On Tue, 1 Dec 1998, Cliff Hansen wrote:
> Anyway, there's several items on sale at half price. Some are
> no-brainers, I wanted to ask about the Chicago brand 4-1/2" electric
> angle grinder ($20.) 5/8"-11 spindle with 7/8" arbor adapter.
> 3/4 HP. Having never used one what does it do?
> Should I have one - why yes, I should, its a tool isn't it? Is there
> an advantage to getting an air-powered grinder?
Be aware that most angels come in the 7/8" size (unless you opt for 4"
diameter angels, which use the smaller arbor). So don't lose the adaptor.
I bought a Craftsman angle grinder (they were sold out of angel grinders)
and it's been OK for my purposes. My brother reported that the Navy used
Black & Decker grinders and bought new ones every week. You may not have
that option.
The only beef about my grinder is that with the stock setup, thin cutting
disks would get crushed (because the arbor didn't clamp them in the same
place on both sides; disk would dish then crack...). I remedied this by
placing ex-hard drive shims behind (or before) the thin disks.
I suspect that the unit in question will have no ball bearings and a
cheesy switch. On my grinder I had to open up the case and bayonet the
switch together; due to excessive force required to flip the switch, the
extension mechanisms would come apart and the switch wouldn't function for
very long.
The switch was placed aft of the actual motor; the thing operated by your
thumb is just a connecting rod. It can break / bend / cease to work ...
so be prepared to fix it. I sent my grinder back to Sears to take
advantange of their warranty but they didn't fix it properly... so I
voided the warranty and fixed it myself. No problems yet :-)
For that price, you can't lose. And if the tool sucks, then it will go on
the "reserved" shelf; tools reserved for lending to people you hate.
-Malcolm
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