Plans for 2"x72" Knife Grinder/Sander No welding required

[tmickley]

No Weld Grinder/Sander Plans (NWGS)


No Weld Grinder/Sander with Flat Platen attachment and adjustable tool table rest

By Tracy Mickley
Midwest Knifemakers Supply, LLC
www.midwestknifemakers.com

These printed plans are for a 2? x 72? belt grinder or sander. The construction requires no welding, no machining, no lathe work, no precision thread tapping, no special tools.

Purchase these plans HERE

Plans are just $25

These are paper plans and will be mailed to you via US First Class Mail upon purchase.
Just to be sure, this is not for an actual grinder or any part of grinder. This listing is for plans that you can use to construct your own grinder/sander using your materials.

This grinder design uses tool arms to change from a contact wheel to a flat platen to a small wheel to slack belt attachment in seconds. If you have a KMG grinder from Beaumont Metals already, you can use the tools from that grinder in your NWGS.

Features:

• No Welding needed!
• No Lathe needed!
• No Machining or Mill work needed!
• 15 pages of clear CAD drawings with measurements and materials list on each drawing.
• Master materials list.
• Quick change tool arms allow multiple attachments to be changed in seconds.
• Plans include tool arms for: Flat Platen, Tool Table Rest, Slack Belt, Contact Wheel.
• Very low cost materials used in the construction.
• Rock solid and vibration free.
• Tool Table Rest design allows tool rest to be used with any attachment.
• Flexible design allows different belt lengths to be used besides 2? x 72?.
• No precision thread tapping required.
• Design is a no weld design but the grinder can easily be welded if you desire.
• Flexible, robust design allows you to make changes to customize your grinder/sander to your own needs. If you make tapered tangs on your knives or have wanted to, simply stretch the plans and make a 15? flat platen with ease.
• Can use KMG tool bar arms.
• Hundreds of hours of R&D and multiple proto-type testing went into the design of this very capable grinder/sander.
• Web support with additional pictures and ideas for other attachments via www.midwestkms.com
• Suitable for use in grinding metal and sanding wood. In case you are wondering, when you are working with metal, the machine is called a grinder, when you are working with wood, the machine is called a sander.
• 2?x72? abrasive belts are one of the most common and competitively priced sizes of belts. Compare prices on this size belt to any other. If you are using a smaller size grinder/sander. The money you save using 2? x 72? belts will pay for this machine in no time flat.
• 2? x 72? belts have more types of belts available for them than any other size belt. It?s no wonder that knife makers and custom wood workers have settled on this size of grinder/sander.

Grinder with 8" contact wheel and tool table rest. The tool table rest can be removed in 2 seconds. I use a setup very much like this to grind my hollow ground knives.


The printed assembly manual contains:

15 pages of detailed CAD drawings with measurements and materials lists on each drawing. You could easily build the entire NWGS from these CAD drawings.

In addition to the CAD drawings, there is a 28 page construction manual with:

• Clear BW pictures of various parts of the grinder for visual reference during construction. Nothing tells it better than a picture!

• 5 pages of assistance in selecting the proper motor for your grinder.

Note: We do not provide wiring diagrams or support for hooking up or wiring your motors. There are simply too many variations to do that. If you don?t know how to wire a motor, buy it from a reputable motor shop and they will show you in about 5 minutes how to wire it up.

• 3 pages of information on abrasives including a conversion chart for the different technical standards of abrasives.

• 2 pages of supply sources ? every part has multiple supplier sources but nearly every single part can be purchased locally.

Tools Required:
A metal band saw is very helpful as is a drill press. If you don?t have a band saw, you can get the heavier material cut to size for a nominal charge (usually around $2 to $3 a cut after the first cut) from the metal supplier. A hand hack saw can handle most of the cuts. If you don?t have a drill press, you can use a variable speed hand drill.
A carpenters square. A tape measure, a scribe point, assorted drill bits (actually just 4 drill bits ? 1/8?, 5/16?, 3/8? and ??), a 3/8?-16 tap and tap wrench. A Unibit? (step drill bit) works exceptionally well in this project as a supplement to your regular drill bits or even in place of them. Cutting/tapping lubricant (oil will work but cutting lubricant works better). A rotary tool such as a Dremmel? tool (or hand file to) cut 2ea 1? x 3/16? key way slots. Hand wrench or adjustable wrenches to tighten bolts.
You can see the tools required are very modest and simple.

