1" belt sander griner

[PeteStaehling]

My HF belt grinder has given up the ghost after years of service, so I am in the market for a replacement. It actually served me pretty well despite being very poorly made, but the tracking mechanism was kind of a mess and the drive wheel was very out of round and had a bad wobble.

Way back (maybe 30 years or more ago?) I had a rockwell 1" x 42" grinder that I loved. I let it go at a time when I had no space for a shop. I have always missed that grinder. It was set up so that you could adjust the idlers where the the belt as up against the platen on both sides so you could slip the whole belt through a hole to sand/grind inside openings. It also had a round platen for curves. Those are not must have features but they were kind of nice.

I never seem to see any used rockwell or delta grinders like that locally and/or at a price that I am willing to spring for, so I am thinking of replacing it with either another HF one, which I expect will need some serious tuning up if it is anything like the last one, or with a better brand or a similar design. I use it for a variety of sanding and grinding functions and also use a leather honing belt on it.

Any recommendations on a 1x30 or 1x42 belt grinder?

 

[Mike Davis]

I had the same grinder painted in Grizzly colors, it bit the dust. (intentional pun) I was able to find an old Delta at a pawn shop for $30. After 5 years it is still working well. But when this one goes I will probably get a Rikon. I have a couple of their tools and have been very happy with every one I have tested. That is unless there is another old Delta or Rockwell hiding in the corner of a pawn shop somewhere.

 

[PeteStaehling]

I had the same grinder painted in Grizzly colors

Do you mean the same as the old rockwell or the same as the HF?

FWIW, I just fixed the HF one after I started this thread. The drive wheel cracked but I made a new one out of plywood. It now works as well or better than it ever did. I'd still like to find an old delta/rockwell like the one in the attached picture if I can and I would even buy one of the newer ones that had similar idler and tensioner setup and a lot of yellow plastic.

I am less pressed to replace it now but may buy a Rikon of something else new at some point. If the deal is right I'll replace it any time otherwise I'll hold off.

 

[Mike Davis]

The one that wore out after two years was like your HF.

I also have a 2x72 Wilton that works great and I hope nothing ever happens to it cause I could not afford to replace it.

 

[sawman101]

I had a sharpening shop for many years, and the most all around tool was my belt sander, of which I actually had 4, with progressive grits to 320. On the 4th sander was a leather strop belt. I still have 2 1" belt sanders in my shop, both Deltas, and I love them both. I am amazed at the price of a new one today, considering that about 10 years ago I bought a Delta 1x42 for $99.99 at Lowes. Good luck in your quest to satisfy your belt sanding desires Pete.

 

[frankc4113]

Are Rikon tools made by Emerson Tool Company?

 

[KenOfCary]

I bought the Rikon 1" belt sander from Klingspor and have been very happy with it. It is very convenient to take to the work piece rather than taking the work piece to it. It also has a 4 or 5" disc sander that has been useful at times for small jobs.

 

[PeteStaehling]

I also have a 2x72 Wilton that works great and I hope nothing ever happens to it cause I could not afford to replace it.

It is expensive enough to be worth fixing almost no matter what goes wrong with it. I wish I could justify the cost because I'd love to have one.

 

[Mike Davis]

Pete, believe me... I got a great deal or I wouldn’t have it. It took over a year to receive it after I paid for it. The previous owner is a close friend, had medical problems, needed cash quick, but also had obligations to fulfill. So, I paid and waited. Luckily we are both honorable men and still close friends.

 

[bob vaughan]

Make your own. I did in 1988 and its still running strong.
FWW # 75 pages 62-65

A good narrow belt sander is a Burr King 562. Most other low-cost narrow belt sanders are compromises including the classic Delta 31-350.

 

[Hmerkle]

Are Rikon tools made by Emerson Tool Company?

I don't think so - I think thad is (or was) Rigid

 

[Henry W]

Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

So help me out here. i read of a love for these narrow belt sanders, but I do not know how these would be used; furthermore, I have some difficulty imagining the usage, aside from knife work. I can imagine knife sharpening (metal) as well as wood handle ( the scales?) 'forming' with a 1" belt sander. Beyond that I do not have the imagination.
What sorts of tasks do you use your 1 belt sander/grinder for?

