Tungsten grinder?

I haven't ground a tungsten electrode in years. Once shown how to properly use this stuff, I never looked back:


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It works but it contaminates your torch and cleaning up takes longer than grinding. I don't like getting up and going to the grinder so I grind a half dozen or so and weld until I need to grind again. Sometime that may be a few hours and sometimes a few minutes if the welding is in a difficult area.
 
After destroying a few aluminum oxide wheels, I decided to build my own grinder from scratch. I can grind 3/32" tungsten rods in roughly 10 seconds or less. Here's my simple recipe:

6" Harbor Freight bench top grinder - $39
220 grit 6" x 1" diamond grinding wheel - $79 (I got mine off of Ebay)
Steel shaft reducer bushing - $13 (http://d-waytools.com/cbn-grinding-wheels/bushing-kits-for-cbn-grinding-wheels/)

1. Remove the original left side wheel from the grinder and all shroud material.
2. Cut down the shaft reducer bushing so that it is just under the width of the diamond grinding wheel.
3. Bolt down the new grinding wheel.

I am really surprised how smooth this setup runs. The diamond wheel must be really well balanced. My Ebay grinding wheel was made in Taiwan. I didn't have a lathe when putting this together and ended up using a hacksaw to cut down the reducer.

My grinding operation is pretty simple. I chuck up the tungsten rods in a cordless drill and spin while grinding.

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I found a 4 1/2" Ashland bench grinder on CL for $5. I put two Harbor Freight diamond wheels on it at $10 each, and it works perfectly for tungstens and touching up carbide cutting tools. Grand total of $25 invested!

GG

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This is a great example of shooting yourself in the foot. A couple years ago I bought a HF for like $40 total fail. Then I bought a newer Delta (China) for like $99 and it wobbled and vibrated to the point of being useless. So I'm out already $140 trying to go cheap. Today I ordered the Kalamazoo 1SM 1x42 Baldor belt sander this morning, made in USA, $290 to my door.

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My life won't be complete without one of those! Where did you order it from?
 
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