sturdy perspex.

As to the motor rating, I was surprised to see only "1/8 hp" on the
T/D motor casing. Sometimes of course, comparative motor ratings can
be deceptive (see multitudinous posts on any US woodworking discussion
group about the dodgy practice whereby starting power rating is
claimed by tool manufacturers as continuous power rating, eg for shop
vacs). This T/D motor did spend 10 years turning a heavy drumn full
of wet clothing, after all, so I'd expect it to cope with what seems
like a fairly small load.

Yes, of course I could buy something ready made, but I personally like
the DIY challenge of this project.

Any more views on how to get a low/no cost spindle?? I hope that I
can run this setup with a wheel on only one side of the spindle, ie I
don't need to counter-balance it with one on each side.

John

(John Forbes) wrote in message om...

Point taken re safety, but for a start most bench grinders run at
circa 3,000 rpm, so at most I'll be doing half that speed (comparable
to the 1,425rpm of what Axminster calls a "Slow-running Grinder"). In
fact, since I'll only be doing hand-tool sharpening where speed of
metal removal is not the primary requirement, I'd probably want to run
it even slower by using a larger diameter pulley wheel on the spindle.
I'm sure that Tormeks run at something very low - 90rpm??

I concede that if there's a flaw in the stone then there is a
likelihood of catastrophic failure, but under the usage scenario I
have in mind: 1) low rpm and 2) very low stress imparted to the wheel
from light grinding of chisels etc, I'd be content with a diy guard
made from sturdy perspex.

As to the motor rating, I was surprised to see only "1/8 hp" on the
T/D motor casing. Sometimes of course, comparative motor ratings can
be deceptive (see multitudinous posts on any US woodworking discussion
group about the dodgy practice whereby starting power rating is
claimed by tool manufacturers as continuous power rating, eg for shop
vacs). This T/D motor did spend 10 years turning a heavy drumn full
of wet clothing, after all, so I'd expect it to cope with what seems
like a fairly small load.

Yes, of course I could buy something ready made, but I personally like
the DIY challenge of this project.

Any more views on how to get a low/no cost spindle?? I hope that I
can run this setup with a wheel on only one side of the spindle, ie I
don't need to counter-balance it with one on each side.

John


I have one comment: surely it would be much better to mount the wheel
straight onto the motor shaft?

What does the shaft look like? What size hole is your grind wheel? You
can do all the metal work you like on the motor shaft, it is its own
lathe after all.

btw the speed is sufficient for the job. I once used an old one that
did 360rpm, and it did the job.


Regards, NT

In message , John
Forbes writes
I've got the connections figured on an old 1/8hp, 1,435 rpm tumble
dryer motor, and I can source a suitable grinding wheel from
Axminster. But pls can anyone suggest a source of a suitable spindle
(and a drive belt as well) onto which I can mount the wheel. No
continuous use requirement.

I'd love a truly DIY solution to this instead of having to buy
something - any chance that a bicycle wheel bearing could work??
(Apart from a drill press I have no other bench machinery suitable for
metalwork, so pls no advice that requires any metal turning etc!)

There are times when it really isn't worth the bother lashing something
up when they are so cheap to buy.


.... and this is one of them

and then there's the safety aspect. Grinders are dangerous at the best
of times
--
geoff

(N. Thornton) wrote in message . com...
I have one comment: surely it would be much better to mount the wheel
straight onto the motor shaft?

What does the shaft look like? What size hole is your grind wheel? You
can do all the metal work you like on the motor shaft, it is its own
lathe after all.

Thinking more about this overnight, I suspect that you're right in
that this would be simpler than using an indirect drive via a belt and
a spindle. I haven't measured the motor shaft yet, but it looks to be
circa 10mm dia, so I can bush it out to take either a 12.6mm or a 16mm
bore wheel. The only problem will be cutting a thread to take a
locking nut on the "outside" end of the shaft (I can epoxy on a nut on
the "inside" end); yes, it is it's own lathe as you say, but I'll need
a secure/ precise way of holding/ applying the tooling??

John

(John Forbes) wrote in message . com...
(N. Thornton) wrote in message news:a7076635.0402031224.

I have one comment: surely it would be much better to mount the wheel
straight onto the motor shaft?

What does the shaft look like? What size hole is your grind wheel? You
can do all the metal work you like on the motor shaft, it is its own
lathe after all.

Thinking more about this overnight, I suspect that you're right in
that this would be simpler than using an indirect drive via a belt and
a spindle. I haven't measured the motor shaft yet, but it looks to be
circa 10mm dia, so I can bush it out to take either a 12.6mm or a 16mm
bore wheel. The only problem will be cutting a thread to take a
locking nut on the "outside" end of the shaft

you dont have the kit to do that, but you do have the kit to put a
collar on with a screw to hold it in place.


(I can epoxy on a nut on
the "inside" end);

sounds scary.

yes, it is it's own lathe as you say, but I'll need
a secure/ precise way of holding/ applying the tooling??

I tooled my last motor shaft with a hand held file.

But Geoff is right, given the safety issues with grinders I'd buy one
instead.

Regards, NT