4.5" grinders (1 Viewer)

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Milwaukee sells some kind of grease... I think it is "Type Y". You could check their website.
I bet any synthetic grease would do it.
 
There's also a special grease that Skil sells for their worm drive saws, I bet it would work well.
 
I'll find out Monday - one of my Bosch's is leaking grease from the head so I need to replace the shaft seal and check the gear thrust spacers for wear . Probably chew their ass out again for such a crap designed guard setup - they need to build one like the old Dewalt lever type or better yet - Metabo's ratchet-style , those actually make sense . Nothing like spending 2-3 minutes moving the guard angle with a f(&*&&** allen wrench , wft , over ?
Evidently the design engineers never use these tools...aarggghhh.

Sarge
 
I take it that you really hate the guard design...

Is it possible for you to leave the allen key just loose enough so that it doesn't move around when you are grinding/cutting, but can still move it by hand without tools? That's what I do on my Makitas.
 
The Dewalt I posted earlier has a nifty ratcheting guard, no tools required.
 
No , if it's left even a bit loose the thing will rattle like hell , or loosen up further and drop one side down onto the grinding wheel...what a design joke . It's just irritating since the rest of the tool is very well built . I always go to my Metabo for heavy work and mostly use the 18v Bosch cordless 4.5" for general stuff - batteries last quite awhile and I see now they have 6 amp/hr ones available .
That slimline , 7amp Bosch almost took the Air Mail trip yesterday across the shop...

Sarge
 
My father in law gave me a HF angle grinder for Christmas about 15 years ago. I politely accepted it but put it aside for regifting at some later date because I already had a Makita. The Makita stopped working so I got out the HF and I noticed it came with an extra set of brushes, which turned out to be what the Makita needed and they fit. 15 years later, the HF is still going strong and the Makita went tits up. I got a Skil to replace it and it has been running fine. In between I got another HF and it only lasted 6 mo, so it is the luck of the draw. You need more than 1 angle grinder because you don't want to have to change disks all the time.
 
Just a note - if you want something that just might outlive you - Metabo . Find one on sale and they can be nearly inline with some of the cheaper DeWalt , ect...last far longer . My current one is 15yrs old and still sounds better than either of the less than 2yr old Bosch's , both the 18v cordless and the slimline 110v model . They are hefty , but it's the feeling of a very well-engineered/built tool .

Curious - has anyone found a grease available for the bevel gears on angle grinders , sort of a universal type ?

Just a side note -
Had to make a run nearly 75 miles one way yesterday to grab a set of 6 roller guides/ "cam followers" for my old 6230 Milwaukee deep cut band saw - it lives in a table stand I build last year and gets used to cut small/heavy steel/aluminum/brass parts a lot . 2 rollers committed suicide yesterday and destroyed a nearly new blade , so off to the races on the 'puter to find replacements . C&H Repair had them in stock and I needed to complete a job last night so it can go out this morning -
The Tool Team - CH Repair and Supply Co.

Bad idea going into that store - it's a tool hound's money draining toy store . Almost every brand imaginable in stock , including every available accessory and a lot of stuff I didn't know existed . I could dent a Power Ball ticket in there easily...
Anyhow , after rambling far too much - the counterman/rebuilder folks there said the one power tool that never comes in for repair except broken cases and such was Metabo - they almost don't like selling them , lol .

Sarge
 
I use two grinders (well 9 all together-two models) in my day to day fab.

5" Makita 9005B- I used these for years when I pipeline welded and they last well for the money. 2-3 years @ 100$ each on Amazon.
4.5" Porter Cable 7amp- I burn these up regularly but they are light and I use them for my finish detail sanding and misc other tasks @ 26$ each on Amazon

Just the way I think about grinders or any small tool really.... But, tinkering with a grinder for an hour or two to get it running again is sometimes 5X the money LOSS instead of just throwing it away and opening a new box. I keep several of each grinder on my consumables shelves. That's what most tools are these days anyway-- consumables.

EDIT: Sorry wrong Makita# GA5010Z 10.5 amp


J
 
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I am with Jason on this one. By the time you stop what you are doing, get the needed parts and put it back together, it is just cheaper to put another grinder in service. I've used Makita 4.5" grinders for years, generally in pairs. Brushes and switches are what goes first. But, by the time one goes the amount of metal dust that has been processed through the motor has been enough to make the tool not worth the time and material investment to repair it. Sad to think that a $70 plus tool is considered throw away.
 
That's my whole point about Metabo - it's a bit more initially , but it's also a tool that is not disposable in any way . I dare someone to honestly (not throw, run over) use/work one to a quick death , I sure failed at it . Welding shop owner next to me works on average 12hr days , has the same grinder and is far more abusive than I am - his sounds horrible , still runs at full speed/power regardless . Probably just needs new head grease , but he won't let go of it long enough to get it serviced ...lol .
Sarge
 
That's my whole point about Metabo - it's a bit more initially , but it's also a tool that is not disposable in any way . I dare someone to honestly (not throw, run over) use/work one to a quick death , I sure failed at it . Welding shop owner next to me works on average 12hr days , has the same grinder and is far more abusive than I am - his sounds horrible , still runs at full speed/power regardless . Probably just needs new head grease , but he won't let go of it long enough to get it serviced ...lol .
Sarge


That is the way the B&D Wildcat used to be. I had them fall off my truck at 60mph, slide for 300' feet ... STILL WORKED. Dropped in water/mud... STILL WORKED. Somehow when I was making an emergency repair for KOCH up in International Falls, MN and my helper dropped one in a bucket of water and the next morning came back frozen solid. Beat the ice off of it, threw it on the floor board with defrost on high for a couple hours... STILL WORKED!! I still say my helper did that one on purpose. The Wildcat was a monster and weighed a ton. All the other guys had the newer and lighter grinders and I wouldn't buy one because mine worked fine.

I finally went to a Makita because the line I was on gave them to the welders. Last time I was at the ranch they where still in the barn. PROBABLY STILL WORK! 20 years later.

Grinder005-800.jpg
 
We use Milwaukee on sites.
Most metal fabricating shops that I deal with use Metabo.
 
walter , you will never have to buy another grinder .
the milwaukees burn the motors out quite quickly .
dewalts last a decent amount of time .
 
I have one of those old B&D Wildcats!

IMAG0862.jpg


This thing will kick your butt, very heavy, draws 15A. Nobody wants to use it anymore.
 
I have an old Milwaukee that works great. I bought it n 1995 I think.
 
http://www.dewalt.com/products/powe...grinders/412-115mm-small-angle-grinder/d28402

The Dewalt 10amp 4.5" angle grinder with the paddle switch is like the land cruiser of grinders. My dad recently sold his welding shop, but it the standard welding table always had about 4-6 of them hanging under neath with different grinding wheels on them. They last forever. A couple were probably 20+ year old Black and Decker versions of the same thing. They're not cheap, but well worth the $.

Once you get used to having a few around, you'll have a hard time changing discs all the time. I keep 2 in my garage and probably will add at least one more. I like to have a cutoff disc, regular grinding disc, and a sanding disk. My dad's shop usually had a few of the cordless ones floating around with cutoff discs on them for quick breaking of tack welds. They're pretty limited for anything else.
I have one of the HF knockoffs... and so far it's pretty darn good. It's the $35ish one with the paddle switch. The cord has already torn the outer cover, so it'll need a new cord soon, but otherwise it's been rock solid. buying 3 dewalts at once is a lot of $ for a hobby shop, I'd probably buy 3 or 4 HF ones and upgrade to dewalts over time as you can afford it.
 

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