Grinder/Sharpener

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dankc908

dankc908

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I don't know if this is the right spot for this type of question, however, I am now looking for a 'sharpening system' for my gouges and skews. I have looked at LOTS of systems and just kept getting more and more confused. I ran across the following Grinder/Sharpener and am wondering if this might fit the bill. I'd appreciate any and all opinions! This grinder/sharpener (or whatever I might eventually purchase) will be used, almost exclusively, for my gouges and skews.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/t10097
 
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Dan, you will get answers all over the place. I use the Wolverine Attachment with a 8" slowspeed grinder. This attachment is made specifically for sharpening gouges and such. The Grizzly you show is a very nice wet stone sharpener, but you will still fuss with getting attachments or learning to hold just the right angle for sharpening. Granted, the Wolverine attachments will cost you about the same as this grinder, but I thnk it money better spent. Just my .02
 
Looks a lot like my Tormek that I use for the last 10 years and less $$ than I paid. Set up is easy and it keeps everything at precise angle and sharp. :laugh:
 
The wolverene system is great for your slow speed grinder. But since I got my 10" Jet (same as the Tormek of the 10" Grizzly) wet system, I use it almost exclusively. The wet system puts a sharper, longer lasting edge on my tools. That's a great price on the one you have posted, but keep in mind it is an 8", not 10" wheel and you will still need to buy the tool attachments which can be as muck if not more than the 8" system.
 
A bench grinder with or without sharpening jig about cheapest way to sharpen your turning tools. Another plus is time saved getting the job done.

Sharpening systems like the grizzly and others make sense if you also have plane irons, chisels, knives, and scissors to sharpening. The extra cost for jigs can be expensive depending upon how many you need. Big minus is time required to change bevel angles on your tools. Also if you get tools harder than M2 steel takes forever to touch up an edge.

There are many turners using a sharpening system and bench grinder. Still other just use their sharpening system. Clearly time, versatility, and cost favor a bench grinder with or with out a sharpening jig.
Good luck!
 
Dan, I looked at this machine when I was deciding on a sharpening system. The salesman at Grizzly said that the attachments that came with it were more for knives and scissors. (I don't know how accurate that is.) I have heard that the Tormek attachments will fit it but I don't know. Woodcraft had a sale on a slow speed 8" grinder and two nice quality wheels some time back. Included was the basic Wolverine with two bases. I paid under $200 to have it delivered and am very happy with it.
 
Even though they call it a "Grinder/sharpening system" , it more of a "sharpening/honing system" . You really need both for a total system , a grinder/wolverine for getting the profile you want quickly then the Sharpening/honing system to get a finished edge on your tools .
If you only have the money for one then get the grinder/wolverine system and use a diamond hone to clean up the edge .
 
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dankc908 said:
I don't know if this is the right spot for this type of question, however, I am now looking for a 'sharpening system' for my gouges and skews. I have looked at LOTS of systems and just kept getting more and more confused. I ran across the following Grinder/Sharpener and am wondering if this might fit the bill. I'd appreciate any and all opinions! This grinder/sharpener (or whatever I might eventually purchase) will be used, almost exclusively, for my gouges and skews.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/t10097
Click to expand...

I have the bigger 10" wet grinder. Grizzly markets it in the US for Scheppach. It is the Sheppach Tiger 2500. I have this confirmed in an email from from Scheppach. It is compatible with many Tormek Jigs. I had my gunsmith make me am 8mm version of Tormek's 12mm shank for their leather profiling wheels and it works like a charm. If you want to do a little drilling you can even use Tormek's planer jig and their micro adjuster. Those won't fit on the Grizzly as the uprights on the bar differ in their spacing from the Tormek.

It's a good quality piece of German equipment. It is very close to the Tormek T7 at a much lower price. The Tormek is a better machine but you will pay big bucks to get what seems to me to be a relatively small difference.
My $.02
:wink::wink::wink:
 
I have the Scheppach, very nice machine, for the price. I just have the one attachment it came with. I will get more attachments later but it has been a couple of years now and i am quite satisfied as to how it performs free hand with my gouges. You only need to touch up the profile a tad each time. Carl
 
A lot of turners get a slow speed 8" grinder with the wolverine set up. Woodcraft sells a package that is a good deal, and not many people that have the set up have complaints. You will still need one of the vari-grind jigs, and the skew jig, if necessary. That entire setup will cost between $250-$300. I have the setup (sans the skew jig) and have been learning to use it.

I started with the PSI version and it is no where near as nice. I struggled for a long time. In the meantime, I invested in the Tormek, and later the wolverine/WC setup.

The Tormek is expensive, but can also sharpen many other tools. It generally takes longer (many argue different points here), but as long as you are sharpening (not shaping) it isn't bad. You will also not over heat the tool on the Tormek. I really like it, but have lately been trying to learn the wolverine for quick sharpening where a really fine edge is not needed; i.e. roughing.

I only use the Tormek for my skews. I use oval skews for final pen turning.

Oh, some complain about the wet sharpeners making a mess. In my experience, the few drops of water you get are no where the mess that flies everywhere from a dry grinder. Plus, you don't have to worry about breathing all of the silica and other nasties you get from dry grinding, with the wet sharpener.

I have also read that no matter which wet sharpener a person gets (Tormek, Jet, Grizzly), the jigs to invest in are the Tormek jigs. They are much better.

I hope this was clear as mud, or better.... Good luck.
 
For penturning, I regularly sharpen 2 roughing gouges and 5 skews in a batch and the process takes me 30-45 minutes to complete.

5 minute setup & cleanup time for each session which includes truing the wheel with the diamond tool. Actual sharpening averages 2-3 minutes for most tools and a 5 minute average time for each skew. I find it a bit tricky sometimes to get the exact jig alignment needed to sharpen both skew bevels equally. I grind the bevel(s) on the 220 graded stone until I feel a burr. I remove the burr & hone on the leather wheel (I use a separate burnisher if I need a burr on a scraper). Tormek recommends re-grading the wheel to 1000g before honing but I don't bother and still happy with the results.

Tools I've sharpened: skews, roughing gouges, sweptback grind spindle & bowl gouges, parting tools (included fluted), round nose & straight scrapers and a Bedan

Edit to add: I don't "shape" new tools or new grinds on the Tormek because, as mentioned, shaping on the Tormek takes a dreadful amount of time. I use the Tormek bench grinder mount on an 8" slow speed grinder which allows me to use the Tormek jigs for shaping with very little additional time to subsequently sharpen/hone on the Tormek.
 
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Dan,

I have that sharpener, and every attachment for the Tormek system will work perfectly with it. It is a clone of the Tormek because Tormek's patent expired it can now be copied. I love mine and would not trade it for any type of Wolverine type of setup.

Dan
 
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