Grinders

by **jimjamm04** » 27 Jun 2006 12:01

I'm workin on some picks in my basement, no window in the crap-hole, but with a fan. Should I wear a dusk mask so I don't inhale metal? And why come it seems easier to use the outside edge of the grind wheel as oppose to the middle of the inside?

by **UWSDWF** » 27 Jun 2006 12:23

Depending on the metal you should be wearing a mask.
MAKE SURE YOU ARE WEARING SAFETY GLASSES I can not stress this enough a metal sliver in the eye is no fun

I don't know why the side works better but I've always been told to limit use there.

Oh yeah remember to quench (dip in water when hot) otherwise your metal will be brittle and snap like a twig.

by **p1ckf1sh** » 27 Jun 2006 12:35

jimjamm04 wrote:I'm workin on some picks in my basement, no window in the crap-hole, but with a fan. Should I wear a dusk mask so I don't inhale metal? And why come it seems easier to use the outside edge of the grind wheel as oppose to the middle of the inside?

Yes, wear a mask. Can't hurt. Or put up a vacuum, fix the hose so it can suck in the dust just as it is grinding and keep it running. Noisy but effective. I am doing this now, even when just dremeling. The stuff that came out of my nose the morning after a pick making session just wasn't funny anymore.

About the edge question, I think this is a good question for Shrub. I'd tend to think that the edge that is not cutting that good might be "smoothened" out or something. And then grinding in the middle it is pretty obvious why it is not taking off material as fast - there is much more contact area, more friction, etc.

by **jb68** » 27 Jun 2006 14:12

I definately agree, you should wear a mask, as p1ckf1sh says you've only got to blow your nose to see what you are inhaling and definately always wear eye protection. I do speak from experience on that one.

I was taught at college and pretty much through my career (in health and safety talks etc) that the side of a grind wheel should never be used at all for any thing(something to do with the construction of it.

I use both a grind wheel and a wet wheel, the good thing about the wet wheel is that its much more forgiving than the grind wheel takes a bit longer but a much better finnish and saves all that dipping your work in water, also keeps the dust down.

by **pinsetter** » 27 Jun 2006 14:19

This is for ANYONE using grinding wheels of any kind:

Please do yourself a favor and WEAR A DUST MASK!

Many grinding wheels and disks contain a metal called Beryllium. The dust and fine particles from this metal embed in the lungs when inhaled and can lead to a disease called CBD, short for Chronic Beryllium Disease. This is an incurable lung disease that can be fatal. Symtoms are similar to that of Black Lung, and can also lead to lung cancer.

If you need more information open any Web Search engine and type in "Beryllium". You will get all the information on this commonly used metal that you need.

But, please, for your safety, always wear a dust mask when grinding any metal. Don't be the one that says "It can't happen to me"!

by **Shrub** » 27 Jun 2006 14:51

I take it you mean the front face of the wheel but either side rather than the centre?

The thing about that can be a very complicated one that consits of quite a few reasons, the edge of the wheel is less structually safe, that means the wheel cleans itself a lot more often by the way of the grit coming away a little faster than the centre,

Also the fact that you will tend to actually only grind part of the work on the edge which means your grinding a smaller surface area which will cut a lot more material off a lot quicker rather like a slitting disc as apposed to a normal grinding disc,

The other reason could be that in your mind you feel safer pressing on the wheel a little more on the edge than the centre of the wheel but thats only an idea,

If you ever get to use a relieved wheel and get to grind on the side of it youll notice that it works the same, get to the edge and it will remove material a bit quicker,

Im sorry i cant explain it any better but i suppose it just does,

On the dust issue, certain wheels can be very dangerous to breathe the fumes in from but i dont think your run of the mill grinder will come with such wheels installed, the fumes and dust however on all wheels is abrasive and prolonged breathing in of it will cause some damage to your lungs, its not good for your nose either with some finding parts of their nose bleeding,

Having a spray with water in it next to the grinder can be a great help and spry the wheel every 10 seconds or so but make sure the wheel is left spinning for a min or so after use to make sure no water can settle on the wheel, water settled on a wheel on start up can shatter it.

