(UPDATED w/ PICS ) VERITAS TOOL HOLDER FOR BENCH GRINDERS

[chief38]

This is sort of a Gun-smithing question as it is a tool that might be used for such on occasion. Has anyone here actually bought and used the Veritas Tool Holder for 6 and 8 inch bench grinders?? I have been pondering on ordering two along with the tool holding ji and since the combo will run almost $150 with freight I figured I'd ask first.

It looks very well built, versatile and accurate and is actually made in Canada.


http://www.leevalley.com/US/images/item/woodworking/sharpening/05d1302s3.jpg

 

[primersp]

I have the modèle for sharpening wood chisel works well

 

[chief38]

Well after a few days contemplating this tool rest I decided to build a better one (hopefully) myself. Hopefully they will come out a lot better as this will cost me more to do myself than to purchase them. I was a little leery of a fixture made out of relatively thin aluminum as I intend to use these tool rests quite a bit. I just ordered some 5/16" x 2 1/2" x 18" and 3/16" x 1" x 18" 01 precision ground flat tool steel and will make them in my shop. If they come out good, I'll post the finished product in case anyone here is interested.

I have been meaning to build precision tool rests that would allow proper sharpening of chisels, drill bits, and plane knives for a while now and just never had the time to get it done. I do not have a Milling Machine so I will have to do everything by hand.

I do use my Bench Grinder quite a bit so if these turn out good it will be worth the time, trouble and effort.

 

[chief38]

Well I worked on the Grinder tool rests this weekend (crummy weather) and here are a few pics of what I would up with. The first pic shows the original and one I just made. They have a full range of motion with two pivot points and adjust up and down about 2 1/2". the angle adjustment if infinite and will now allow me to attain the proper angle for any and all my tools. Of course the final sharpening of fine chisels and plane blades gets done by hand on an Arkansas Stone before being called good.

They are made from 01 precision ground tool steel flat stock and the main tool rest plate is 5/16" thick x 4" wide and 2 1/2" deep. The upright adjustment piece is made from 01 tool steel and is 1" wide x 3/16" thick x 4" long. Unfortunately I do not have a milling machine so all work was done by hand. A Porter Cable Tiger Saw and a Bi-metal blade was use to cut the steel, and good ole fashioned files were used to finish all the cuts. My drill press was used to drill holes and since I did not want to weld this, I drilled, tapped and used cap screws and Locktite to assemble.

This is a 6" Grinder (3/4" wheels) I purchased about 30 years ago and if I were to buy one now (no real need to) I would opt for an 8 inch X 1" wide wheel model but did not know better at the time.

I have two different types of wheels installed. The one on the left is a 60 grit Silicone Carbide wheel for Brass, Bronze and Aluminum and the right one is a 60 grit Aluminum Oxide for Steel & Stainless Steel. When I replaced the wheels (recently) I got rid of the 36 grit course wheel on the left because I almost never used it. I do not use this Grinder for heavy duty mass metal removal, just more to fine tune, sharpen and shape.

The reason I hand made these myself was because the ones close to what I wanted (the Veritas version) was in my personal opinion a bit flimsy being made out of aluminum. I also did want them attached to the Grinder itself rather than being mounted to the bench in front as is the Veritas model. It was sort of fun too and very satisfying. These tool steel tool rests should last a few lifetimes ....

 

[chief38]

Just wanted to mention something regarding sharpening Drill Bits. I use my Drill Press very often and I've invested big bucks in quality USA made Drill Bits. The commercially available Drill Bit Sharpeners (Drill Doctor, etc. ) work marginally at best (have 3 different types) and are a royal pain to use, They also have a limited range of bits that they will sharpen. Because of this, I have painstakingly taken the time to learn how to properly sharpen Bits on the Grinder (free-hand) If a Bit goes dull on me it takes me less than a minute to touch it up and get it back into service. Not only is it way more convenient but the Bit cuts much better and lasts longer. I can sharpen just about any size, type and length bits very quickly and efficiently. I would urge anyone who goes through a lot of Bits to consider this. Buying cheap Home Depot Drill Bits is OK for the occasional wood-worker but someone who works on metal a lot should invest in American made quality bits and master the sharpening techniques. Sharpening jigs do have their usefulness sometimes, but they take longer to set up than they are worth. You would be AMAZED at just how accurate (59º angle) and perfect you can sharpen free-hand with some practice!

Don't forget to balance, true and dress wheels when needed.

 

[steelslaver]

I have to agree that learning to sharpen drill bits is a valuable skill. It doesn't take long if you study a sharp bit and do a little practice.

Most people are way better at dulling drill bits. Mostly due to improper drilling practices.

Drill the proper sized pilot hole. The proper size is a pilot drill that closely matches the thickness of the web where the flutes of the larger bit meet. Stepping up holes sizes gradually is a very improper method. It causes the following drill to want to bite in and screw its way into the piece being drilled. Real machinist never do this.

Proper speeds and feeds. Speed: Most people run the drill motor way to fast and almost all hand drill motors run way to fast. I seldom take my drill presses above thier slowest speed. Feed is the rate that you press the bit into the work piece. Most people don't run enough down pressure and instead of making the drill cut properly, make it just rub more than cut. This causes heat and it doesn't take long for heat build up to destroy the temper in the bits thin cutting edges. Properly done a drill will cut thin spirals of metal as it drills, not chips or fine little pieces. Even on small drills like say 1/8" I use enough pressure that the bit is on the edge of flexing. MAKE IT CUT.

