OK, people. Now I know you'd rather read the posts from that guy who's showing off his girlfriend, but focus for a minute please. :)
I've got to buy an angle grinder and I've got some questions. I've been to Home Depot and they got all the major brands. All the grinders that I've seen have a 5/8-11 arbor fitting on them. I thought, 'No big deal'. But, after looking around the store I didn't see any dang sanding discs that would fit it.
Now, being the industrious guy that I am, I fired up Google and searched for flap disc and got a bunch of hits. However, the one ones with the 5/8-11 arbor fitting were mucho diñero, esse. Not a good thing.
So, I remember a welding shop guy I knew that had all these grinders and the sanding disc one took little screw on sanding pads that screwed into a metal or fiberglass backing. This is what I want. Is the backing piece just something you buy? Is anyone familiar with these and where I might get them?
Thanks for your help. And, I promise, after you help me solve this you can go back to looking at pictures of that spammer's girlfriend. :P
Thanks for the info. That's why I'm looking at the Rigid. It has a paddle switch, but it slides up and locks into position too. Very handy for grinding. So you're saying all grinders come with the sander setup?
When you buy a grinder you get the sanding setup with it.
I like the little Ryobi G-1155C. The thing I like about it is it has a for-real on-off switch, *not* a deadman paddle switch. My hands get less tired using it. I also have a Milwaukee whatever-it-is, 9405? It's real rugged but less smooth, and I get more tired using it.
Angle grinders may be one of the few exceptions to the general admonition to buy the best you can afford. I find it really difficult to justify spending $80 on a major brand angle grinder when I can take the same $80 and buy three Harbor Freight angle grinders, with $20 left over for accessories (but go elsewhere for the accessories). They seem reliable enough, but I'm not using them 8 hours a day either. Yeah, they may be a little noisier and vibrate a little more than the more expensive ones, but unless your grinding several hours a day...
As for sanding discs, the ones you described sound like Roloc's by 3M. I've only seen them in smaller sizes (for die grinders) but I haven't looked for them for angle grinders. Personally, I love the flapped sanding discs. Even though they seem expensive at first, they last a long time, they're a breeze to change, and they give a nicer finish and conform better and aren't nearly as likely to gouge your work as ordinary sanding discs. You can get them from
I bought a 4" Makita from Home Depot for $29 and love it. It's made in China, obviously to Makita's specs and quality control and comes with a 2 year warranty. It feels and performs like a Japanese tool (well, I assume they used to be made in Japan). Two year warranty! How can you go wrong for $29? Gary Brady Austin, TX
Some brands come with a "kit" (rubber backing and flat nut) to convert the grinder to a 4 1/2" disc sander; with others, you have to buy the kit. Stick with the major brands, their bearings last longer than the brushes
- a thing not always true with the cheap stuff.
If you'd like, come by the shop Saturday morning and you can see which one of mine fits your hand.
If the grinder you select doesn't have the sanding setup, they will have an accessory available at a reasonable price. I really like the flap wheels rather than the flat sanding discs, but it depends on what you are doing. I got some rough flappers, that is flappers with big grit, and when I chucked it up to my Makita, they spun on the shaft. You have to use a flat nut on them. Looked like they would really chew some metal, though.
IIRC, all are about the same so the wheels are interchangeable. I need another grinder because I hate having to change from grinding wheel to cup brush. When I had a shop, I had three so I could just grab one and go.
Ahhhhhh, the good old days. Or was it the old good days. I can't remember.
Hey, that sounds good Tom. What time on Saturday? You know my email (rvb at houston dot rr dot com). Shoot me your cell phone number again so I can let you know when I'm on my way. You got any coal I could buy off you? I need a little bit.
I may try both. We'll see. The horn of my stupid, crap anvil I bought isn't conical, it's more of a cone that was squished down some from the top. It sucks butt. So after much use of a file, I've decided to break down and buy a grinder. After looking at all the stuff, it seems the flap disk will be great for this, but I've never used them so I don't know.
