4&1/2" angle grinder reccomendations?

[eastexan]

That must be why you might find two 5 inch grinders on a shelf under a 2 inch pile of dust within a 100 miles of here and even have to look just as hard for a 5 inch disk.:confused2:

All shops around here use 4.5s,7's, or 9's, with an occasional 4 thrown in.

It might be a regional thing...but I can count on 1 hand the times I have seen a 5 inch grinder in use.

+1
Same here :thumbsup:

 

[Gary Fowler]

Same here, 4" and 4.5". I have never seen a 5 " grinder or grinder blade, but there is a lot of stuff that I have never seen so I wont say they dont exist. Never seen a ghost either.

 

[JoelD]

Used my 3 inch air cut off tool yesterday on my truck, gets into tight places nicely.

My B&D 4.5 inch grinder has worked great for years.

Joel

 

[Gary Fowler]

After some web searches, it seems like there are lots of 5" grinders on the European websites, but only Dewalt seems to have them in my local market, but I dont find any 5" blades for them and Lowes price is $139 for the grinder. From the looks of it, it is just a more powerful and slightly larger 4" but since they dont stock 5" blades for it, it is still just a 4.5". I guess if I was me buying a grinder and wanted more power, I would just go ahead and get the 7 " for about $100 more and use the larger blades for heavy work. I like the 4 1/2" because they are light and remove metal fast. I dont like them because the blades don't last very long. Since you get a lot more cutting surface with a 7" blade vs a 4 or 4.5 and the cost is very little difference, it is much more economical to use a 7" grinder than the small one.

 

[FastPauly]

Word of caution for the "fix-it yourselfer's" out there......you cannot buy parts for Hilti tools. You have to send them back to Hilti. I also have a Snap-On grinder that those traveling tool salesmen peddle....a local dropped it off at my shop asking if I could repair it.....it has definate gear issues. So far, I am striking out on finding parts for it....Snap-ons web site has info (parts diagram) for it but sadly, "parts unavailable" is stated.

In the past couple of months, I have been doing a lot of grinder repairs for the NG drilling/pipeline industry that has swarmed the NE corner of PA. For the most part, repairs consist of replacing bad cords, switches and brushes. Then there are the occasional ones that need broken housings replaced due to being dropped or accidentally runover by a truck. I think I have only had to replace a couple with gear damage. There does appear to be a complaint from users of certain large DeWalt models stating that the gear case runs unusually warm....looked into them but can't see anything obviously wrong. One thing that I have noted on these complaints is that the grinders in question do not have the side handle attached and by looking at he crud filled mounting hole....they are obviously used that way. Without the handle, I can assume a gloved hand is placed over the gear housing to control the grinder....this results in blocking off the cooling vents.

My thoughts on increasing the longevity of a grinder....replace the brushes before they need to be replaced. A worn brush can be cause for other failures beside itself. Poor brush contact leads to poor performance which leads to longer grinding cycles which leads to more heat buildup. Arcking brushes will destroy the brush holders and in my mind, is a lead-in to switch failure.

I am not a grinder expert by no means....but I have stayed in a Holiday Express a couple of times....

 

[Gary Fowler]

You are absolutely right about holding the grinder with a gloved hand, thus stopping much of the air flow thru the grinder. Another cause for failure on pipelines is that they drop them in the dirt / sand with them still turning and it sucks in all kinds of abrasive particle into the internals which cant be good on the grinders either. I suppose you could get the same particles from a dirty welding table by laying the grinder down when it is still turning> How many are guilty of that? ME for sure. DO I even know where the handles are for my two 4" grinders? MAYBE.

 

[Chilly807]

My Jobmate (Canadian Tire Chinese) died yesterday after quite a few years of use. Not a bad little tool at all for the price. I would have bought another one yesterday to replace it, but the light was fading and I had work to get done. So off to Home Hardware, and came back with a Porter Cable Chinese 4.5... So far it's ok, not as small and handy as the Jobmate, but smoother and more power. We'll see how it does as time goes on.

Sean

 

[johnk]

I have had my Craftsman abput 12 yrs and beat the snot out of it. Still running at 100%....

