I need to buy a bench grinder. B&Q sell one for about £12 - is it any good.
In particular, since my workshop is indoors, it needs to be quiet - My wife won't let me buy any more noisy tools
Are all bench grinders quiet?

No its rubbish, next to useless. Not enough power. I bought one and honestly I can file quicker.

[Edited on 6/7/07 by Mole]

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Originally posted by Mole
No its rubbish, next to useless. Not enough power. I bought one and honestly I can file quicker.

[Edited on 6/7/07 by Mole]

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But what about sharpening a drill with a file, I'd like to see that

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But what about sharpening a drill with a file, I'd like to see that

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Originally posted by daviep
But what about sharpening a drill with a file, I'd like to see that

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Really, I need a grinder, not a file

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I seem to think my bench grinder is a perf pro from B&Q and ive had no probs. Has a belt sander on other end. Sure its not the most powerful thing but more than adequate for light hobby use. I dress up drill bits no bother.

Ill have to check exactly what make buts it scertainly a cheapo budget one. Had it for 2 years + now.

Ok, cheap B&Q is out of the question.
What is good enough?

I got one from screwfix on clearance ~£15, 9" Wolf I think and haven't had any problems - takes some time to spin up, but once it's there it doesn't slow down.....

I have a Black and decker one it's 15 years plus old. Never given me any problems but I only use it for sharpening drills etc not as a file.
Seems to me some of the earlier posters may be using there's, with roosters tails of sparks, flying of the end of a 50*50 hollow section.

Bench grinders are a waste of time, no point gaving one in my humble opinion.

I have one and it has been used about 3 times in 10 years.

Get a belt linisher, this is ABSOLUTELY INDISPENSABLE!!!!

You can do anything a bench grinder can do on the linisher, but the bench grinder can do little that the belt linisher can do, such as squaring the ends of exhaust tube etc, and filing decent fits on chassis tubes.

Only time a bench grinder is of any use is if you have brazed carbide cutting tools and no diamond dressing wheels, when a green stone in the grinder will sharpen them.

I haven't got a garage yet - so I can't build any car parts yet.
I need it to do the following :
Sharpen lawnmower blades
Sharpen drills
Reform the ends of abused chisels
Various other bits and pieces

isn't it cheaper to just buy a new drill? if i'm not mistaken you're talking about drill bits getting blunt after a while?

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Originally posted by robertst
isn't it cheaper to just buy a new drill? if i'm not mistaken you're talking about drill bits getting blunt after a while?

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sn't it cheaper to just buy a new drill? if i'm not mistaken you're talking about drill bits getting blunt after a while?

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Originally posted by omega 24 v6
Wait till you try and buy a new drill in the larger sizes You'll soon realize tis better to sharpen them. We learned as apprentices how to do it, including point thinning. The knack/skill never leaves you.

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most drill wear is due to incorrect use, they normally last for a very long time.

Problem with anything over 10mm in a hand held drill is you will struggle to exert enough cutting pressure at low enough revs, so you don't constantly form a chip, you form some chip then rub for a bit then chip again etc and its the rubbing that wears the drill not the cutting.

I use my grinder a lot for deburring stuff but I'm thinking of swapping it for one with a linishing belt instead of one of the stones. I find the weak ones will slow down and can be stopped if you press on too hard but if you are not too heavy handed they do the job.

Are cheap Bench grinders quiet? - my wife won't let me have any more noisy power tools

They are quiet until you press metal against the stone at which point they become noisy

Makro were doing one that was originally £15 but now £10 (plus VAT of course) I think Netto have on for a tenner too. Plenty good enough for drill sharpening.
I used to have a floor standing cast iron one that had 14" x 3" wheels! Bit on the loud side but great for grinding bar and tube (and my finger on occaisions)
Keep an eye out in Aldi and Lidl - I fancy there was one advertised on one of their flyers recently.

The cheap ones are usually underpowered,you need a minimum of around 250watts, the more the better,however, having said that I have one of these, http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/cbg6sb-6in-bench-grinder-with-sander/path/bench-grinders-grinding-wheels the belt is used more than the wheel.

The machine I have is one of these:

ebay linky

only I paid £180 brand new and delivered for it so how they hope to get £250 I don't know!!!!!!!