Will this work
- Thread starter ACLakey
- Start date
Self Made Knives
Well-Known Member
I say yes. It's totally enclosed, fan cooled, should be fine. It won't be a power house or variable speed, but it would make knives.
Grussing_Custom_Knives
Well-Known Member
Yea but personally I would get a more powerful motor but for a first grinder yea
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scott.livesey
Dealer - Purveyor
should work fine. power is fine for making sparks but control is what you need to grind a good edge.
Daniel Rohde
Well-Known Member
I say use what you got till you've got somthing better 
Raymond Richard
Forum Owner & Moderator
How well do you handle frustration? No enough horse power unless you have a whole bunch of time.
Self Made Knives
Well-Known Member
My opinion doesn't carry much weight probably, I'm still new at this. But, just wanted to point out my grinder has a 1hp motor and it does just fine. Mine's 3 phase running on a VFD, but 1hp is 1hp. I really don't feel I'm missing any power.
Drew Riley
Well-Known Member
One thing that was pointed out on another forum, that I overlooked the first time, is that this appears to be a 143T frame size, which means it has a 7/8" shaft. Drive wheels commonly only come in 5/8" or 3/4", though you could always make your own or have somebody bore one out for you if you don't have a lathe.
1HP can certainly work in many applications, but if you start adding in belts and pulleys long flat platens and big contact weeks, it's easy to suck a lot of that 1HP up pretty quick for friction. Sharp belts and a light touch do go a long way, but if you want to really hog material, you'll probably find it lacking.
Take a look at any local motor repair/rewind shops, craigslist, ebay etc... and deals will pop up from time to time. You can also get a brand new chinese motor from places like Automation Direct for about 100 bucks single phase, or a little more for 3 phase.
For about $250 to $300 you could get a chinese VFD (open frame, will need filters and/or an enclosure to protect from dust) and 3 phase motor and have a functional variable speed set up. Could last for decades or blow up in a week though... hard to say.
1HP can certainly work in many applications, but if you start adding in belts and pulleys long flat platens and big contact weeks, it's easy to suck a lot of that 1HP up pretty quick for friction. Sharp belts and a light touch do go a long way, but if you want to really hog material, you'll probably find it lacking.
Take a look at any local motor repair/rewind shops, craigslist, ebay etc... and deals will pop up from time to time. You can also get a brand new chinese motor from places like Automation Direct for about 100 bucks single phase, or a little more for 3 phase.
For about $250 to $300 you could get a chinese VFD (open frame, will need filters and/or an enclosure to protect from dust) and 3 phase motor and have a functional variable speed set up. Could last for decades or blow up in a week though... hard to say.