[B.Finnigan]

Sweet looking set up! If I did not allready have two grinders I would try this one.

[Andrew Garrett]

That's cool as hell Tracy! I think I gotta have one!

What is the total build expense minus contact wheel and motor?

May I assume the wheels and bearings come from Beaumont?

[fitzo]

Congratulations, Tracy! I'm happy to see all your efforts with this project come to fruition.

I hope Tracy doesn't mind me pitching his business:
Andrew, while Tracy mentions several sources in his directions, I think it would be cool if people making this took the time to price the components Tracy has available.
http://www.midwestknifemakers.com/vc...3f6841afdd17d2

[tmickley]

Andrew: Those are Beamont Metals wheels. I am now a reseller for these. You can get them either from Rob or me. I haven't done a detailed cost of build but see that I need to. I just know it's cheaper than anything out there and a guy can scrounge some of this for scrap price.

Mike: Thanks again brother. You take care of me.

[Andrew Garrett]

Tracy,

Just another question before I commit...

Can a guy move up to larger contact wheels--If so, how big? (I realy want a 14").

[tmickley]

Andrew,
I didn't design for a 14" wheel but it can be done easily enough. The 14" does not have bearings like the smaller wheels do. You have to use a shaft to mount the wheel to with locking collars and then a couple of pillow blocks mounted to a tool arm. Rob can sell you the whole thing. I don't carry the 14" wheels at this time since I didn't think there would be much of a call for them. If you decide to go with one, let me know. I have one myself and can easily work out the plan for that.

I am a resller for Beaumont Metals Wheels so you will find them on my web site as well as Rob's.

I spent a little time working up some costs. It isn't as simple as here is what it costs to make. I wish it was. Here you go:


This is my best effort to estimate costs for building this grinder. The costs listed for the motor?s are what I paid locally. The costs for the metal are from the charges I incurred locally when purchasing metal for this project. Your costs will probably vary on this slightly but this metal is very competitive business and is surprisingly cheap. The costs for the wheels are what I sell them for on my own web site (www.midwestkms.com) and are accurate at this time. This isn?t a guarantee of the costs, it?s only a reflection of what I paid when I designed and built this grinder (several times) in the summer of 2007. No tool costs are taken into account but you probably have nearly all the tools already, even in a modest shop.

Cost Projections Break Down:

Plans = $25
You will save $25 for the plans cost just by avoiding trial error that I went through building your own grinder.

Basic frame
Metal with connecting hardware for the frame and all attachments = $75
Misc ? knobs, bushings, etc = $25
Pillow Block Bearings 5/8? $12.50x2 = $25
Total Frame and all metal for attachments = $125 full plans build (no wheels)
Minimal build flat platen attachment only = $60
Note: Attachments include tool table rest, flat platen, slack belt, contact wheel arms. This is for new metal from the metal yard (scrap) yard. Most scrap yards will let you walk around and find metal they will charge you ?surplus? price which is less than a dollar a pound. Wheels for the platen and slack belt attachments are listed below. Save $15 by using bolts for knobs.


