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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, no competition

Lost the keys to the garage in the snow last night, there have been
some thefts in the area so didn't want to leave it unlocked overnight,
figured getting a locksmith to come out at 8 PM on a Saturday night
was going to cost more than it was worth, thus is was down to Home
Despot for a new lock. The old one was some brand I'd never heard of,
got a new Schlage.

Lock went in fine, but the opening in the old strike plate was too
narrow for the Schlage deadbolt, so went to put the Schlage strike
plate in. Needed to open up the mortise a little and deepen it. Was
going to go down to the basement and get the chisels, then I noticed
the ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder"
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=47869
sitting on the shelf by the door. Already had a 1/8" carbide cutter
in it that I had been using in the Dremel just before I got the HF
(put the cutter in just to make sure it actually fit and that the
thing actually spun up without throwing it across the room--it is,
after all, Harbor Freight). Hadn't had a chance to really play with
the thing yet so decided to try opening up the mortise with it and see
how bad it was.

Well, I'm a believer. Compared to that little ten buck air grinder,
Dremels are crap. It never bogged down once, got cooler instead of
warmer, never gave any sign of strain, cut through the jummywood of
the door frame with just the right amount of resistance to give me
real control, it's light and really well balanced compared to the
Dremel--it handles like a pencil, not like a power tool. In short it
works the way I _expected_ a Dremel was going to work before I used
one, but the Dremel never really worked that way. And to top it off,
once the strike plate was in I had to adjust it a little as well, and
the air grinder with the carbide cutter sliced through that with no
more fuss than with the wood.

Been toying with the idea of a flex shaft but see no need for one of
those either--with the air grinder I'm not tied to a few feet of
shaft--I can use it anywhere I can run an air hose--and it turns over
50,000 RPM.

Designed so that the air exhausts out the back with a long sleeve so
that it exhausts far from the work piece so no problem with oil
contamination either.

They've got a 1/4 inch die grinder for ten bucks as well--next time
I'm over there I think I'm going to get one of those.

Downside is that it needs a compressor of course.


--
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)


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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, nocompetition

On Mar 2, 7:58 am, "J. Clarke" wrote:
Downside is that it needs a compressor of course.


I'm not exactly a Dremel fan but in fairness, isn't the moral more
like "air tools that are sized right for the compressor have a lot
more oomph than electric tools that are underpowered for the job?"

I've got a Griz moto-tool with a flex shaft and it's got almost as
much guts as the little die grinder that came with my compressor. I
think if I pushed both of them to the limit I'd burn up the moto-tool
motor first, but for normal pencil-grinder jobs they're about the
same.

But there's still times I want a little pencil tool and don't want to
hang a motor someplace or drag an air hose around, and then I grab the
Dremel I got for Christmas. The wife has a little battery dremel she
uses on the dog's toenails. They like it better than a clipper for
some reason.
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SBH SBH is offline
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Posts: 78
Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, no competition


"J. Clarke" wrote in message
...
Lost the keys to the garage in the snow last night, there have been
some thefts in the area so didn't want to leave it unlocked overnight,
figured getting a locksmith to come out at 8 PM on a Saturday night
was going to cost more than it was worth, thus is was down to Home
Despot for a new lock. The old one was some brand I'd never heard of,
got a new Schlage.

Lock went in fine, but the opening in the old strike plate was too
narrow for the Schlage deadbolt, so went to put the Schlage strike
plate in. Needed to open up the mortise a little and deepen it. Was
going to go down to the basement and get the chisels, then I noticed
the ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder"
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=47869
sitting on the shelf by the door. Already had a 1/8" carbide cutter
in it that I had been using in the Dremel just before I got the HF
(put the cutter in just to make sure it actually fit and that the
thing actually spun up without throwing it across the room--it is,
after all, Harbor Freight). Hadn't had a chance to really play with
the thing yet so decided to try opening up the mortise with it and see
how bad it was.

