Mounting bench grinders

[Michael G]

A reoccurring problem in my shed is space. The other day I bought another bench grinder. The one I have sits on a plain column and has a GP wheel on one end and a wire wheel on the other. With this one I want to mount a diamond hone and a Al oxide wheel for tool sharpening. I should really have a dedicated wheel for the TIG too. That's 3 grinder's worth. How to mount them so they take up minimal space?
Below is a sketch of 4 options I've come up with so far. Unplugging and coiling up a cord is not an issue, but at the same time I don't want to spend more than a couple of minutes doing any change overs. These things are only 6" but I also want to avoid lots of bending and lifting. Anyone have any other ideas or concerns?

277505

Michael

[Anorak Bob]

Different axis but here is Bob L's 3 header - http://www.woodworkforums.com/f65/what-have-you-invented-133650/index6.html#post1484716

[th62]

I think design no2 would be the most space efficient by far, although the detritus may prove a problem with the capacitors housed in the bottom section. I only have two grinders, but as they're only used front on I have them mounted side by side as close to the wall as I could get them.

[BobL]

Michael, I went through all of your designs, plus a few others in my head when I was designing mine.

Now that I have been using mine for over a year here is a brief "what would I do next time" review.
http://www.woodworkforums.com/attachments/f65/209065d1337489044-what-have-you-invented-painted.jpg

The unit is still standing within 6" of where I first put it on the large wooden cross piece ie not bolted down, as it is very stable and does not move or "walk" when any of the grinders are running

- Structurally the robust construction works fine - it does not flex or bend.
- The turntable locking mechanism works very well although the whole turntable plus grinders is so heavy I rarely bother to lock it. This make switching between grinders very quick and this can be done without waiting for the previously running grinder to spin down. Sometimes I have two grinders running and rotate back and forth. I usually only lock the turntable if I am going to do some heavier grinding.
-The cords do not tangle and although it would look tidier I have not got around with the mod suggested by Dave J.

On the con side it still takes up more room than I would like it to; ie it has to stand too far away from the shed wall. The arms, on which each grinder sits are constructed so that each grinder can be moved outwards and turned sideways, work very well, but I don't use them often this way, but when needed they work really well and I'm very glad I incorporated them into the design. On reflection they are probably 50 - 75 mm too long. The arms just need to be long enough so that each grinder can be moved and turned.

RE: Michael G's designs

Designs 1,2,3 all require a positive locking mechanism.

Designs 1 and 4 would take up least room in that they can stand closest to a wall
Design 2 has one grinder poking out the front down low which I think would get in the way of using the one on top.
Design 3 is better from that point of view and could also easily use the extendable arm principle that mine uses.
Design 4 would be a bit of PITA and I usually like to have a grinder fixed down a little more than just under it's own weight

One thing I like to have around any grinder is good clearance, which is why pedestals are often used, so from that point of view designs 1 and 2 have the least clearance around the wheels. I don't like using grinders on bench tops for that reason and is why I went for the ability to better isolate each grinder along an arm.

Overall I still think my design works best for me. If you have limited workspace depth then your design 1) is probably the best, If you have limited workspace width then 3) is probably the best.

[Oldneweng]

I also would opt for number 2. I have seen this type of arrangement on a forum build thread but I have no idea where. I recall some very good ideas included. It depends of course on the space requirements and the dust and chip would have to be considered. Power connection another consideration for convenience.

Dean

[Stustoys]

Depends on the size of work you do. If you were doing a lot of big stuff I'm thinking 1 but with the grinders moved to one corner of the triangle and able to pivot through 90 degrees. This would mean the stand would be more like a post. Maybe even make it a little higher and turn the triangle forward 30 to 60 degrees? 60 degrees might make the switches tricky to reach. I guess this idea is really more for linishing discs, wire brushes or polishing than grinding.

Stuart

[Michael G]

For the occasional piece of big stuff I don't mind spending some time moving things, but typically I'm sharpening lathe tools, wire brush deburring small parts, sharpening TIG electrodes scraper blades etc. Nothing that needs enormous clearances.
Bob's tree is nice, but still takes up too much space that I have not got. NB - Option 4; there is the intent to fasten the grinders down (toggle clamps perhaps?). Vertical seems to be the most wasted space in a home workshop, hence the thoughts on stacks and carousels that use it a bit more effectively. However, I do need to be able to move it, so nothing coming down from the roof on pulleys guys...