With proper practices I can drill a lot of hole through steel with a good sharp bit without resharping it even without oil. I can also dull a 1/4" bit drilling one hole through a piece of 1/4" plate using good oil, by running the drill way to fast and not putting enough pressure on it.

Only let up the pressure as you feel the bit start to go through the other side of the work piece. Have the work piece firmly held and having something like a piece of hardwood behind the piece will help as the drill goes though.

I use a 4 way vise or clamp downs on my drill presses. Loose pieces can easily become whirling injury causing hazards.

I never wear gloves while using a drill, lathe or mill. They can easily become snagged and cause serious injury. My cousin is a 60 year old life time machinist. One of the worst injuries he ever saw in a shop was a guy wearing gloves at a drill press. Drill snagged glove, instantly mangled finger AND pulled a tendon out of the guys hand. It took a lot of surgeries for the guys hand and it still wasn't right.

Power tools can really speed up work or injury. Your choice. Power tools have an infinite amount of patience. They can wait for years for you do the wrong thing at the wrong time and then bite you hard.

 

[dmar]

Awesome work Chief, they look great. I'd love to have a set like that, the ones that came with my Delta grinder are an abomination! Not sure if I could pull it off as good as you did...

Where did you get your stock? Did you figure out the dimensions/engineering yourself, or did you have any plans to go by?

 

[chief38]

Got the USA made 01 Tool Steel Stock from:

https://store.diesupplies.com/precision-marshall-ground-flat-stock-and-drill-rod-c41.aspx

Got the adjustable handles from McMaster-Carr.

Thanks! This little project tool me about 25 working hours to complete. At least a 2 hours contemplating the design, at least 3 hours of clean-up afterwards - those little metal shavings, drill spirals, chips, dust, etc get everywhere so I had to clean the entire Shop up afterwards and about 20 hours of actual work. Remember, I did this all by hand and there was a lot more filing than might meet the eye. Tapping went very slow because when I tapped the 6 #10-32 holes for the Cap Screws the last thing I wanted to do is break a tap in the hole! Cutting the 5/16" thick tool steel (even with my Porter Cable Tiger Saw) was tedious to say the least. It was painstaking to ensure everything came out perfectly square, parallel, and flat. I intend to utilize the edges as guides for certain sharpening and grinding tasks and wanted everything truly square. I also fudged one up and had to make a third plate but that's all part of the fun.......

 

[steelslaver]

Here is a helpful hint on tapping small holes if you don't have a tap a matic.

Use a battery powered drill with the torque set down a bit. The clutch will slip before it breaks the tap and hitting reverse will back it out for cleaning and oil. I keep thinking of mounting one of mine in a small press setup just for tapping

 

[SweetMK]

Chief38,, all this drill bit talk,,, I thought you might appreciate a pic of my drill press;

It is a gear head (no belt), and had a 4 rate power feed.

Using the power feed, I almost never dull a drill bit.
The drill is connected with a variable frequency drive, so I can select almost any speed.

The next time you need to cut a big piece of steel,, stop by, and use my saw,,,

It has a 9X16 inch capacity,,,

Oh, by the way,,, I never clean the shop to the degree you mentioned in an earlier post,,,
you are welcome to stop by and help me with that!!

 

[steelslaver]

Nice drill press. I run a bunch of VFDs in my shop. Love that finger tip speed control. Have 2 on my belt grinders, one on a drill press, another on the lathe and 1 on each mill.

 

[chief38]

SweetMK,
NICE CLAUSING!!

My Drill Press is a 16 speed MSC Heavy Duty 1 hp floor model that was made in Taiwan. It's better than the Chinese stuff made today, but nowhere in the class of your Clausing. I did upgrade the Drill Chuck on mine to a HD made in USA Jacobs (34-06), and also have two other Jacobs Super Chucks that I use for specialty jobs. One is the 18N which takes up to a 3/4" drill bit and the other is a Model 0 I believe that takes the smallest drill bits. Believe it or not the run out is only just over .0015 which I am very happy with.

I do go on ebay once in a while to look for a vintage Clausing, Walker-Turner, South Bend or Buffalo DP in great original condition but so far I have only seen beaters.

By the way I have been buying American Made Drill Bits from:

http://www.atlascuttingtools.com/

So far they have performed outstanding and stay sharp for a long time. I just bought a complete set of Jobber length Letter Drills as my old set was only half complete and many were shot. I also buy small size bits that can't be sharpened (like # 60, 59, 1/16" etc.) in dozen packs so I always have plenty on hand.

I also recently purchased a set of Left Handed Drill Hog broken screw removal bits but have not used them yet. Also made in USA and sold through ebay.

 

[stu1ritter]

chief38, thanks for the connect to Atlas. Just ordered a numbered set of jobbers from them. Very good price for made in USA bits. Can't wait to try them out.
thanks,
Stu

 

[chief38]

chief38, thanks for the connect to Atlas. Just ordered a numbered set of jobbers from them. Very good price for made in USA bits. Can't wait to try them out.
thanks,
Stu

I think you'll really like them! I have and use both the bright metal finish and the black oxide finish - both are fine. I also have a few individual Carbide Bits for drilling really hard stuff but no need for a full set as they are quite pricy and the HSS from Atlas has always gotten the job done on most steels.

 

[stu1ritter]

I ordered the black oxide (almost all of my other drills are also). I also changed the chuck to a Jacobs on my 20 speed Jet 17" from the early 90's. Heavy bugger! thanks again,

Stu