 

[Captain Carburetor]

I am a retired car mechanic and I have had great luck with the HARBOR FREIGHT angle grinders. They are super cheap, but they have lasted me for years (of light use). My son now has my old one and I got a new one, same deal. They are less than 20 dollars and often on sale. At that price, you can't go wrong, in my opinion.

 

[shade tree welder]

That must be why you might find two 5 inch grinders on a shelf under a 2 inch pile of dust within a 100 miles of here and even have to look just as hard for a 5 inch disk.:confused2:

All shops around here use 4.5s,7's, or 9's, with an occasional 4 thrown in.

It might be a regional thing...but I can count on 1 hand the times I have seen a 5 inch grinder in use.

4-1/2" are very common, 4's and 5's harder to find stock of but you can
always order them.

When running my welding business, Milwaukee's held up well to the contanst
use and abuse. Parts are easy to get. I have yet to burn up a Milwaukee,
fried every other make I have ever tried.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

While we're on the subject, I saw this deal today...

Bosch 1375-03H 4-1-2-in 6 Amp Small Angle Grinder 2-Pack with Free Grinding Wheels

Any opinions of that Bosch model? The fact that they're selling them in a two pack makes one thing that even the manufacturer considers them a consumable.

 

[BXpanded]

While we're on the subject, I saw this deal today...

Bosch 1375-03H 4-1-2-in 6 Amp Small Angle Grinder 2-Pack with Free Grinding Wheels

Any opinions of that Bosch model? The fact that they're selling them in a two pack makes one thing that even the manufacturer considers them a consumable.

As a rule, Bosch makes pretty good stuff. These are fairly light grinders but should do fine if you don't lean on them too hard. The sale by the pair doesn't indicate "Consumable". A well equipped Fab table needs at least 3, preferably 4 grinders each with different wheels and brushes.

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

Keep in mind the same company owns SKIL..which was formerly a good name, but now its right about Harbor Freight.

 

[shade tree welder]

As a rule, Bosch makes pretty good stuff. These are fairly light grinders but should do fine if you don't lean on them too hard. The sale by the pair doesn't indicate "Consumable". A well equipped Fab table needs at least 3, preferably 4 grinders each with different wheels and brushes.

3 was always a good number for me. Wire wheel, type one disc, sanding
disc. I liked the Milwaukees because you could detach the cord from the
grinder, forgot what they call it. When welding you have enough cords
cables and hoses laying around, being able to share one power cord with 3
grinders was a plus for me.

 

[EuropaChris]

We have a bunch of Metabo grinders at work and they seem to hold up pretty well. So do the older DeWalt grinders. But no electric grinder is going to really take the kind of abuse metal fabrication can really dish out. AIR grinders are where it's at and unfortunately, so is the price. I had an Atlas Copco LSV38-ST12-125 5" angle grinder for a demo. It was really a 4-1/2" grinder that would also squeeze in 5" wheels, and it was very easy to handle as the body diameter was much smaller than any electric grinder.

The air motor contained a governor that would maintain wheel rpm as load was applied. This, in theory, will make the consumables last longer and perform better. All I know is that it had an insane amount of power and you'd better make sure the wheel was on TIGHT and also have the wheel retainer lock installed. When releasing the trigger fully, the wheel stops NOW, and I had the wheel spin right off and dance across the shop floor for a LOOOONG way. :ashamed:

So why doesn't everyone have one??? Two problems - a $900 price tag and enormous air consumption - somewhere between 30 and 50 cfm! I've got a couple of 100hp compressors at work that will do the job, but there aren't many small shops that have that much air available. But one air grinder, provided it is properly lubricated (both the air motor and the gearbox), will outlast many electric grinders and probably save money in the long run.

Therefore, I'll keep using my $20 Tool Shop brand grinder from Menards that has performed way beyond what I expected of it and still runs great. One tip - most of these grinders (especially the cheap ones) use some sort of Mongolian Yak fat for grease. It is way too thick for the high speed gears and causes excess heating. I clean this out and replace it with Mystik synthetic blend grease as it has a rather light base oil viscosity of around 68 cSt. Most other greases have base oil viscosity in the 180-220 range, and some are over 600. This is not the same as #1, #2, etc. grade grease. You can have a "thin" grease with thick base oil and vice versa. Electric motor bearing grease is another good type - usually with base oil in the 100 cSt range like Mobilith SHC 100.