Michael

[Stustoys]

If its going to be movable so you can get to both sides. How about a trolley with enough room on the top for two grinders back to back and a way to flip the top? Of course then you'd need another grinder ;). As I think 4 would be a little tippy as a trolley.

Stuart

[Pete F]

Michael, I've seen grinder stands of 2 or 3 grinders based on your #2 design and I believe they worked well. The shelf they were bolted to was secured with a simple latch or bolt. I may have to consider something similar for myself.

Pete

[simonl]

+1 for #2. I have two bench grinders and they take up more room than they really need to. I guess it would be easy to allow room for bench grinder that had a basic tool holder attached to it too.


Cheers,


Simon

[Jekyll and Hyde]

Vertical seems to be the most wasted space in a home workshop, hence the thoughts on stacks and carousels that use it a bit more effectively. However, I do need to be able to move it, so nothing coming down from the roof on pulleys guys...

Michael

Have you got somewhere you could set them up on something like a vertical carousel type arrangement? I know a vertical carousel normally goes right around, but if you only need to move 3 grinders up and down enough to use them, you could just single side it - or maybe keep it double sided, go floor to ceiling and put storage boxes of some sort in all the other spots?

Terrible sketch in MS Paint attached to try and make it clearer. I see it as the sort of thing you could bolt to the side of a cupboard for example, or maybe the back of a rolling tool cabinet... Depends what you have in your workshop, and where...

277586

[Gerbilsquasher]

May I say, for want of stronger language..... what a bloody good idea!:2tsup:

I like BobL's idea, might build one myself, with a few changes to avoid copyright issues of course:rolleyes:

[Gerbilsquasher]

This is a 'Rota Store'

277587

As previously mentioned, this idea could be used to house several grinders.... albeit a somewhat ambitious one :D

[KBs PensNmore]

Hi Michael, I use a system similar to the Hayman Reece towbar, mounted vertically on the corner of my workbench. I can fit either a vice, grinder with wire brush/linisher, a tool sharpening grinder with special stones even a bar bender. 65mm square X 6mm RHS welded to the side of my bench with a corner bolt to hold solid, and 50mm sq RHS welded to some 5mm plate to mount the grinders on, for the vice/bender I used 12mm plate.
They are stored on a shelf where it is easy to get to, no bending or lifting.
Kryn

[BobL]

They are stored on a shelf where it is easy to get to, no bending or lifting.

I assume you mean vertical lifting - they still have to be carried from the shelf to the bench ?

I have a vice on a post that it is able to be moved to a hinged holding post underneath the bench.

http://youtu.be/ysBByYj5Blc
While I do so from time to time I find it a bit of nuisance to move it so it stays on the bench 95% of the time

[Ueee]

Whilst i like Bob's idea, i looked at it with my 3 grinders (2 8" and a 6") and decided that it would take up too much space, especially with a multitool on one of the grinders.
I have been thinking of a wall mount system, with the grinders on arms all on the same pivot point. Fold 2 up to use the bottom one, one up one down to use the middle and 2 down to use the top. By having the middle arm shorter they should nest ok.
I know, this doesn't help you Michael. I do like Stuarts idea for a mobile unit.

Cheers,
Ew

[simonl]

This is a 'Rota Store'

277587

As previously mentioned, this idea could be used to house several grinders.... albeit a somewhat ambitious one :D

Bunnings have these too. They are used to house all their carpets, lino, fake grass etc...

Simon

[Stustoys]

To simplify things a little more. Could you find a height that allowed you to set them up as a double decker? Failing that a double decker with height adjustment?(Though that would be pretty heavy)
Would depend I guess on just what your grinders are. I doubt it would work with my GMF's(?) but if I had 3off 6" Elu's I think they would be fine.

Stuart

p.s. arent rota stores made in Knox?(tohugh maybe I have my machines mixed up) The boss wasnt sure that that picture wasnt one of the ones at her work lol

[KBs PensNmore]

I assume you mean vertical lifting - they still have to be carried from the shelf to the bench ?

