Belt grinder on the cheap

[Camp10]

I am rounding up the pieces to build a 2x72 belt grinder for my knife shop. This will be the second, the first runs a 1725 rpm motor and is great for the smaller wheels but this one will be powered by a 3650 rpm motor. I plan to set it up with a 10" wheel for cutting the bevels. I should be able to make it for less than $200...closer to $150. If there is any interest, I can post the build here. I won the motor on Ebay yesterday, so it will be at least a week before I have everything. The last one cost me about $135.

[panch0]

Of course we would like to see the build!

[crashdive123]

Heck yeah! I had looked at some of those no weld grinders that looked like they were fashioned after the KMG. *sigh* Maybe someday.

[Ole WV Coot]

Like to see some plans myself. I have enough stuff in the shop to probably put one together. Thanks

[Camp10]

This is the first one. I have 4 contact wheels for it. The 1/2" on it, a 3/4" a 4" and a 10". I have steel arms for all the others but the 1/2" uses maple and micarta to support it. When I round up all the parts, I will give measurements and anything you might need to build your own. This thing runs very smooth and I hope the new one is as good.

[crashdive123]

Looks great!

[canid]

nice setup indeed.

what's that can mounted for? cooling water?

[Camp10]

what's that can mounted for? cooling water?

Yeah but it is a block of ice right now..guess I should have dumped it the other day!

[Camp10]

Quick update..Fed Ex tracking gives the delivery date for the motor to be Monday. I have rounded up the majority of the parts with just the framework left to buy. So far, I am somewhere around $135. I will try to put together a material list at some point this weekend. One trip to the Home Depot should finish what I need for the build. More to come!

[Camp10]

Ok, I'm not much of a teacher and I have made this once before so I might skip some important steps but will do my best. All the parts except one can be rounded up for cheap between hardware stores, Ebay, Harbor freight (or Northern tool) and Home Depot/Lowes. Much of it might be sitting in your garage already.

If you are going to try this, I can assume you already have the knife bug. I will also assume that you have some basic tools that you use to make knives. Such as a drill and bits, a saw that will cut metal, and other various tools.

All belt grinders regardless of design need a three basic items. A drive wheel, a contact wheel and a tracking system. In a two wheel system, one wheel will be the tracking system and the other will be the drive wheel and contact wheel. My design is a three wheel set up.

I think I have made the simplest tracking system that I have seen...but you will have to wait another day for that because I am not to that step yet but I will share where I am now.

This grinder started with a "find" at a local salvage store. It was a dolly wheel that was 10" x2 ". I paid $15 for it. I have found the same wheels on Ebay for $17 from this guy.. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

From there I hunted for the right motor for the job. My design uses a 56c base electric motor and I want at least 3/4 hp. I also wanted to find a industrial duty or greater motor and I wanted to find it cheap! I hunted Ebay for quite a while but managed to come up with a 1 hp hazardous conditions motor for...ready for this?? $16.75 on Ebay!! Shipping was almost $40 for it but still a bargin.

The one part I havnt been able to figure a cheap replacement or a cheap source is the drive wheel. I picked both the one for this grinder and for the first one I made from usaknifemakers for $53 http://www.usaknifemaker.com/store/p...yed-p-701.html

The rest of the parts I needed are:
2' x 2' 3/4" plywood
3ft 3/4 inch square stock mild steel
3ft 2" angle iron
12" 1-1/2" perforated square stock
24" 1-1/4 perforated square stock
8" x 18" 16 gauge plate
1 outside heavy door hinge
6" spring (screen door style)
many nuts, bolts, and washers.

[Camp10]

The first step is to cut the 2" angle iron into two 18" pieces. One of these will be the base. Take it and the 8 X 18" sheet metal and attach them so the sheet metal is hooked to the outside of the angle. (see pictures below) The motor will hook to the sheet metal side of this base and the angle will extend under the drive wheel.

Attach them with two bolts. One 4" from the front and the other 1-1/2" from the back. Center these with the angle (the should be about 1" up)

Next, lay out the mounting holes for the motor. I made a pattern from an old sanding disc from my sander. The bolt pattern is 4-1/8" squared. Measure 4" from the back of the base and 1" from the bottom for the lower left bolt hole....again, see pictures.

This is roughly where I am for tonight. The next cut will be a 6-3/8" piece of the 3/4" square for a front upright but that will be for another night.

If I left a pile of unanswered questions, please let me know.

[crashdive123]

Looking great so far.

[panch0]

Cool! I cant wait to see this progress.

[Camp10]

I am having troubles figuring out how to resize the pictures so I can fit them in where I need them instead of leaving them as thumbnails. So I guess I will have to keep going the way that I have.

So, next step is to take the 3' piece of 3/4" square stock and cut two 6-3/8" lenghts out of it. You will also need a 18-1/2" length and can cut it now as well. Measure from the front of the base 8-1/2" back. This will be the location of the 18-1/2" piece of steel. With the motor still attached to the base, make sure that 8-1/2" works on your setup. You want it close to the motor but not touching it. When you have this marked out, remove the motor.

