Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
My beloved Home Depot 7" (or 8", I don't remember), Ryobi bench grinder, used less than 100 times since it was new last year, gave up the ghost. Not all the blue smoke got out, just enough that I have to give the wheel a good spin to get it moving then wait, and wait, and wait for the wheel to get reach full RPM. It's not that annoying because while it's spooling up, the wheels entertain me by doing a "jitter-bug" dance for me. Just attempting to grind a HSS tool will slow the thing down.
I don't want to infer that all the grinders of this brand are NG, just reporting that mine had the longevity of a Higgs Boson. I checked out the grinder reviews of a number of familiar brands and though the names differed, they all suffered from mild to sever vibration. So I thought to go for a used grinder still made in USA. Good luck finding one in 115 vac single phase. So I bought the bullet and ordered a model 762 Baldor. Sucks that it lacks cast tool rests but I have no doubt the wheel will be turning long after I'm not. The new grinder is 1/2hp with a 7"x1" wheel on a 5/8" shaft.
Sadly, as of March 1st, Baldor is no more. It seems to have merged (been bought out by?) ABB Global (Chinese?) I'm hoping against hope that my grinder will be NOS, made in the USA, and with a Baldor badge.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
jttoner
My beloved Home Depot 7" (or 8", I don't remember), Ryobi bench grinder, used less than 100 times since it was new last year, gave up the ghost. Not all the blue smoke got out, just enough that I have to give the wheel a good spin to get it moving then wait, and wait, and wait for the wheel to get reach full RPM. It's not that annoying because while it's spooling up, the wheels entertain me by doing a "jitter-bug" dance for me. Just attempting to grind a HSS tool will slow the thing down.
I don't want to infer that all the grinders of this brand are NG, just reporting that mine had the longevity of a Higgs Boson. I checked out the grinder reviews of a number of familiar brands and though the names differed, they all suffered from mild to sever vibration. So I thought to go for a used grinder still made in USA. Good luck finding one in 115 vac single phase. So I bought the bullet and ordered a model 762 Baldor. Sucks that it lacks cast tool rests but I have no doubt the wheel will be turning long after I'm not. The new grinder is 1/2hp with a 7"x1" wheel on a 5/8" shaft.
Sadly, as of March 1st, Baldor is no more. It seems to have merged (been bought out by?) ABB Global (Chinese?) I'm hoping against hope that my grinder will be NOS, made in the USA, and with a Baldor badge.
Could be the capacitor if it has one, some are capacitor start, some capacitor start and run
some have a centrifugal switch that could have dirty contacts, this determines the start rotation as well.
The motor on my lathe has a centrifugal switch that screws up occasionally
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
jttoner
My beloved Home Depot 7" (or 8", I don't remember), Ryobi bench grinder, used less than 100 times since it was new last year, gave up the ghost. Not all the blue smoke got out, just enough that I have to give the wheel a good spin to get it moving then wait, and wait, and wait for the wheel to get reach full RPM. It's not that annoying because while it's spooling up, the wheels entertain me by doing a "jitter-bug" dance for me. Just attempting to grind a HSS tool will slow the thing down.
I don't want to infer that all the grinders of this brand are NG, just reporting that mine had the longevity of a Higgs Boson. I checked out the grinder reviews of a number of familiar brands and though the names differed, they all suffered from mild to sever vibration. So I thought to go for a used grinder still made in USA. Good luck finding one in 115 vac single phase. So I bought the bullet and ordered a model 762 Baldor. Sucks that it lacks cast tool rests but I have no doubt the wheel will be turning long after I'm not. The new grinder is 1/2hp with a 7"x1" wheel on a 5/8" shaft.
Sadly, as of March 1st, Baldor is no more. It seems to have merged (been bought out by?) ABB Global (Chinese?) I'm hoping against hope that my grinder will be NOS, made in the USA, and with a Baldor badge.
It sound like you never dressed the grinding wheels to stop the out of balance, that is probably why the motor failed, it came apart from the vibration, I have used one of these for years and it is as good as any Baldor will ever be, the same thing will happen to the Baldor if you don't dress the grinding wheels to stop any out of balance
Why did you get the idea that ABB was Chinese, ABB is a Swiss company not Chinese
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Asea was an old Engineering Co located in Sweden, they amalgamated with the Swiss Co, Brown Boveri and from then on have been known as ABB.
They have locations in around 100 countries today.