Wheels
8? contact wheel -$235 (smaller wheels cost less, bigger wheels cost more)
4ea 2?x2? idler wheels for a platen and slack belt attachment ($40ea) - $160
Power Drive Wheel 4? wheel 5/8? shaft bore w/keyway slot - $48
Tracking Wheel 3.5? x 2.5? with ?? bore with bearings - $53.00
Wheels total cost all attachments = $496
Wheels minimal with just a platen = $80
Note: These are high quality wheels from Beaumont Metals. Rob Frink allowed me to become a reseller for Beaumont Metals wheels. All wheels include the bearings. Initially this doesn?t sound like much but it is when you cost them out. Of course, you don?t have to build the entire grinder to begin with and the wheels are more than half the cost so you can really keep the price down if you just build a flat platen for $80 in wheels. If you find another source for wheels cheaper, let me know. I looked, I don?t think you will ? but I?m entitled to be wrong. I am also a dealer for Contact Rubber Corp and the retail of these contact wheels I have listed is less than my dealer cost from Contact Rubber Corp. To my knowledge, no one is selling idler, power drive or tracking wheels like these.

Power Train:
Motor 1.5hp - $160 new
$25 to $75 used.
Pulleys 3 step pair for $31
Power Twist Link Belt 2? $14
Switch, wire, connectors, tape, switch box - $15
Extension cord for a power cord - $10
Power Train with new motor = $230
Power Train used motor = $100
I bought a used rebuilt motor for $75 for one prototype by checking the local motor repair places. I made no effort beyond that. There are lot?s of motors out there and you should be able to find a used or pull for well under a hundred dollars. There is NO good reason to save $20 here to go with a single speed pulley setup when a 3 speed can be had using the triple pulley setup for $31.

Plans and full build, all the bells and whistles. Every thing new, all attachments and 3 speed pulley setup = $876

Plans and a minimal build, used motor, single attachment flat platen, tool table rest, frugal approach =$265 to $300

[Don Robinson]

Neat job, Tracy.

Good on you.

[fitzo]

Rob's 14" wheels now have an internal bearing; no more pillow blocks. He does use a riser block:

http://www.beaumontmetalworks.com/kmg12-14.html

You'd have to drill two more holes in a toolarm, and possibly put it on a stand so the wheels hang off the side.

14" wheel kicks butt.

[tmickley]

Originally Posted by fitzo

Rob's 14" wheels now have an internal bearing; no more pillow blocks. He does use a riser block:

http://www.beaumontmetalworks.com/kmg12-14.html

You'd have to drill two more holes in a toolarm, and possibly put it on a stand so the wheels hang off the side.

14" wheel kicks butt.

good to know... mine is several years old. I like the new wheels better. Setting up a 14" with that is a snap. Just bolt on the riser to a tool arm tube and off you go.

my first set of plans sold today on ebay after listing them last night...i'm buying...

[Andrew Garrett]

Fantastic achievement Tracy!

I'm ordering my plans now.

[AcridSaint]

Neat setup Tracy, my project is using similar materials, but welding is required. Hope to see some folks build this one. I agree that 14" wheels rock, Rob could even put together a 14" package.

[Drac]

Very nice there Tracy!!

I have a KMG but have been thinking that I wanted another grinder so I wouldn't always be shifting between the platen, slack & small wheel. I know I'm just being lazy but some things I grind for a minute on one than shift to another and to another a minute after that. It's like drilling multiple pin holes. It's really not that hard to change bits; it's just a pain to drill one hole & change for two. Two drills are nicer than one.

I could even save a couple pennies due to not needing a tool rest for the slack & small wheel.

Jim

[NJStricker]

Tracy,

I assume that you've used a similar set up for a good bit to run it through its paces, but I have to ask: How well does a bolted assembly compare to a welded assembly in terms of holding together? Does vibration tend to loosen the bolts? I assume using lock washers wherever possible reduces this.

Otherwise, a great idea for those of us waiting to have the pennies for a KMG!

Nathan

[Andrew Garrett]

In staring at the pictures, I questioned how simply squeezing the square tubes together with the diagonal 'straps' and bolts could prevent all movement and slipage. However, Tracy has established himself as an accomplished researcher here in the forums and I'll bank on his reputation. Besides, I have a few ideas to bolster the strength of the joints if I feel the need.

The house needs a roof, so that put the KMG back on the back burner..., again. This is a very timely opportunity which will save me hundreds! Thanks Tracy!