The 18-1/2" will first need a 3/8" hole drilled 1" from the top. Once this is done, the piece needs to be square with the base, even and at a 90° angle with the bottom of the angle iron. Bolt it to the base in two places, one top bolt and one bottom. It needs to have one bolt through the angle iron at about 1" up and the other through the sheetmetal also at about 1" from the top. The top bolt on this upright needs to be long enough to also hold the spring and a second nut. See the pictures.

Next, bolt one of the 6-3/8" also even with the bottom and tight to the side of the longer piece. This will work as the back rest for the tool arm. The other 6-3/8" piece will be the front rest. Bolt it to the front of the base also even with the bottom and even with the front of the sheet metal. See the picture. I used 3/8" bolts for all of these attachments.

Next take 11" of the larger of the perforated steel (I used 1-1/2") and lay it across the top of the two 6-3/8 square stock and tight to the 18-1/2" piece. This will also need to be bolted into place but you can only use up to the 4th hole from the back for this mounting. The smaller perforated steel will need to slide into this so you are limited.

[Rick]

The pictures are just fine. Once you click on them they open up to a full size picture.

[Camp10]

Now for the tracking system. This might get confusing and dry..but there will be pictures. Cut 13" of the angle iron. Lay the angle iron down so that you have one flat side down and the other side is towards the back or away from you. Measure for 3 holes. The first one is 2-1/4" from the front, the next is 6-1/2" from the front and the third is 1" from the back. The first and second holes should be centered top to bottom on the angle but the third should be drilled 1/2" from the bottom (or away from the angle). Again, I used 3/8" for all these holes.

The first hole is for the tracking adjustment. Find a heavy duty 3/8" nut...these are the wider ones (11/16 wrench fits it) and a long bolt to fit it. The nut will need to be welded to the angle iron over the first hole (the hole at 2-1/4") and on the inside of the angle.

If you have a welder, you are all set but if not try this. Grab the base and the tracking arm and head to your local muffler shop. Ask the guy how much to spot weld the nut to the arm and to spot weld the joints on the base....I forgot to mention that in the last post..oops. I welded up my own but called and both the local Midas and Meineke said they would do this and the prices were between $10 and $20.

The tracking arm will attach to the 18-1/2" upright through the hole you drilled 1" from the top. I use two washers between and one on either side. I will double nut this when it is finished but for now, bolt it on and tighten it up.

Next up is the door hinge. It will ride on the front and top of the angle iron and be the adjustment for your tracking wheel. Make sure it is square to the angle iron! If you lean this front to back, it will make the belt walk side to side. It will lean up and down depending on the adjjustment of the tracking bolt...that will go in the nut you just welded on.

I cant give a measurement for the distance side to side you will need with the hinge but be sure that it is out far enough to keep the belt in line with the drive wheel but close enough that you have plenty of threads on the bolt that will adjust it. When you find this distance for your machine,mark the spot and remove the arm to drill and bolt the hinge to the tracking arm. Mine was roughly 9/16" from the back edge. I used a longer bolt for the front to use as a handle when I change belts..see pics.

On the side of the hinge hanging over the edge of the angle, drill a 1/2" hole between the front and middle existing holes and about half way top to bottom. Find an old dolly or cart wheel and hang it with a bolt through this new hole. This is your tracking system, you can bolt it back on leaving it slightly loose on the bolt. Double nut it to keep it in place.

[Camp10]

You can see in the picture that I welded a nail to my adjusting bolt to work as a handle.

[Rick]

Go back and edit your earlier post to include the cost of the muffler shop. Then you can edit this post to remove the comment that you forgot to add it to the earlier post....I just confused myself. Anyway, once you do that then I can delete this post and no one will be the wiser....except those that have already read it.

[Camp10]

Finally, take 13-1/2" of the smaller of the perforated steel, drill the last hole out to 5/8" (or whatever size bolt you will need for your contact wheel)and hang the 10" dolly wheel from it. Like the tracking wheel, you will have to adjust a little to keep the belt centered but a few washers will do the trick. Slide it into the larger perforated steel mounted to the base. Test fit a belt to the machine. If the tracking arm hangs up or down, you may need to slide the tool arm in or out to make this level. When you find the distance that keeps the tracking arm level, bolt the two halves of the tool arm together. With everything together and squared on the base wood, drill two holes in the angle iron base and bolt it down to the wood. There you have it! I still need to wire it up but the machine is pretty well done. Any questions, feel free to ask..I know I missed something.

[Camp10]

Go back and edit your earlier post to include the cost of the muffler shop. Then you can edit this post to remove the comment that you forgot to add it to the earlier post....I just confused myself. Anyway, once you do that then I can delete this post and no one will be the wiser....except those that have already read it.

Its ok where it is, I think