Where to buy surface grinder wheels

[jaCK HobsonParticipant @jackhobson50760]

I have just got an old Eagle surface grinder. I was hoping to do some dry grinding but the wheel I have loads up very quickly and then burns. I want to try a medium grit medium hardness but very open bond Norton wheels like 25A46-HVP2 but I can’t find them in UK. Any good places to buy from? Or any recommendations for a good dry grinding wheel – I’m more after cool running and resistant to loading, rather than surface finish.

 

Once again, I really don’t know what I’m doing.

 

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

Any quality engineers supply outlet will have them

[peak4Participant @peak4]

I picked mine up from a variety of places, but these sites are worth reading for general information

Master Abrasives

PBR Abrasives

Abtec Abrasives

Academy of Lagado

Bill

[Chris CrewParticipant @chriscrew66644]

Try Coventry Grinders, a firm that specialises in grinding and ground products at reasonable prices.

[Pete RimmerParticipant @peterimmer30576]

Dry grinding is painful but if you want a couple of open wheels let me check what I have. I’m sure I will be able to supply one or two.

The Eagle grinder has a problem with the cross-slide lubrication (in that there’s no facility for it). Often you’ll find the ways galled up even if it’s otherwise in apparently good condition.

[noel shelleyParticipant @noelshelley55608]

If you don’t know what your really doing then please be very careful of changing a wheel. Do you have the means to balance the wheel and true it ? I have bought wheels from a company in the MIDLANDS but you WILL need a balancer. Vibration and poor finish will show if not true. The right bushes are vital so make sure you have the right ones for the wheel, there are both metric and imperial sizes with only slight differences that if wrong cause trouble ! Good luck. Noel.

[David George 1Participant @davidgeorge1]

Same as Chris use Coventry Grinding Wheels. Give them a call and they will recomend a good wheel for what you are grinding.

https://www.coventry-grinders.co.uk/product-category/norton-grinding-wheels/

David

[noel shelley]

On noel shelley Said:

If you don’t know what your really doing then please be very careful of changing a wheel. Do you have the means to balance the wheel and true it ? I have bought wheels from a company in the MIDLANDS but you WILL need a balancer. Vibration and poor finish will show if not true. The right bushes are vital so make sure you have the right ones for the wheel, there are both metric and imperial sizes with only slight differences that if wrong cause trouble ! Good luck. Noel.

The Eagle grinder has no facility for balancing the wheel Noel. It doesn’t use removable wheel mounts. They also use standard inch and a quarter bore wheels so no bushes should be necessary.

[noel shelleyParticipant @noelshelley55608]

Hi Pete, thanks for that info ! I decided to put a new wheel on my Brierley, bought a wheel from a company in the MIDLAND, it had the companys name on the blotters NOT Norton or one of the well known names. Try as I would I was unable to get it to balance and the machine was useless as the vibration shook every thing. A second wheel was supplied supposedly true and balanced, this may have been marginablly better, I got a third FOC along with some bushes as by now they thought I may have the wrong ones. I was not going to be beaten and bought a J&S wheel balancer, and discovered just HOW far out these wheels were ! I had given up with the suppliers who had tried to be helpful but failed. It was at this point that I became a bit fanatical ! The Brierley is supplied with 2 small balance weights, little cones with a 1/4″long grub screw. By the time I had got one wheel balanced I had made 5 more cones, used 1/2″ grubscrews AND screwed nuts on the grubscrews !

The wheel was £30, 180 X 25.The trouble it took far out weighed any saving I might have made by NOT buying a Norton Etc To the OP I would say DO NOT buy a cheap wheel, it may well cost you dear in the long run. The Eagle not having any means to balance the wheel may prove difficult to use and get a good finish with a wheel badly out of balance. Good Luck. Noel.

[jaCK HobsonParticipant @jackhobson50760]

Yes – I have been led to believe that  balancing isn’t much of an option. Also I need to cut down the variables in my learning. Hence go for a quality, recommended wheel. I trust 3M and Norton from experience with belt abrasives.