Well, I'm a believer. Compared to that little ten buck air grinder,
Dremels are crap. It never bogged down once, got cooler instead of
warmer, never gave any sign of strain, cut through the jummywood of
the door frame with just the right amount of resistance to give me
real control, it's light and really well balanced compared to the
Dremel--it handles like a pencil, not like a power tool. In short it
works the way I _expected_ a Dremel was going to work before I used
one, but the Dremel never really worked that way. And to top it off,
once the strike plate was in I had to adjust it a little as well, and
the air grinder with the carbide cutter sliced through that with no
more fuss than with the wood.

Been toying with the idea of a flex shaft but see no need for one of
those either--with the air grinder I'm not tied to a few feet of
shaft--I can use it anywhere I can run an air hose--and it turns over
50,000 RPM.

Designed so that the air exhausts out the back with a long sleeve so
that it exhausts far from the work piece so no problem with oil
contamination either.

They've got a 1/4 inch die grinder for ten bucks as well--next time
I'm over there I think I'm going to get one of those.

Downside is that it needs a compressor of course.


Thanks for the input. After giving up on my Dremel a year or so back,
especially the flex shaft, I have needed it from time to time but decided it
just didn't make the cut...literally. Therefore, I usually figured out other
methods. Since I have a compressor in garage, as well as a pancake
compressor, I can use the HF grinder in many areas.


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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, nocompetition

On Mar 2, 8:58 am, "J. Clarke" wrote:
Lost the keys to the garage in the snow last night, there have been
some thefts in the area so didn't want to leave it unlocked overnight,
figured getting a locksmith to come out at 8 PM on a Saturday night
was going to cost more than it was worth, thus is was down to Home
Despot for a new lock. The old one was some brand I'd never heard of,
got a new Schlage.

Lock went in fine, but the opening in the old strike plate was too
narrow for the Schlage deadbolt, so went to put the Schlage strike
plate in. Needed to open up the mortise a little and deepen it. Was
going to go down to the basement and get the chisels, then I noticed
the ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder"http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=47869
sitting on the shelf by the door. Already had a 1/8" carbide cutter
in it that I had been using in the Dremel just before I got the HF
(put the cutter in just to make sure it actually fit and that the
thing actually spun up without throwing it across the room--it is,
after all, Harbor Freight). Hadn't had a chance to really play with
the thing yet so decided to try opening up the mortise with it and see
how bad it was.

Well, I'm a believer. Compared to that little ten buck air grinder,
Dremels are crap. It never bogged down once, got cooler instead of
warmer, never gave any sign of strain, cut through the jummywood of
the door frame with just the right amount of resistance to give me
real control, it's light and really well balanced compared to the
Dremel--it handles like a pencil, not like a power tool. In short it
works the way I _expected_ a Dremel was going to work before I used
one, but the Dremel never really worked that way. And to top it off,
once the strike plate was in I had to adjust it a little as well, and
the air grinder with the carbide cutter sliced through that with no
more fuss than with the wood.

Been toying with the idea of a flex shaft but see no need for one of
those either--with the air grinder I'm not tied to a few feet of
shaft--I can use it anywhere I can run an air hose--and it turns over
50,000 RPM.

Designed so that the air exhausts out the back with a long sleeve so
that it exhausts far from the work piece so no problem with oil
contamination either.

They've got a 1/4 inch die grinder for ten bucks as well--next time
I'm over there I think I'm going to get one of those.

Downside is that it needs a compressor of course.


Ask your dentist what he uses, a max 25,000 RPM Dremel,
or a 100,000 RPM air turbine drill.

That said, how does the bearing play compare?
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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, nocompetition

On Mar 2, 5:58*am, "J. Clarke" wrote:

They've got a 1/4 inch die grinder for ten bucks as well--next time
I'm over there I think I'm going to get one of those.


Mine (with a carbide burr that was looted from some other
machine) does a good job of dealing with plaster walls.
I've put in dozens of outlets recently, and the wallholes made with my
other techniques are MUCH sloppier.


