Grenby S-2 Surface Grinder, Anyone Familiar?

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ChandlerJPerry

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This has popped up for sale in my area. Information seems sparse online, is anyone familiar with the brand/model? Looks like the ittiest bittiest surface grinder I've ever seen. The seller wants a mere $100 for it so I'm tempted to drag it home.

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Presently I don't own a surface grinder, and don't have a pressing need for one. Plus I've got a lathe I'm trying to fix up, which is making me think twice, I don't really have the bandwidth for another project. My only working machine right now is my mill which has been a challenge. I'm also wondering what the capabilities of such a light duty grinder would be? The lack of a mag chuck is a bit of a con as well.

Not to be all negative, I'm definitely interested and would love to hear any opinions or info about this machine.
 
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Given it's $100 and relatively close, the issue becomes one of space in your workshop and if you ever will work on parts that will fit in the work envelope of this little grinder.

Do you have the space to tuck it in a corner somewhere to be dealt with later?

If you do and assuming the $100 is an amount you can afford to have a punt with, I'd say buy it.

Assuming it can be tidied up and it'll capable of producing a good, accurate finish, I reckon you'd find a use for it.

Even if you couldn't find a use for a surface grinder (and that seems unlikely to me), or it's not redeemable for whatever reason, there'll be parts and 'stock' on it that you may salvage from it that you might find useful.

Also 'benchtop' surface grinders are pretty rare so if you can at least make it presentable, you'd probably not lose money selling it on.

I'd be buying it, I reckon.
 
Here's a link to a Grenby product catalog on the Vintage Machinery site. There are also a few videos of several of their machines online.


I believe it's similar in size to the smallest Sanford SG grinder. The Sanford's seem to be sought after by knife makers. I have a Sanford MG which is their middle of the road size.

The lack of a magnetic chuck will limit what can be done on the machine. That being said most used equipment dealers have them in stock. I have both a 5" x 10" and a 6" x 12" for my machine. I paid less than $100.00 for the 5" x 10" in like new condition.

If you decide to go for it, I suggest looking for a fine pole magnetic chuck. They are a bit more versatile in that they can hold smaller objects better since there will be more lines of magnetism running through the part. The first link below is a fine pole chuck. The second is a wide pole chuck. If you go with the wide pole variety you may need a set of magnetic parallels. They set on the chuck and essentially redistribute the magnetic lines to emulate a fine pole chuck.

Fine Pole Chuck
www.ebay.com

SUBURBAN RECTANGULAR MAGNETIC CHUCK 10" x 5" # MCB-510-FP | eBay

SUBURBAN RECTANGULAR MAGNETIC CHUCK 10" x 5" # MCB-510-FP
www.ebay.com

Wide Pole Chuck
www.ebay.com

Great Working Order - BROWN & SHARPE MAGNETIC CHUCK, MODEL NO. 510 - Made in USA | eBay

Good, working order. Could probably use a going over and cleaning, or use as-is. Table is about 10-1/4" x 5-1/2". There is a stop added on one side which could be removed if desired. Ready to work with no issues.
www.ebay.com

Fine pole chuck with magnetic Parallels
www.ebay.com

Suburban Tool MCB-510 10"x 5" Rectangular Permanent Magnetic Chuck W/ Extra set | eBay

Included: One pair Magnetic Check Parallels 1" x 2" x 4".
www.ebay.com
 
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projectnut said:
Here's a link to a Grenby product catalog on the Vintage Machinery site. There are also a few videos of several of their machines online.


I believe it's similar in size to the smallest Sanford SG grinder. The Sanford's seem to be sought after by knife makers. I have a Sanford MG which is their middle of the road size.

The lack of a magnetic chuck will limit what can be done on the machine. That being said most used equipment dealers have them in stock. I have both a 5" x 10" and a 6" x 12" for my machine. I paid less than $100.00 for the 5" x 10" in like new condition.
Click to expand...
Oh, very different situation in the US then.

The only surface grinders that come up with any regularity or frequency (even via dealers) are the Jones and Shipman 540 size type machines or larger.

