Aaron! How is it possible that your Craftsmanship is not appreciated... We know that Mr Vandelay hopefully would be proud of someone tweaking his design to suit ones needs.... The world needs more people like you, and Phil, Jeremy, House Work, Tubalcain, Abom ,TOT, Blondie, AVE, Pakistani Trucks..And all the rest! Can't name enough.. Keep it up and going Brother!

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks Scotty! I appreciate it man

Absolute state of the Art .

I sure enjoy watching your videos with the attention to detail and finish. I'm retired and want to get into hobby machining. Your style of videos spark my interest more and more. Keep up the great work.

@westweld

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks I appreciate that, I would highly recommend I wish I was retired so I could do it more 😀......If you dont watch this old tony I would highly recommend his older videos especially were very motivating to get me into machining and I learned alot very quickly from him because his videos are extremely easy to watch.

The worst thing in the world is needing something in the moment and not having it. If you have to stop a project to go get anything it kills the day so having an abundance of belts is good in my book

So glad that I found your channel (by searching YT for "vandelay grinder" to see if anyone else had built one). I purchased Phil's plans a few days ago and have been slowly gathering my list of materials to start building it -- in Daytona Beach, FL, so mine will be imperial too. That was CRITICAL INFO about the 72 vs 78-inch belts. I'll plan to shorten my main plate slightly so that I can use off-the-shelf 72-inch belts. I have Phil's plans in Fusion 360 so should be able to figure out the proper amount of shortening. I see that you started with 3/4 inch plate and milled down quite A LOT to match Phil's metric thickness (15mm, or about 0.59 inches). I'd have been inclined to keep the extra thickness and adjust the plans accordingly. But instead, I'm going to try building it a little cheaper by using 1/2 inch plate (with only a bare minimum of skim facing) for most of the parts. I'll use 3/4 for the tension column, the platen, and the table. I think (I hope!) that half-inch will still be plenty beefy for the main body parts, and could save a few hundred dollars in steel cost. I can always add additional stiffeners/runners if necessary. Now on to watching the remainder of your build vids. And thanks for taking the time to post these so that others who follow can learn from your work.

@HangarQueen

Жыл бұрын

If anyone cares, I've just worked things out using Phil's Fusion 360 file. I started by drawing a sketch that kept the four wheels at their original position and size, then figured out the total belt length. This included the straight sections (tangent-to-tangent on each wheel perimeter) as well as the portion of the radius of each wheel (calculated in Fusion 360 using the angles from tangent to tangent on each wheel). It came out to about 78.4 inches, just as West Weld says, so that confirms that my math matches the real world. Then I modified my sketch to use a smaller 6.2-inch drive wheel, 3-inch tension wheel, and two 2-inch idler wheels, still with the wheel centers in their original sketch position, and recalculated: now reduced to 76.36 inches around the full belt path. This combination of wheels is available "off the shelf" from several eBayers. Of course the smaller drive wheel will mean a slightly slower belt, but your VFD can likely compensate by running the motor that much faster. Then I shortened the main plate of the build by 1 inch, shifting both idler wheels 1 inch "right" (looking at the front face). This will also narrow the stand width to match, of course. This brings us down to a 74.34 inch belt. Then I shifted the idler wheels 1 inch closer together. The top one comes down a half-inch and the bottom one comes up a half-inch. (It can't come higher due to clearance issues with the platen mount.) This is a simple change: now about a 73.4 inch belt, that I didn't bother to calculate. Ya, you lose a half inch of belt height when grinding vertically, and a full inch when horizontal. Still no big deal IMO. With the smaller diameter drive wheel, there's now room to move the motor and drive wheel 0.75 inches "left" (looking at the front face) while still allowing sufficient clearance to the belt tensioner lever. This yields a belt length of almost exactly 73 inches. And I think that's good enough! To gain the remaining inch (to run a standard 2x72 belt), either move the platen adjustment slider in a little or let the tracking wheel compress down a little, or a combination of both. This was only "hacking" in Fusion 360 so far. When I get a chance, I'll make the changes more formal in my copy, actually moving the wheel centers and sizes as discussed above, and then make sure of my math and adequate clearances.