I have a vice on a post that it is able to be moved to a hinged holding post underneath the bench.

http://youtu.be/ysBByYj5Blc
While I do so from time to time I find it a bit of nuisance to move it so it stays on the bench 95% of the time

Hi Bob, my set up is very similar to your clip. Yes, I mean vertical lifting which is how most back injuries occur. Carrying, I find is not a great problem, slide it on a trolley and deliver to where required. My vise is nearly all ways left on the corner, as I can rotate it 90 degrees which sometimes helps, the grinder lives almost permanently on a post by the drill press.
I am very limited in space 6mX2.5m which also houses 250amp MIG welder, 180amp stick, drill press, Mini Mill, Mini lathe, 20t garage press, metal band saw, the drill press, grinder/linisher, oxy set, plus hand tools, grinders etc.
Kryn

[BobL]

Whilst i like Bob's idea, i looked at it with my 3 grinders (2 8" and a 6") and decided that it would take up too much space, especially with a multitool on one of the grinders.
I have been thinking of a wall mount system, with the grinders on arms all on the same pivot point. Fold 2 up to use the bottom one, one up one down to use the middle and 2 down to use the top. By having the middle arm shorter they should nest ok.

I like this idea a lot because it uses very little space but as usual there are tradeoffs. The main thing for me would be that it uses up valuable wall space so it would be difficult to store even a few sheets of metal behind this arrangement. There are also, like storing the grinders on shelves etc, lifting/carrying requirements involved. I find that as soon as even a small amount of effort is needed to change an arrangement one avoids using it.

[BobL]

I am very limited in space 6mX2.5m which also houses 250amp MIG welder, 180amp stick, drill press, Mini Mill, Mini lathe, 20t garage press, metal band saw, the drill press, grinder/linisher, oxy set, plus hand tools, grinders etc.
Kryn

:oo: ikes - now I can see why :2tsup: and I thought I was cramped!

[Michael G]

I have a similar amount of space to Kryn - I need to be able to move it to get to other things, hence the quest for ideas.
A 2 or 3 stack might do it (if I think carefully about it) I wonder if a chair height adjuster will lift 3 grinders...

Michael

[Chief Tiff]

Back to your original ideas, I personally would build number four in your sketch; the cabinet that allows you to chop and change grinders and stores the unused ones underneath. I have seen a similar arrangement in an American woodworking book where a tall wall cabinet was designed this way; allowing a chopsaw, grinder, thicknesser and disc sander to share the same wall/floor footprint. Each machine was mounted on a plywood baseboard which slid into grooves in the cabinet sides for storage.

I would also have wheels mounted on the bottom of the cabinet; I never seem to have enough space for anything so just about every machine I own can roll around...

A major reason for picking this design though is that it can be made in day using really simple and easily available hardware. I love Bobl's rotating solution but as I currently don't have a welder or a lathe or a plasma cutter it's a bit out of my reach!

[BobL]

A major reason for picking this design though is that it can be made in day using really simple and easily available hardware. I love Bobl's rotating solution but as I currently don't have a welder or a lathe or a plasma cutter it's a bit out of my reach!

No plasma cutter was used by me in making the stand.

For all the woodies out there, I got the basis of my design from a turner who made a grinder stand with the turntable made out of thick square pieces of MDF ie no need to use steel or have the turntable table round. It was a benchtop model with 2 regular 6" grinders and a small Tormek mounted on it. Someone else on one of the woodies forum has also made similar wooden version but I can't remember what they had on theirs.

[Timless Timber]

A suggestion Bob, for space saving.
If you have room outside your shed where the rotating 'lazy susan' grinder stand is located - you could frame a simple recess into the wall similar to how your Dust Extraction Collector is built into its own external compartment. As long as its water proof, it doesn't have to go all the way to the ground...all it has to do is accommodate the two arms with grinders that aren't in use at the time and be wide enough for them all to pivot freely. If you set it back far enough, it could even be such that the ONLY space used inside the actual shed is the portion of one arm with the grinder on it in use at the time...so what 10 inches inside the shed - the rest in an enclosure outside the shed? It might gain you a couple of extra feet inside?

I did this with my edge bander in my factory so that it could be mounted in a bench along the wall, and the large reel of edging tape was located in an enclosure thru the wall and outside of the actual factory foot print (on a back wall where it didnt obstruct thru traffic outside).

Just a suggestion.

[BobL]

A suggestion Bob, for space saving.
If you have room outside your shed where the rotating 'lazy susan' grinder stand is located - you could frame a simple recess into the wall similar to how your Dust Extraction Collector is built into its own external compartment. . . . .

I agree that this is a good idea but is probably only worth doing if one is certain that that is the final resting place for the grinder stand which in my case is unlikely as I tend to reorganise stuff. The other issue is that this method uses up wall space which is a premium in most sheds even if it is just to store some sheet metal up against a wall.