Al.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Mike, this is capacitor start. Will run in either direction. But, I believe the cap is just to get it started. This thing takes three days and four nights to spool up and after it finally reaches RPM it has no power. I can't sharpen a tool w/o it slowing. I'm in my shop now and it is an 8'x1"x 5/8". My guess is a field wire failed. In the past I had an alternator rewired for my Cummins, (In a previous life I was an "18 wheel cowboy"). It only cost $50 back then but would certainly cost more now and today auto electricians are as rare as hen's teeth. I will, however, check the cap. Regardless, I've already pulled the trigger on the Baldor. Besides, the vibration of the Ryobi is a bit alarming. I've trued the wheel but it still likes to shake, rattle, and roll. I think the wheel's makeup is inconsistent. It's no Norton for sure. It does have nice cast tool rests but the attachment is way too flimsy. I'll have to make some for the Baldor :(
For the Tormach I printed a holder for four TTS tools. It can be mounted on the edge of the table or the edge of the stand. I made b/c when I run a job that requires more than one tool I can have them next to me so I don't have to fish for them or risk selecting the wrong one. It also has a hexagonal pipe extending from both ends for hanging the vise wrench so I won't have to remember where I left it :) I'll try and post a photo. My five year old stepson can show me how.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
"It sound like you never dressed the grinding wheels to stop the out of balance, that is probably why the motor failed, it came apart from the vibration, I have used one of these for years and it is as good as any Baldor will ever be, the same thing will happen to the Baldor if you don't dress the grinding wheels to stop any out of balance
Why did you get the idea that ABB was Chinese, ABB is a Swiss company not Chinese"
"First, this isn't my first rodeo, I dressed both wheels. They are round. Only the "60" is hopelessly out of balance. Second, I didn't mean to imply that ABB is Chinese. My concern was that they might move production to China. Thus, nothing gave me the idea they were Chinese, hence the "?". Regrettably, too many "USA" manufacturers have transferred production to China, India, or some banana republic, after which their quality took a nose dive. The grinder that went south is an $80.00 Chinese one that looks like a rebranded H.F. I got nearly a year out of it, so yes, I too have occasionally had good luck with Chinese hardware, but it has always been a bit of a crap-shoot. Much of my shop looks like an H.F. warehouse, but a crap-shoot none the less.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Al_The_Man
Asea was an old Engineering Co located in Sweden, they amalgamated with the Swiss Co, Brown Boveri and from then on have been known as ABB.
They have locations in around 100 countries today.
Al.
Al, are those countries solely for distribution or for mfg. as well? Just curious, I'm sure my ABB/Baldor will be just fine.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
5000 ABB employees in Canada so I assume there is something more than reps in each province!
They must be an par with Siemens, world wide.
Al.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Al_The_Man
5000 ABB employees in Canada so I assume there is something more than reps in each province!
They must be an par with Siemens, world wide.
Al.
Wherever mfg'd, it comes down to QC, or the lack thereof. I've nothing against the Chinese people, I have a Chinese wife who's put up with me for 26 years.
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
jttoner
My beloved Home Depot 7" (or 8", I don't remember), Ryobi bench grinder, used less than 100 times since it was new last year, gave up the ghost. Not all the blue smoke got out, just enough that I have to give the wheel a good spin to get it moving then wait, and wait, and wait for the wheel to get reach full RPM. It's not that annoying because while it's spooling up, the wheels entertain me by doing a "jitter-bug" dance for me. Just attempting to grind a HSS tool will slow the thing down.
I don't want to infer that all the grinders of this brand are NG, just reporting that mine had the longevity of a Higgs Boson. I checked out the grinder reviews of a number of familiar brands and though the names differed, they all suffered from mild to sever vibration. So I thought to go for a used grinder still made in USA. Good luck finding one in 115 vac single phase. So I bought the bullet and ordered a model 762 Baldor. Sucks that it lacks cast tool rests but I have no doubt the wheel will be turning long after I'm not. The new grinder is 1/2hp with a 7"x1" wheel on a 5/8" shaft.
Sadly, as of March 1st, Baldor is no more. It seems to have merged (been bought out by?) ABB Global (Chinese?) I'm hoping against hope that my grinder will be NOS, made in the USA, and with a Baldor badge.
I will email you a pic of my grinder setup, it is a real jury rig, I have 2 eccentric balance rings on the extended shaft to balance it out, works great. It is a Craftsman 6" grinder bought in the early 70's, been around awhile and gets used a lot...........
Re: Another One Bites The Dust; RIP Baldor?
Mike, that would be swell. Oddly, my H.F. green wheel grinder was incredibly vibration free after minimal truing of the wheels. Some guys have had to disassemble those puppies to get them to run true. Mine must've been assembled by one of the older and more experienced children. It's on a two piece Chinese pedestal that's loose as a goose. I thought about welding or brazing the column to the base but the base is galvanized and I'm allergic to galvanized fumes. Back in grammar school, (those don't seem to exist nowadays), I couldn't play on the monkey bars b/c they were galvanized. Something about the zinc gets to me.