@HangarQueen

Жыл бұрын

I know that I've been monopolizing the comment section of this 2-year-old video, but just wanted to mention four more things: 1. Phil's plans are clearly labeled (and the Fusion 360 filename confirms) as a "75x2000" belt grinder. So it's intended for a 75mm (just a hair shy of 3") wide by 2000mm (78 3/4") long Euro style belt. Clearly labeled, but it had escaped my notice until your video highlighted the fact. Thanks again for that. I mean, I knew that the plans were metric, but didn't think (duh) about the metric belt size difference. 2. I see that there are also 2x82 inch belts plentifully available on Amazon. Not as popular as 2x72, but 2x82 is clearly a thing in the knife making world anyway. Just throwing this out because, if you have the bench/workshop space for it, it would surely be easier to lengthen Phil's design by three-ish inches rather than shortening it by 7-ish inches. 3. Oh, and I also find 75x2000mm belts available on Amazon. Kinda pricy, but then there's about 1.6 times the amount of usable belt area overall. So the easiest and perhaps best approach would be to stick with Phil's original plans and run the designed-for belt. MY problem with doing this is that I wouldn't be able to make the 7.7-ish by 3.5-ish inch drive wheel on my mini-lathe, and I don't see anyone offering such a drive wheel off the shelf. I'll keep looking. But I'll likely stick to my plan of shortening Phil's design to accommodate the usual-for-USA 2x72 inch belts. 4. I've sorted out and put into my Amazon shopping cart all of the mechanical and electrical parts required for the build. Everything except for the bolts (I have tons already), belts, and the steel. It totals just shy of $880 using a generic 1.5 HP 3 phase motor and a very cheap on-sale 1.5kw VFD. The steel and stainless steel for the build will likely add another $300-$600 ... a wide range depending on whether you use 1/2- or 5/8- or 3/4-inch thick steel, and whether you can source it locally or have to pay exorbitant shipping fees. I figured from the outset that this was going to be a $1500-ish in parts build, and this is now confirmed.

@HangarQueen

Жыл бұрын

Ya, it's me again, talking with myself. Looking further into using the original 75x2000mm belt... On eBay, I found a seller with a set of Delrin wheels 80mm (3.15 inches) wide. The set has a 5 inch drive, 4 inch tension, and 2-inch idlers. I tried that setup on the original Phil design and the belt length would be 75.58 inches long. As I noted earlier, it's easier to lengthen the plans than to shorten them, so I tried moving the wheel centers slightly, using the following adjustments: - Lengthen main plate to the left (looking at the face) by 1/4 inch - While also lengthening the enclosed main rod by 1/4 inch. So the idler wheels are now 1/2 inch further left, and we gain a little more adjustability. - Also raise the top idler by 1/2 inch and lower the bottom idler by 1/2 inch -- which has the added benefit of a longer grinding surface, especially useful in horizontal mode - And move the motor assembly 3/4 inch to the right. With these changes to compensate for the smaller drive wheel, the new belt length is 78.79 inches -- perfect for a 2000mm belt. Of course with the reduced diameter (5 inch instead of 7.67 inch in Phil's design), we only get 65% of the belt travel with the same RPM. Or put the other way, we need to spin the motor 1.5 times faster for the same belt movement. Phil's plans recommend a motor capable of around 3000 RPM max. I was planning to use a 1725 RPM motor and use the VFD to "over drive" its frequency to get the 3000 (as shown in one of Clough42's older lathe modification videos). But now I'll choose a 3450 RPM motor instead -- which are typically a little cheaper, as they use 2 poles instead of 4 internally.

You've earned my sub from Australia, interesting vids and you seem like a pretty genuine sort of bloke. Don't let the fame get to you, and keep up the great work 👍

EXCELLENT CRAFTSMANSHIP HOPE TO SEE MORE OF YOUR CONTENT 👌😎

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks man you will

you're an artist ❤️❤️❤️

$500 in belts. Nice. Expenses like that is the reason that I have a “hobby” account that isn’t audited quarterly by the wife.

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Ya that one kind of snuck up on me......but the good news I still have 475$ worth a belts a year later haha

@mxcollin95

2 жыл бұрын

Amen brother! Lol (otherwise I’d be in deep shit)

@dennishicks8962

2 жыл бұрын

You know what they say. My worst fear is when I die my wife sells my guns for what I told her they cost lol

Aaron, I found your build, Thank You very much for taking the time to video your build, I have saved everyone into a separate Phil Vandelay Folder. Regards Dave.

My wife says that I watch too much "metalwork porn". It is wonderful to watch your work.