Is this the tool I have never had but didn't realize that I needed all these years?

 

[Pop Golden]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

I have a Shopsmith on it's own cabinet & motor. This uses both 1/2 & 1 inch belts. These small belt sanders are great for intricate & detail work. It has platens for both belts and can be rigged with no platen. This is were the return belt is directly behind the front belt. Very useful for internal sanding. If you can find a used one & a 1/2 or 3/4 hp. motor you're off to the races.

Pop

 

[bob vaughan]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

Is this the tool I have never had but didn't realize that I needed as these years?

or woodworking, its not so useful, depending on the work you're doing. Small scale work detailing is a good application.

It is mostly a machine used in the metalworking arena. They've been popular there for decades. Drill bit sharpening and touch up is a good use. Tool sharpening and shaping. Its one of those machines that you work into, sort of having a drill press when a portable power drill will do a lot of the drilling tasks.

 

[nn4jw]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

So help me out here. i read of a love for these narrow belt sanders, but I do not know how these would be used; furthermore, I have some difficulty imagining the usage, aside from knife work. I can imagine knife sharpening (metal) as well as wood handle ( the scales?) 'forming' with a 1" belt sander. Beyond that I do not have the imagination.
What sorts of tasks do you use your 1 belt sander/grinder for?

Is this the tool I have never had but didn't realize that I needed as these years?

I do use mine for metal work mostly. For woodworking I use it for relieving the edges on the end of dowels and.... Well, off the top of my head I can't think of other uses but I've had it for many years and use it occasionally for adjusting the fit on something I'm working on. It's like a lot of tools, great to have around for when I need it but not something I need every day.

Mine is an old (like 30 years old) Craftsman and has the 1-inch belt and an 8 inch disk. I use the disk a lot more.

 

[gator]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

Before I bought a low-speed grinder and a wolverine set-up, I used mine to sharpen my lathe tools.

George

 

[PeteStaehling]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

I can't think of many tasks that I couldn't do without it, but I use it a lot, usually several times every day if not more. I use it for some sharpening tasks, for touching up the end of bolts that I hacksawed to a shorter length, for fitting small metal or wooden parts, for knocking off an eighth inch on a dowel that I cut too long for rounding off edges on small parts, and about a thousand other things.

I like that I can change grits in a few seconds and have anything from 40 grit to 1000 grit or even finer almost immediately. I also use a leather belt charged with polishing compound a good bit.

Mine doesn't have the option of routing the belt to get inside openings, but I once had one that did and kind of miss that ability. A spindle sander handles most of those tasks for me now.

I probably use it way more on jigs and fittings than on something that you'd call actual woodwork. Also I am a luthier so most of the pieces I work with are probably smaller than what most here work with.

 

[PeteStaehling]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

Maybe I should have started a new thread for this, but...
I tinkered a little more with the HF 1" grinder and got it running like it should. The two things that really needed attention were an out of round and wobbly drive wheel and an inadequate spring on the belt tension. After addressing those two things it is now quiet and the tracking is completely steady. Before it was noisy and the tracking wandered constantly.

 

[sawman101]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

There are so many things in a wood shop that need sharpening, including my pencils. I also use the disc part to flatten and mill the end of pen blanks that are too fragile to be used with the regular pen mill. I shape many wood parts on it, and bevel parts, such as roofs for fancy wooden clocks, or bird houses. The uses for a 1" belt and disc sander combo machine are only limited by your imagination.

 

[Henry W]

Re: Usage of a 1" belt sander/grinder?

There are so many things in a wood shop that need sharpening, including my pencils. I also use the disc part to flatten and mill the end of pen blanks that are too fragile to be used with the regular pen mill. I shape many wood parts on it, and bevel parts, such as roofs for fancy wooden clocks, or bird houses. The uses for a 1" belt and disc sander combo machine are only limited by your imagination.

Thanks for the descriptions of usage. I have a disc.belt sander (9" disc and 6x48" belt) that I picked up cheap, many years ago. Until that time I had no idea how useful that tool was, both the belt and disc functions.

I do use my belt sander for many tasks you describe; I recognize that a narrow belt tool, without a the large platen and supporting hardware, would at times be preferable to my larger belt sander.

I guess I was just curious about a tool I have no direct experience with.