Small benchtop sized surface grinders are an utter rarity in the UK but they're a much more appropriate size for your average UK hobbyist and so pretty desirable.

I reckon a machine like the OP has found, even if only cosmetically tidied, would sell fairly easily for £300 over here.

But yeah, if they're pretty common in the US and $100 is not a great price, then maybe this one Is not such a good deal.

One thing I reckon I'm right about is that whilst many hobbyist workshops get by perfectly well without a surface grinder, it's a rare one that wouldn't notably benefit from having a surface grinder!

Leaving aside the standard usages, with the right fixtures, a lot of cutters (endmills, drills, lathe tools, etc) can be sharpened much more efficiently; particularly carbide tooling. Precision ground flat stones can be made, too.
 
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Small SG are rarer than hen's teeth, at least around where I live. I'd snap it up.
 
SouthernChap said:
Oh, very different situation in the US then.

The only surface grinders that come up with any regularity or frequency (even via dealers) are the Jones and Shipman 540 size type machines or larger.

Small benchtop sized surface grinders are an utter rarity in the UK but they're a much more appropriate size for your average UK hobbyist and so pretty desirable.

I reckon a machine like the OP has found, even if only cosmetically tidied, would sell fairly easily for £300 over here.

But yeah, if they're pretty common in the US and $100 is not a great price, then maybe this one Is not such a good deal.

One thing I reckon I'm right about us that whilst many hobbyist workshops get by perfectly well without a surface grinder, it's a rare one that wouldn't notably benefit from having a surface grinder!

Leaving aside the standard usages, with the right fixtures, a lot of cutters (endmills, drills, lathe tools, etc) can be sharpened much more efficiently; particularly carbide tooling. Precision ground flat stones can be made, too.
Click to expand...
The US is vast and in my area, machine tools are fairly rare. I would definitely consider a surface grinder of this small size to be very uncommon as well. Based on the input it seems like I should grab it and make some space for it.
 
projectnut said:
Here's a link to a Grenby product catalog on the Vintage Machinery site. There are also a few videos of several of their machines online.


I believe it's similar in size to the smallest Sanford SG grinder. The Sanford's seem to be sought after by knife makers. I have a Sanford MG which is their middle of the road size.

The lack of a magnetic chuck will limit what can be done on the machine. That being said most used equipment dealers have them in stock. I have both a 5" x 10" and a 6" x 12" for my machine. I paid less than $100.00 for the 5" x 10" in like new condition.

If you decide to go for it, I suggest looking for a fine pole magnetic chuck. They are a bit more versatile in that they can hold smaller objects better since there will be more lines of magnetism running through the part. The first link below is a fine pole chuck. The second is a wide pole chuck. If you go with the wide pole variety you may need a set of magnetic parallels. They set on the chuck and essentially redistribute the magnetic lines to emulate a fine pole chuck.

Fine Pole Chuck
www.ebay.com

SUBURBAN RECTANGULAR MAGNETIC CHUCK 10" x 5" # MCB-510-FP | eBay

SUBURBAN RECTANGULAR MAGNETIC CHUCK 10" x 5" # MCB-510-FP
www.ebay.com

Wide Pole Chuck

Fine pole chuck with magnetic Parallels
www.ebay.com

Suburban Tool MCB-510 10"x 5" Rectangular Permanent Magnetic Chuck W/ Extra set | eBay

Included: One pair Magnetic Check Parallels 1" x 2" x 4".
www.ebay.com
Click to expand...
Thank you for the info! The Grenby catalog was helpful, I found a model labeled S-1 in it which appears basically identical to the S-2 in the ad. Based on the sentiment from other users and some personal meditation, I reached out to the seller to see if I can check it out. It's certainly worth $100 and the 20 minute drive, and would be a great fit for my shop since I'm fairly space constrained.

There are a few machine tool dealers in my area, although I'm not sure if any of them deal with the older machines and equipment that hobbyists like us enjoy. I will have to make a few calls and see if any of them might have an extra mag chuck kicking around. The eBay prices aren't terrible but the shipping is a real killer on such a heavy item.
 
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