Thread: Trueing a large wheel

This wheel is about 600 in diameter (approx, I haven't measured it) and 100 wide. If love to see how big the bigger wheels talked about in earlier posts are.

I would class that as a big wheel.
I wonder why they were hung up on the wheels being bigger in the past. Surely the hollow on a chisel from a 600 to 900mm wheel would not make a huge functional difference.

Maybe it's the weight of the larger wheel kept it running substantially longer between treadling?

Are you planning on making a dripper or a water trough?

I did see a dripper setup on youtube once that I though had merit. They had a paint brush in a jig just in front of where the water dribbled on the wheel. It acted as a wiper to flow the water on the face and also wipe any slurry off the stone.

For the same axle speed in rpm, the rim speed rises quite quickly as the wheel gets bigger in diameter.
Recall that at the equator, a person is being carried eastward at something like 2,000 mph.
Otherwise, you could not do an entire day/night thing in 24 hrs. OTOH, at the poles,
all you have to do is to turn around, 360, in 24 hrs.
My Delta miter saw 30cm blade has a rim speed of approx 180 mph.
And that's with the motor speed stepped down with the belt drive.

I can't imagine trying to put fine edges on wood working tools with a big stone like that.
Lots of water to flush away swarf and a very gentle freehand touch.
Possibly, it is in very good condition because it was a PITA to true up or simply inadequate.
Recall that oil stones and water stones of many shapes and sizes have been popular for centuries.

If I were to but a diamond pointed truing thingo, what would I need to ask for?

Originally Posted by China

The wheel is set low as it is designed to be used while sitting down

Good Morning China

Maybe, but I am not convinced.

To sharpen something you need to be sitting or standing at the end of the wheel facing the flat of the wheel - far right hand side of the photo. It would be rather difficult to work the treadle from that position - more so if you were seated.

Have you ever seen a traditional grind stone with a metal frame? All those that I can remember had very heavy wooden frames - spotted gum, Tas blue gum, etc. Perhaps this is a attempt by a handiman to "modernise" a traditional wheel, that did not quite come off? It just looks awkward to use single-handed.

Think the comments about the large size of traditional grind stones being related to inertia and rim speed are quite correct. They were also made from quite soft stones - including sand stone, lime stone and white stone (#) - so they could also be allowing for future wearing - one would not want a grind stone to wear out in less than 100 years. White stone was preferred.

(# Not sure of the proper name or geology of "white stone". Besides being used in grind wheels, I can remember my grandmother and great grandmother using white stones to clean the sandstone flagstones. Wet the flagstones thoroughly, rub with white stone and a white lather forms, rub a bit more, wash off and the flagstones are clean and white for a few days and then revert to sandstone colour. Common practice in central and southern Tasmania, at least, until into the sixties and seventies.)



Fair Winds

Graeme