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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, no competition

Father Haskell wrote:
On Mar 2, 8:58 am, "J. Clarke" wrote:
Lost the keys to the garage in the snow last night, there have been
some thefts in the area so didn't want to leave it unlocked
overnight,
figured getting a locksmith to come out at 8 PM on a Saturday night
was going to cost more than it was worth, thus is was down to Home
Despot for a new lock. The old one was some brand I'd never heard
of,
got a new Schlage.

Lock went in fine, but the opening in the old strike plate was too
narrow for the Schlage deadbolt, so went to put the Schlage strike
plate in. Needed to open up the mortise a little and deepen it.
Was
going to go down to the basement and get the chisels, then I
noticed
the ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil
grinder"http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=47869
sitting on the shelf by the door. Already had a 1/8" carbide
cutter
in it that I had been using in the Dremel just before I got the HF
(put the cutter in just to make sure it actually fit and that the
thing actually spun up without throwing it across the room--it is,
after all, Harbor Freight). Hadn't had a chance to really play
with
the thing yet so decided to try opening up the mortise with it and
see
how bad it was.

Well, I'm a believer. Compared to that little ten buck air
grinder,
Dremels are crap. It never bogged down once, got cooler instead of
warmer, never gave any sign of strain, cut through the jummywood of
the door frame with just the right amount of resistance to give me
real control, it's light and really well balanced compared to the
Dremel--it handles like a pencil, not like a power tool. In short
it
works the way I _expected_ a Dremel was going to work before I used
one, but the Dremel never really worked that way. And to top it
off,
once the strike plate was in I had to adjust it a little as well,
and
the air grinder with the carbide cutter sliced through that with no
more fuss than with the wood.

Been toying with the idea of a flex shaft but see no need for one
of
those either--with the air grinder I'm not tied to a few feet of
shaft--I can use it anywhere I can run an air hose--and it turns
over
50,000 RPM.

Designed so that the air exhausts out the back with a long sleeve
so
that it exhausts far from the work piece so no problem with oil
contamination either.

They've got a 1/4 inch die grinder for ten bucks as well--next time
I'm over there I think I'm going to get one of those.

Downside is that it needs a compressor of course.


Ask your dentist what he uses, a max 25,000 RPM Dremel,
or a 100,000 RPM air turbine drill.

That said, how does the bearing play compare?


I have no idea. Using it hand-held there's no noticeable play. If I
was using on a toolpost then I'd worry about it. I understand that
one can get a set of precision bearings for it from any bearing
supplier for under 20 bucks.

--
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)


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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, no competition

Father Haskell writes:

Ask your dentist what he uses, a max 25,000 RPM Dremel,
or a 100,000 RPM air turbine drill.


he uses one of those cord-driven monstrosities. Probably nowwhere
near 25krpm[*].

scott
[*] Ok. He retired in 1992, still using that damn thing. Modern drills
are much improved.

As for dremels, there's a kawasaki kit (yes, it's even flourescent
green) at CostCo for about USD35. Includes stand, flex shaft and
bunches of bits.

scott
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Default Ten buck Harbor Freight "pencil grinder" vs Dremel, no competition

Scott Lurndal wrote:
Father Haskell writes:

Ask your dentist what he uses, a max 25,000 RPM Dremel,
or a 100,000 RPM air turbine drill.


he uses one of those cord-driven monstrosities. Probably nowwhere
near 25krpm[*].

scott

[*] Ok. He retired in 1992, still using that damn thing. Modern
drills
are much improved.


You really should have found a different dentist. Even when I was a
kid in the 60s mine was using an air turbine drill. Actually he had a
high speed air drill, a low speed air drill, and a cord and pully
drill--the last one he used for polishing after a cleaning and for no
other purpose that I am aware of.


As for dremels, there's a kawasaki kit (yes, it's even flourescent
green) at CostCo for about USD35. Includes stand, flex shaft and
bunches of bits.


Googling it that looks like a really good deal, mainly because of the
"bunches of bits". Have to go check it out and see what's
included--if it's got a good range of cutters it's worth 35 bucks even
if you toss the tool.


--
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)


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