I just found your channel yesterday. And it is interfering with my sleep. Worth it tho! Great work, and I’m glad to see your subscribers are now more than 10 times as much. It’s a matter of time and you will be KZread famous.

Keep it up Aaron! This is a great channel!

great machining work!

Happy to be part of the current 160!

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks me too!

Nice job man! Glad to see you are still posting the videos.

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks ill try to get the next one out sooner

You mentioned the other day in a different video A good set Reliable Drill bits for drill press thank you advance

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

precision twist is the company name

You are an excellent craftsman, great channel, have subbed. It is great to see a Yank call it Imperial instead of English..( yes I know it was invented in England). You have so much tooling which cost's us a fortune down here, but then again we don't work for $11 per hour so prices are relative. I watched all of Phil's vids on his build and yours, I will build one out of Aluminium should be cool (we can buy both metric and imperial belts down here) a 72" is roughly 1800mm Regards from (Metric and English speaking) Australia.

@westweld

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Jeff I considered using aluminum I'd be interested to know how it turns out......I have a small fabrication company and if I dont buy tools for right offs I just give it to the government in taxes. Aaron

@jefflawrence3846

2 жыл бұрын

@@westweld Thanks for your reply Aaron, Been there done that ! I am retired and can't get my government to pay for anything, plus the handbrake of 43 years is ALWAYS watching.. but I still have a pretty good home shop..see you on your next vid..

Hey, you are doing great! You put a nice polish on those clamps. Looking forward to part 4.

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks.....those scotch brite wheels are amazing. I think part 5 is the best one haha........thanks for watching......and once you get into the build let me know if you have any questions I'd be happy to help if I can

I finished watching I subscribed

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

Hey Thanks 👋

you could send out the platen for case hardening or plasma nitriding

Nice work!

You can add graphite platen strips and really decrease the friction between the belt and the platen. Used them on woodworking sanders and they are worth their weight in silver at least!

Pack that in fish charcoal, wrap it and case harden it, grind to finish and have iy dlc coated on that surface. Never have an issue again.

Спасибо тебе. Это классно.

OKish finish? Man that's pretty good! 1018 crs steel is the worst for a good surface finish. Nice job!

I'm currently building this Vandelay grinder. I swear I found some 3x80 belts. I'm building mine exactly to his spec, but I'm using imperial fasteners is the only difference.

@jasonevers3138

Жыл бұрын

Oh, I also took the risk of using 5/8" plate. I got a beautiful surface finish using a rather large fly cutter.

@jasonevers3138

Жыл бұрын

Also, I just subscribed. Great channel!

Nice!

I don't hate puppies so let's carry on viewing. Lol $;-)

How much if this one is for sale?

bought the plans as well but in ND and cad files wouldn’t translate into my older versions w no response from vandalay.... it did look like a fantastic design for certain. wishing fir imperial tho as I’ll do exactly what you’ve done & input my own.

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

I'll mention it to Phil next time I talk to it........you can get an updated hobbiest account for fusion for pretty cheap.....I think I paid less than 100 for a year

@darrenlucke

3 жыл бұрын

@@westweld worst thing is i'm out in western north dakota, running net off phones as hotspot... sucks, can't get fusion to work proper. all good tho, I'm quick in cad and prob transfer into .dxf for my hurco anyway. solid design tho, work but anything worthwhile will be. nice vids, stumbled into them - you do well!

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

@@darrenlucke thanks im still trying to figure out the editing but I think they get a little better everytime........if you end up building the grinder you won't regret it. Its an amazing machine if you have any questions along the way id be happy to help if I can

@darrenlucke

3 жыл бұрын

@@westweld think after you've built one out of steel, could the main components, main frame, etc be built out of alum in place of steel? or do you think it'd compromise strength? obviously, table, ss rods, / platen prob should be kept steel?

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

@@darrenlucke I think aluminum would work.... I dont think i would do simply because of the weight you would lose i could be wrong but I feel like being heavy from steel reduces vibration and also the grinding dust would be hard on aluminum especially the sliding arm and moving parts......I think it would work people make them out of aluminum all the time but it wouldn't be my first choice choice

What size hp motor you use?

@westweld

Жыл бұрын

2hp if i recall

A friend of mine and I went in on buying a tanker load of gasoline because it was much cheaper per litre . . . . . . . . and then I went and bought an electric car a few months after.

@westweld

3 жыл бұрын

haha such is life

👍👍👍💯💥