Abtec do seem to have online purchasing but not so easy to pick a suitable wheel.

I have A LOT (many 10s) of wheels at the back of my storage shed – new but old stock. So old the paper has probably peeled off them so might not be easy to identify what they are, but otherwise they were in good condition when I put them there – if anyone near CR6 them maybe we could do a deal… PM me.

My Eagle has been completely stripped and reassembled by previous owner. The bearings seem stiff but OK for me at the moment. Cross slide fine also. The leather bellows are almost perfect! My main concern is the vertical axis – by the time I have the gibs tight enough to stop any play, then the height wheel is very stiff. Can anyone tell me the proper way to adjust the vertical gibs?

[Pete RimmerParticipant @peterimmer30576]

You are right about the vertical axis ways being very important. If they are loose then the whole assembly will rock from side to side as you move weight of the table from one end to the other. If it’s binding at the upper and lower limits of travel that indicates wear. If they are binding at their most used position with the chuck perhaps 1-3″ below the bottom of the wheel yet allowing movement then they are only out of adjustment. The slide is somewhat fiddly to adjust having jack screws and clamp screws. You have to loosen the clamp scres only just enough so that you can screw in the jack screws to adjust the clearance then tighten the clamp screws. It will take a bit of trial and error to stop the gib from binding when you clamp it up.

[Pete Rimmer]

On Pete Rimmer Said:

You have to loosen the clamp scres only just enough so that you can screw in the jack screws to adjust the clearance then tighten the clamp screws. It will take a bit of trial and error to stop the gib from binding when you clamp it up.

Thanks for the confirmation. It is stiff in all positions. I’ll keep playing with the gibs.

I bit the bullet and got flood coolant – I guess all workshops should have it! And Warco doing 30% off all accessories.

[Pete RimmerParticipant @peterimmer30576]

You have the wet table version then? They are not so common. I had to make a guard for mine but a couple of weeks ago I helped my friend collect one that had the original alloy splash guard.

You can read up on my rebuild of mine here: https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/eagle-mk3-surface-grinder-rebuild.96469/

[jaCK HobsonParticipant @jackhobson50760]

Ah! You are THAT Pete! I’ve read that thread… many times! Great job! I am in awe of what you did!

I have a 5W so rare? Takes a 450mm chuck no problem. Looks pretty – just stiff 🙁 Maybe this is my scraping project, rather than the Myford…

 

I took the wheel off – it just says 4A60-VL which I don’t think includes the hardness or porosity. So I may well have a wheel more intended for bench grinders (it is pretty pink though).  i may spend a day delving into my storage shed for some alternatives…

 

 

[Dave SParticipant @daves59043]

I would say that’s a 60 grit V hardness AlOx wheel – bit fine and hard for general things.

I tend to use a 46 J iirc, also from Coventry Grinders. Ive not had an issue with any of there “own brand” wheels for balance, but I only run 1/2” thick on my J&S 540.

 

[Dave S]

On Dave S Said:

I would say that’s a 60 grit V hardness AlOx wheel – bit fine and hard for general things.

I tend to use a 46 J iirc, also from Coventry Grinders. Ive not had an issue with any of there “own brand” wheels for balance, but I only run 1/2” thick on my J&S 540.

 

It  also looks to be a 16mm bore, so may not fit anyway.
I’m guessing it’s intended for an 8″ double ended bench grinder, since it’s a V.

Bill

[peak4]

On peak4 Said:

On Dave S Said:

I would say that’s a 60 grit V hardness AlOx wheel – bit fine and hard for general things.

I tend to use a 46 J iirc, also from Coventry Grinders. Ive not had an issue with any of there “own brand” wheels for balance, but I only run 1/2” thick on my J&S 540.

 

It  also looks to be a 16mm bore, so may not fit anyway.
I’m guessing it’s intended for an 8″ double ended bench grinder, since it’s a V.

Bill

It’s 16mm thick. The bore is the std imperial equivalent of 32mm. (or may the 16R means 32mm diameter?)

It does seem too hard. I thought V meant Vitrified bond and it was missing the hardness grade?

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