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Baldor Grinder

Paul M. Kaplowitz

Paul M. Kaplowitz

Joined
Oct 6, 2008
Messages
395
Likes
261
Location
North Charleston, SC
I bought a 7" Baldor Grinder 15 years ago, great machine but 7" is proving to be a real problem in finding CBN wheels to fit. I e-mailed Baldor 3x to see if the 7" could be modified to accept 8" wheels. No reply. I called, they referred me to their engineering website, I e-mailed 2x, no reply. Great machine, lousy customer service. Anyone have any ideas, I have contacted 5suppliers of CBN wheels, 6 or 8" are the only sizes they carry. If all else fails what would y'all recommend for an 8" grinder.
 
Paul.........

For what it's worth, we have many Baldor motors where I work that are used for finishing work on medical instruments. I believe these motors were originally purchased without the wheel shrouds, but are basically the same motors they use for grinding purposes. The only limiting factor is the space between the arbor and the table top......which, if necessary, can be adjusted with spacers under the motor mount itself.

Is it possible to simply remove your shrouds, so that the size of the wheel you use is not an issue? If you wish, it would be not too big of a job to construct home-made shrouds that would suit your needs.

ooc
 
D Way Tools removes the shrouds from their grinders with the CBN wheels. I think it would work fine on yours if the power of your grinder is adequate for the 8 in. wheels.

George
 
In fairness to Baldor...

Paul,

In fairness to Baldor, I doubt it would be wise for them to answer your question even if they knew the answer. You're asking them if it would be safe for you to adapt their 7" grinder to accept 8" wheels. If they were to say yes and then something bad were to happen -- even if it weren't Baldor's fault -- how difficult would it be for some jury to hold Baldor liable for the damages?

You can fault them for not responding to your emails, which you have. Isn't it possible that some engineer thought to get his response to your question approved and the legal department has fouled things up?
 
I would think that Baldor would respond with at least a disclaimer, stating that they do not recommend using anything that is not compatible with the OEM product. This way they could cover themselves if you went to an 8 inch wheel and had an accident.
 
The largest size wheel that can be used is 7 inches diameter and 1 inch wide. If you are really wanting cBN toolroom wheels, contact your nearest Norton Industrial distributor. They have a wide variety of size options and coating types, but be prepared to pay industrial strength prices -- some of the formulations are quite costly. Unless you are trying to machine titanium or some other super tough to machine material, it make much more sense to go with either the Norton SG ceramic wheels (also available from Norton Industrial distributor) or Norton 3X wheels with SG technology which is available from Norton consumer and contractor distributors or retailers.
 
John Torchick said:
I would think that Baldor would respond with at least a disclaimer, stating that they do not recommend using anything that is not compatible with the OEM product. This way they could cover themselves if you went to an 8 inch wheel and had an accident.
Click to expand...

Wonder if that's not already in that mass or warnings and cautions that takes up 2/3 of any equipment manual nowadays.
 
Thanks for all the replies. Odie, I'm going to see if I can remove the guards. CBN wheels don't fly apart so I may not need guards at all. As you suggest, I can then raise the grinder to clear the Wolverine jig I use. For those of you who gave me places to get 7" wheels, I can buy 7" and have been for 15 years from a number of sources. The problem is CNB wheels.
 
Biggest difference between the 7 inch Baldor and the 8 inch is the 7 is 1/2 hp, and the 8 is 3/4 hp. The 8 inch wheel, if it will fit, might wear out the motor more quickly. Don't know for sure on that one. The standard washer/fitting on the inside of the 8 inch grinder has a keyway, and a pin on the arbor shaft. I did hear of some one who ground off the pin. I could find no other way to remove it, so left it on my 8 inch grinder. There was plenty of room to put a standard washer that came with my D Way wheels, and the nut that came on the grinder.
I can send you to a place that can make a 7 inch by 3/4 inch matrix style wheel for about $300 (3/16 inch of abrasive in a matrix that is bonded to an aluminum hub, and drilled to the proper size for your motor arbor). I have one that has been through maybe 6 years of production turning and still has half of the matrix left. It does develop some run out with a lot of use, and I can take it back to the maker who happens to be hear in town.

robo hippy
 
7" Grinder Wheels

Dear Reed, Thanks for the info. The Bill Neddow article in the AAW Journal references Northwest Super Abrasives, a source that you provided as well as Cuttermasters. You mention D-way. Whose wheels do you prefer? I want a 1" wheel, 180 grit. That is offered by all suppliers in 8". As far as the strain on the .5 hp motor, I can't imagine the 8" wheels would cause any problem, they may in fact be lighter than the blue wheels I'm using. My arbor is 5/8", but I have a bunch of plastic bushings if the wheels come with larger holes. What are your thoughts? Thanks
 
For being practical, I would go for the D Way wheels. They are 1 1/2 inches wide, and after using them for a month or two, I really like the extra width. The matrix style wheels need more maintenance than the D Way wheels, which means you have to clean them, and get them retrued from time to time. I haven't tried the Cindy Drozda method, which is an oil bath of sorts, and she posted a You Tube clip on the forums a short while back. She does use the Woodcraft Diamond matrix wheel. That could change a few things. There is a big difference in the grits. My wheels from NWSA leave a more polished surface. My 80 grit matrix wheel leaves a surface comparable to the 180 D way. My 150 grit wheel is way finer then the 180 grit D Way. I can't really say that either wheel cuts any better. The D Way wheels seem to remove steel a lot faster, and Dave I now have a second grinder so I can keep both sets of wheels mounted, and sharpen back and forth to compare. Again, with this style of grinding wheel, there is NO risk of them ever exploding. Great safety factor.

robo hippy
 
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