Chris

 

[Cook123]

Metabo at work although Millwaukee used to rule. An older Black and Decker at home. Very useful but potentialy dangerous tool. Be careful.

 

[rjmack]

Orginally posted by Mark@Everlast;

Default Re: 4&1/2" angle grinder reccomendations?
Quote:


All shops around here use 4.5s,7's, or 9's, with an occasional 4 thrown in.

It might be a regional thing...but I can count on 1 hand the times I have seen a 5 inch grinder in use

up here it's the opposite... 4 1/2 discs very tough to find. also, if you work construction, certainly in bc or alberta, you are going to find 5" everywhere. i have tried 4 1/2 but the disks themselves don't last very long. its the same story as exhaust system diameter... a little makes a lot of difference. 7" are just too big for most on-site type applications. 4 and 4 1/2 inch low amp motors don't hold up to the strain, i still remember the smell of my 4 1/2 walter the day it died. then again, i remember the smell of a few cooked makitas too... all the same, my experience tell me 5" is the most efficient size, both for disk and motor.

far as grinders go, i have tried walter (metabo) and the generalization that germans make good stuff does seem to hold true, but the price is high and the ergonomics are questionable, same with fein brand. makita hit the sweet spot, both size and useability wise. it's a just plain comfortable grinder to use... add that to a mid-range price and good quality and tradesmen up here are more than willing to overlook the pita guard setup. some newbies complain about the disc locking nut but that goes away once they figure out that when you change a disk you just run the nut on finger tight and give the ever so slightest torque using your hand and the grinding disk.

it doesn't matter what oil sands facility you go into, you will see 9005b's everywhere. around here it would be a pretty safe bet, if a rig has an s/a on the back, it has 9005b's in the cabinets. actually, that probably holds true no matter what kind of welding machine is on the back.

 

[chad22]

My dad has got a Makita and it's been going strong for at least 15 years. He bought it used at a pawn shop.

I have a workforce angle grinder that I bought at lowes a few years ago on sale for $15.00

It's been a great grinder for the price. I had it looking really used the same day I bought it. That's how hard I used it. I didn't think it was gonna get through that day. But it did and still is working great.

Chad

 

[wushaw]

Not possitive but I believe Makita is still Japan. Still, Kind of higher end price wise. On the cheapo units, It's usually the brush springs that burn off or the triggers burn up right away. At least with some of the prior listed brands you can buy new brushes and switches for them. I guess the best policy is to not lean on them too hard while they are grinding or they will probably fail sooner than later. I have an ols 6145 Milwaukee from the 90's that gets used 3x more than my newer Milwaukee and the newer one has already failed and been repaired. Go figure.

Look at the the head if it, all mine say made in China.

That must be why you might find two 5 inch grinders on a shelf under a 2 inch pile of dust within a 100 miles of here and even have to look just as hard for a 5 inch disk.:confused2:

All shops around here use 4.5s,7's, or 9's, with an occasional 4 thrown in.

It might be a regional thing...but I can count on 1 hand the times I have seen a 5 inch grinder in use.

I have 5 Makits 3 ea 4.5", 1ea 4" and 1ea 5", 1ea 4.5" BD that was given to me...vibrates, gets hot & is just too big in dia. I'm not fond if it. I also recently recieved a Ridgid 4.5" grinder that is really comfortable, the handle is completely different from the standard
grinders, the switch is kind of a pain but it is still comfortable to use.
My oldest Makita is 8yo and still works just fine.

I did purchase a 20.00 Northerntool 4.5" grinder once...it lasted 6mo with light use till it let the smoke out.

 

[k0ua]

I caught the wife wrapping Christmas packages today, and she did not want to wrap the biggest one, so she gave it to me, It was a Ryobi 4 1/2 angle grinder with the 90 degree adjustable grip and the 3 location handle positions. It also has a no tools guard adjustment and onboard storage of the wrench in the handle. Kinda of a Jimcrack sort of thing, but I used it today and kinda like it.
James K0UA