Angle grinders -felisatti and MK diamond questions

Candy Kahn · Post by **Candy Kahn** » Tue Apr 29, 2003 4:16 pm

Hi - I've been following all the advice on sandblasting, grinding, etc. and would like to hear feedback from those of you that have just purchased the felisatti grinders. I have been using the diamond handpads and my hands are about ready to fall off and I am thinking about moving UP! Tony, I remember you wrote about using the MK diamond - what is your opinion of it? How about you felisatti users. Is the 6 lb weight heavy to handle - is the one that attaches to the compressor better because it is lighter? How are you using it? Are you casters using it?
Thanks in advance for your replies.

Oh, and Lani, I think a great class for Bullseye to offer is one on cold-working (excuse me if you already have offered this) using all the different machinery, grits, abrasives available and comparing the differences.

Candy

Tony Smith · Post by **Tony Smith** » Tue Apr 29, 2003 7:21 pm

The MK is a nice, rugged tool, but the body is cylindrical and becomes tiring to hold especially after an hour or so... with that said, even though it works well, I think I like Doug's Felisatti better. I had a chance to use it in Portland last October, and thought that the grip was comfortable. It was also a variable speed unit whereas the MK that I have is single speed.

Tony

S. Klein · Post by **S. Klein** » Tue Apr 29, 2003 9:02 pm

GranQuartz has one that seems to be the same as the Alpha 658. It is only about $200.00. I have the Alpha pneumatic. I'm very happy with it It's light and very easy to use.............steve

Steve Immerman · Post by **Steve Immerman** » Tue Apr 29, 2003 9:12 pm

What are you using felisatti grinders for?

Steve

Tony Smith · Post by **Tony Smith** » Tue Apr 29, 2003 9:51 pm

It's used as a face grinder to smooth and finish large flat areas and gentle contours. With practice, I'm sure you could do edge finishing as well.

Tony

Phil Hoppes · Post by **Phil Hoppes** » Tue Apr 29, 2003 11:48 pm

I have the Felisetti grinder and I use it a LOT. I got very frustrated that much of my work would come out with a surface finish that I did not like. The Felisetti is just the trick. The weight is kind of a non-issue as you are moving it from side to side not hefting it up and down. Actually, you will find that on some tough areas you will push some to work and area down. With diamond pads you don't have to push too hard, in fact most times I just let the weight of the grinder do the work and I just push it around. The WG20 is the model I have. I ordered it from Granite City Tool (http://www.granitecitytool.com/showitem ... 6&catnum=0). You need to be sure and order it with a rubber backer pad as well as the grit pads you want. I use a 50, 200 & 400. A 400 finish will firepolish to a beautiful surface. 200 is fine for the back of a piece as you will slump it into a mold most likely anyway.

The water feed works fine. I use a large storage bin ala Wal Mart to grind my pieces. Go to the houseware section and get one of those rubber cushon pads for using in a sink. They sell them in a roll and they are a large mesh rubber pad. Put that in the bottom of your bin and it will hold the glass in place while you work it. I find I leave the water running until it fills the bin to about 1/8" to 1/4" over the top of the glass and then I turn it off. Once the bin is full to that level you can just grind
away and the surface will stay lubricated.

Working the grinder takes some getting use to. You will find techniques that work for you. You need to be sure and completely work the entire surface at one grit before you move to the next or you will get inconsistent finish on your work. When I'm grinding I have a small blow dryer and lots of paper towels. As I work to the final finish I do a lot of drying and looking at the surface at a grazing angle to the light. You will be able to see the imperfections on the surface better this way.

I have not used any of the other models mentioned here. I'm sure as long as they have a strong enough motor and a good water feed they probably work pretty good. That is one thing that goes with the weight. You can get a model that is lighter but I'm guessing it will have a smaller motor which may be a bad thing if it bogs down on allowing you to do your work.

Phil

Cliff Swanson · Post by **Cliff Swanson** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 6:39 am

Phil,

I'm assuming that the grinding/polishing step you've described is done on a flat, fused blank, as a means of corrcting surface imperfections. Is that correct?

Cliff

Phil Hoppes · Post by **Phil Hoppes** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 8:41 am

Cliff,

That is correct. The pieces I'm now doing require a very flat surface and a high firepolish. I run my fusing between 1510 and 1525 for a short period and I get a fairly flat piece of glass to start with. I grind the surface, front and back, with the Felisetti to the finish I want. I then finish the edges using my wet belt sander, sign the piece and slump with a firepolish schedule. The results are very nice. I have a very smooth, divit free surface (using no leaded overspray) and a high firepolish.

Phil

Amy Schleif-Mohr · Post by **Amy Schleif-Mohr** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 9:26 am

I agree with Phil, although I haven't used any of the other models either. I love the finish I'm getting. I use the pads from 50 to 800 and am probably going to get some higher eventually. I use it all the time on every piece now. It just adds to the refinement of the work IMHO.

Amy

Steve Immerman · Post by **Steve Immerman** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 10:47 am

Phil,

If you fill the basin with water before starting, is there really a need to have the water feed connected at all?