Harbor Freight sells several different 4.5 inch grinders. The one you want is Chicago Electric item number 42204. It is currently on sale for $18.99 at the retail stores. This is the tough son of a gun that everyone likes.
Hmmm, for that, you may want to look at their 7 inch or 9 inch grinders. The little 4.5 inch grinders are great for dressing up welds, but for moving a lot of metal, you'll want something larger.
Oh, I might not be able to make it then. I've got something I have to do in the morning and won't be free until after lunch time. I guess it will have to be another time.
s'funny, I find it hard to justify another $240 angle grinder when I can buy three $80 cheapies instead.
I wouldn't be seen dead with a $20 Harbor Freight (or Red Devil / Nu Tool) They break faster than I can change disks, they vibrate, the finish is lousy (bearing wobble) and the switches fall off. Don't even think about a grinder that doesn't have the windings potted in epoxy, if you're going to be grinding metal dust with it.
Get one with a spindle lock button and a switch you can live with. Apart from that, eveything else is really about longevity. 4 1/2" is the size to have.
The main thing is to stock up on abrasives. Get _everything_, and get the best quality you can find. It's worth spending the money to have all the grits and types you could ever need, on hand and ready before you need them. Cheap market-stall disks are a very false economy. I use flap disks almost entirely in place of rigid disks.
And buy some anti-vibration gloves while you're about it. The new Bosch are shipping with an anti-vibration handle. Personally, all mine have neoprene foam tape glued around the handles.
I was given a 4+1/2" makita as a gift years ago. I wouldn't have gotten it if I'd had picked one out. 10x1.25 treads, no spindle lock and a switch that I've never gotten used to. :/ I've had to buy a couple (not cheap) adapters for 5/8-11 threads and they are basically stuck inside certain grind stones, until they are used up, since they are a pain to remove etc. :/
As far as just plain old using it... I try it first and only go with the big 7" when I really need to. The little makita is one of my best power tools tho, despite my gripes.
I'm about the cheapest guy you'll ever know and I agree with Andy on this one. Good tools that do the job right or no tool at all is the way I see it. And those cheap grinding disks not only don't cut good they don't wear right. Always having to re-dress them to lower vibration etc. The name brand disks on the other hand are a pleasure to use. The cheap ones aren't worth it, no way, no how.
I hollow grind knife blades using what's basically a homemade bench grinder. I can accomplish that feat because of one simple reason... I learned how to setup and dress a stone for minimum vibration. I'm not looking for a medal;) I'm wanting you guys to understand how much better work can be done when vibration is low. You can feel what's going on, as opposed to being all "sight driven".
I've never needed any vibration damping like that but then I don't use flap disks. I bought a few 1" diameter, mounted ones with 1/4" shaft, and didn't like them at all. :/ I was looking for something to smooth the inside curve/s on the butt spring on slip-joint pocket knives (a stockman has one butt spring and one double ended spring) but even the double ended spring has a couple little inside curves on either side of the center pin.
Flap wheels left lines. :(
What I've found is best= the highest density de-burring wheels you can get your hands on. :) Little 1" mounted ones work like a champ too. :)
Read recently about cellular damage from vibration in my grown up version of "the weekly reader" ...science news. When I was younger I used a jack hammer quite a bit. Funny thing about those and railroaders is, if you forget to take off your fancy-ass RR approved watch it'll cost you more than you made that day. ;)
The trouble with vibration is that you don't realise you needed it until after the damage is done. Never felt "fizzy fingers" after an hour's work with a grinder ?
Here in the UK there's a lot of industrial claiming going on these days for "vibration white finger", particularly amongst miners. This might be due to using tools 20 years ago.
I don't think I've ever handled a 7" grinder. I buy the flap wheels for them, because they're the biggest flap wheels I can get for my 9" grinder (they also reduce gyroscope effect). The only 7" machines I've seen have been mongo-dollar brands.
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