Surface Grinder rookie

[TLBCustom]

There has been a lot of great information shared already so forgive me if this is repetitive. I tried to keep this brief but it is tough.

A couple of notes on successful grinding starting from the beginning.

• The machine must be leveled to a very high sensitivity.
  • A .0005"/foot or better level is required.
• The machine table should be inspected for flatness before mounting the chuck
  • The table can be ground if it is not within .0002" flatness over the chuck mounting area.
• The chuck must be inspected for flatness/parallelism before mounting.
  • If the bottom is not flat, it should be blocked in, top side down and ground flat.
    • Blocking it in and shimming any twist/warp will keep from reproducing the same defect.
    • Do not use the magnet or clamp to hold it it down.
• Mount the chuck..
  • Assemble the rail in order to indicate in straight in the x axis direction
  • clamp the chuck, 15 foot pounds on the left and 10 foot pounds on the right.
    • This is to allow for heat expansion.
• Magnet on or magnet off?
  • Permanent magnets, always on.
    • They do not create heat when on.
  • Electromagnetic chucks turned on with power reduced to below 30% or off
    • They will create heat and the reduced power helps
    • Never leave them on at full power for long periods unless you have flood coolant running.
  • Electro permanent chucks
    • Perform just like Permanent magnetic chucks
• Grinding the chuck (top, bottom or table)
  • A course dress is recommended
  • Down feed should not exceed .0002"-.0003" (Y-axis)
  • Cross feed should be about .050" to .100" per stroke (Z-axis)
  • Traverse speed (X-axis) should be fairly rapid
  • You will want to do several spark outs
• If you have coolant, use it!
  • smearing wax on the chuck between cuts works
  • Smearing cutting oil on the chuck between cuts works as well or better.
  • Mist coolant works better and flood coolant is best.
  • With care, a chuck can be ground dry. Leave electromagnetic chucks off and wait for the surface to cool to ambient between cuts.

I attached some information about wheel selection and dressing. I put this together many years ago so there may be some outdated terminology. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask.

I forgot to mention, grit refers to grain size and grade refers to hardness. Grades go from soft to hard as the alphabet progresses. H, I J & K wheels are typically used for surface grinding and harder wheels like L,M, & N wheels are used for centerless or cylindrical. In a home shop, you would most likely use a 60I and a 46H or I when most often.

 

[S5rx7]

There us alot of good info here for sure! I may video my process when I get back at it so you all can follow my mess ups getting it dialed in .
I purchased a Noga cooling block so now i gotta come up with a pump setup.

 

[TNBen60]

I recently acquired a surface grinder as well and looking to learn as much as I can as I go through the machine. One thing I am wondering is what others do to protect the other machines in a small shop while grinding. At the moment I envision throwing a painter’s tarp over the mill and lathe. Is there a better idea?

 

[ddickey]

Dust collector would be the best option I think.
Air cleaners work pretty good too.

 

[S5rx7]

I recently acquired a surface grinder as well and looking to learn as much as I can as I go through the machine. One thing I am wondering is what others do to protect the other machines in a small shop while grinding. At the moment I envision throwing a painter’s tarp over the mill and lathe. Is there a better idea?

Dust collector i would think. A lot of grinders you see have the collector hose attachment.

 

[S5rx7]

Im still hunting for the proper container to setup my pump and such. I may end up building one out of stainless.