Steve

Amy Schleif-Mohr · Post by **Amy Schleif-Mohr** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 10:52 am

That's what I do Steve. It works just fine.

Amy

Jackie Beckman · Post by **Jackie Beckman** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:01 am

well, then I need to ask, why bother with the one that has the water feed in the first place? We have dozens of angle grinders around here - all sizes and configurations. Wouldn't I just be able to but the discs to fit from CRL and use one of these? BTW Amy, go look at Doug's tools, I'll bet he's got these all over too - its handy when they play with cars

Phil Hoppes · Post by **Phil Hoppes** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:01 am

Now if I wasn't so lazy that is what I would do. I'm impatient so I hook the water line to my grinder and grind away. After it is filled I shut it off and when I make my first break to surface check I disconnect the hose so the grinder works easier.

A safety tip to those wishing to use this grinder. As with most if not all cold working tools, 1) They are noisy. Prolong use without ear protection is not good for you. For me, I hook up my iPod with my favorite tunes and put on a pair of industrial ear protectors (28dB noise surpression) and grind away. 2) The dust is bad for you as it is glass dust. For me, I use the disposable but 0.3um rated respirators with the little voice port in the middle. That way I can talk on the phone without taking the respirator off. I look like an alien when I'm suited up for grinding but I do so much of it that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Phil

Phil Hoppes · Post by **Phil Hoppes** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:06 am

Jackie,
I haven't checked but I'm not sure all of the angle grinders not designed to work in water will work that well. At a minimum you will want the rubber backer pads so you can use velcro attached diamond pads. Also be sure you are in a GFI electrical box and if not, get one of the GFI plug adaptors (I have one and can show you.) I'm sure Electric Roger can hook that up for you!

Phil

Jackie Beckman · Post by **Jackie Beckman** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:14 am

Phil Hoppes wrote:Jackie,
I haven't checked but I'm not sure all of the angle grinders not designed to work in water will work that well. At a minimum you will want the rubber backer pads so you can use velcro attached diamond pads. Also be sure you are in a GFI electrical box and if not, get one of the GFI plug adaptors (I have one and can show you.) I'm sure Electric Roger can hook that up for you!

Phil

Well he has tons of those grinders that hook up to the air hose, so electric problems wouldn't come into play. In fact, on a related note, I bought at Harbor Freight, a little bitty air die grinder (could that be what it was called?) and a package of three diamond wheels - all very inexpensive BTW. Then I took a piece out to the driveway and ran the hose on it while I grinded off some burrs - it took about 2 seconds - I was amazed!

I'll show you the new flyer I just got from CRL - all discs and belts on sale in May, BTW, because it looks like they may have discs that will work.

You can let me know what you think

Tony Smith · Post by **Tony Smith** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:42 am

A couple problems may occur if you use a grinder that isn't designed to be used in water. First, the electric grinder are equipped with GFI's either as an accessory or as part of the cord so the user won't electrocute themselves. Also, the motors are either sealed or covered by rubber boots to minimize the amount of water that can get into the motor. Finally, the steel parts used in the angle drive and output section are either stainless steel, or they are coated to minimize rusting from exposure to water.

Tony

Amy Schleif-Mohr · Post by **Amy Schleif-Mohr** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 8:02 pm

Jackie Beckman wrote:well, then I need to ask, why bother with the one that has the water feed in the first place? We have dozens of angle grinders around here - all sizes and configurations. Wouldn't I just be able to but the discs to fit from CRL and use one of these? BTW Amy, go look at Doug's tools, I'll bet he's got these all over too - its handy when they play with cars

Jackie,

I wanted my own tools.

Then he can't mess them up.
Spitfire

Jack Bowman · Post by **Jack Bowman** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 9:42 pm

A: the center feed water works better than imersion. At high speeds water will not reach the center of the pad. Imersion works, just not as well.

Q: An earlier post mentioned a respirator. Do you find particulates are in the air when wet grinding?

Jack

Phil Hoppes · Post by **Phil Hoppes** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:26 pm

The question relates to particles in the air when wet grinding. It's a fair question. I use a very sophisticated splash retaining system around the bin I grind in on my workbench.......a big cardboard box. All I need do is look at the dried splash residue all over the box and know that glass dust and water are in the air. Maybe not a lot, but I'm doing production type work so I spend a lot of time at my WBS and my grinder. Prolonged over time I will have sucked in more dust than I should without a respirator. In the end it is your lungs so you need to make the decision. For me, I'd rather be safe than sorry. The first respirator I got was those big klunky ones they sell at Home Depot. They work fine but are quite uncomfortable. The one's I use now are the 3M disposable type. Good to 0.3um particle size. I scratch the month on the side and use one a month. They are not too uncomfortable.

Phil

Phil Hoppes · Post by **Phil Hoppes** » Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:29 pm

I use my Felisetti grinder on the 2 setting, which assuming it is linear, is probably 20% of the top speed so it is quite slow. I don't like to run it faster for the reason you just mentioned, it dries the glass too quick. At a 2 setting you get plenty of grinding action and the glass stays nice and wet.

Good point to bring up.

Phil

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Angle grinders -felisatti and MK diamond questions

Angle grinders -felisatti and MK diamond questions

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