The vacume idea is a good one and a dust mask a nessacity in confined areas but somthing you may not have thought about in such a room like a basement etc is fire!
Make sure there are no oily rags or containers of pain stripper etc on the bench or in the surrounding area, its easy to shower somthing in sparks and suddenly be trapped in a basement on fire, in my workshop i have a couple of extinguishers at each end so ill not be caught out, its worth thinking about, also make sure someone knows what you are doing and where for the same reasons.

I hope this is of at least a little use.

by **jimjamm04** » 27 Jun 2006 14:58

Thanks for the info guys

by **jb68** » 27 Jun 2006 15:45

I've got a slightly different question for you shrub, as stated I have a wet wheel, should I be emptying the reservoir after use? only I didn't know if leaving the wheel soaking in water damages it. Ta

by **Shrub** » 27 Jun 2006 15:59

Ah yours draggs it up from the bottom instead of spraying it on at the top?

I take it its the slow one as in realy slow?

You should be fine leaving it, a wet wheel on a whet wheel system is ok but the ones that have the pickup in the bottom are usually for oil not that it really matteres to be honest if your useing water,

As you will know but the others may not a whet wheel is for sharpening blades, the slightest heat will damge them so you use a slow wheel with a coolant (water sprayed on at the top or oil dragged up from the bottom) and when sharpening blades you always must have the sharp bit pointing upwards.

Youll be fine leaving it sitting in water, the only thing you worry about is if its a normal speed one and then the wheel will be out of balance.

by **jb68** » 27 Jun 2006 16:05

Cheers for that, yeah pretty slow but gives a better finnish as you say for chissels and blades. thanks again.

by **NKT** » 27 Jun 2006 18:07

That's something I hadn't thought about, the water thing causing it to be off center. Good thing I read this today, as earlier I figured out I could damp the regular wheel the same as the slow wet wheel. I'll make sure to take extra care.

I had a near miss today. Dremel clone, trying to chop a bit of 4.8mm piano wire. I fragged the little disc which was already rather worn down, so I decided to try the bigger black reinforced discs. I fired it up, and the tool started cutting, and suddenly it went wildy out of balance. I turned it to face away from me, and held tight, trying to hit the off switch as it vibrated like an insane thing, as it was on speed setting 5. I flicked it off, and the tool was wrecked. The steel rod was bent to about 90 degrees, the disc was mostly unscrewed, with the little screw only just holding it in, and the new disc was a bit wragged. I'll post up a picture tomorrow.

What had happened is that the collet was worn, and so the shaft of the tool was able to slip out a bit. Either that, or the disc caught and tore a bit off.

The second black disc I tried worked fine, and the job was finished without further issue.

by **Shrub** » 28 Jun 2006 5:49

If your putting fluid on wheels let them run a few mins after use to let the water disperse,

The little dremel type wheels just dont have enough material there to keep them together, ive had loads explode and im supposed to know what im doing.

by **jb68** » 28 Jun 2006 16:30

I have also had nothing but trouble with the little cut off wheels as they call them. I remember the add on t.v. when they showed them cutting through loads of stuff, i've never succesfuly cut through anything with 'em.

by **Shrub** » 29 Jun 2006 7:27

The after market black ones are much better, the fibre reinforced ones are far superiour if youve not tried any get some,

Other than that even they arent the best and 1 out of 5 still shatters on me or the centre simply breaks out,

I see dremels as toys really, they were made initially for model makers wanting to drill holes in plastic card and balsa wood then they developed to what we see today, if you see them as a addition to your workshop for the rare job you need some fine work on and cant be bothered setting a machine up for the 30 second job then you get the use from them otherwise relying on them as your full machine line up your never going to produce brilliant work and it will always cost you money in new bits each time.

by **Bump** » 29 Jun 2006 18:13

On the subject of wet grinding wheels.

Use a small magnet in the tank to pick up any metal grounds, something like those you get on the back of fridge ornaments.

There really isn't much advantage in leaving water in the sump overnight as you run the risk of residue contamination of the wheel, the crud solidifies on the base and in winter you run the risk of cracking the stone wheel.

Most of these machines are not cheap so a little bit of post use care really pays off.

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