Wheel dressing

[Andrew TinsleyParticipant @andrewtinsley63637]

Just starting to use a newly purchased Clarkson Mk1 tool and cutter grinder. The manual says to dress the wheels before use, but doesn’t give any info on this. I presume that the dressing tool is mounted in the machine in the same way as the item to be ground. There are lots of holders that came with  the Clarkson. My query is what is the best type of dressing tool to use, I am currently thinking of a single diamond, rather than a wheel or other type. What is the advice from experienced folk that use cutter grinders such as the Clarkson?

Thanks in advance,

Andrew.

[Julie AnnParticipant @julieann]

I use a single diamond for truing and dressing on all my grinding machines; Clarkson T&C, surface and cylindrical.

Julie

[Clive FosterParticipant @clivefoster55965]

Andrew

Single diamond held in the usual trailing manner with the diamond behind where the hold is works well enough for me. Obviously very tiny cuts, just enough to clean up the wheel.

Use common sense to judge how often to dress the wheel once its mounted. Obviously you have to dress the wheel true every time you put it on but no absolute need to attend to it if it’s just been sitting a while.

But it does depend what you are doing.

My normal left on teh machine set-up is for drill sharpening, which is probably the least demanding application, so it may get several uses between dressings. Once you get your eye in it’s very easy to see if dressing is needed by simply looking at the wheel.

Teaching grandma to suck eggs comment. Generally Clarkson wheel guards vary from hopeless to inadequate so please don’t spin up any wheel you don’t know to be good. I automatically bought new for mine.

If you fancy something better I have “OK (ish)” drawings for a near copy of the latest full guard set up with dust extraction tube welded up from steel sheet. Drawn up from photographs of the real thing. They are what I made mine from but I never went round and properly corrected discrepancies found in the build or desirable modifications. No great issues if I recall correctly but a few “Hmm, maybe I wouldn’t do it exactly like that next time. Intent was write up in MEW but it all seemed too much work to produce a properly validated design.

Clive

[Andrew TinsleyParticipant @andrewtinsley63637]

Thanks both,

So a single diamond dresser it is, as I suspected. Clive the wheel guard on my machine is a joke, although the belt guard is a later one and perfectly adequate. I will take you up on the offer of your drawings of a version of the later guard, having seen photos of one with the dust extraction option. My machine is fitted with the wheel extension, presumably this makes a difference.

Andrew.

[Clive FosterParticipant @clivefoster55965]

 

Andrew

PM me your E-Mail address and I’ll shoot PDF drawings of the things I’ve done to mine over.

This is the guard. Lesson 2 of Teach Yourself MIG Welding so sticking together isn’t pretty. But it works. I leave the outer cover off for drill sharpening. Wheel is Axminster Grinding Wheel Code 400074 (Wide Wheel for AC150WSG Grinder). Inexpensive at the time, about 7 or 8 years ago so may no longer be current, and works well for drill sharpening although it needed dressing down a bit on the fron face to get inside the guard. It will be dressed before it gets used again. Marks photograph much more impressive than they are.

Guard bracket on mine isn’t suitable so I had to make another one. Only a bit different but enough.

Whilst I was at it I modified the never-to-be sufficiently-cursed motor mounting system whose four independent brackets seem to have been designed to make it near impossible to simultaneously get both belt tension and alignment correct. I welded a copy of the brackets at a suitable angle to the bottom ends of a pair of bars running between the tapped holes in the motor mount. Now only the top brackets pivot so its all much better behaved.

Clive

 

 

[noel shelleyParticipant @noelshelley55608]

Good morning Andrew, As Above – a single diamond. The first short coming of the the Clarkson is the inability to balance the wheel as the wheel is mounted directly on the spindle. Having twice had a wheel come loose one needs to be very careful mounting the wheel. Truing/dressing the wheel will help but  make sure you have blotters on each side of the wheel. Only use the spindle extension if you need to – it takes the load further from the bearing.

Due to the many tasks these machines were used for, guards tended to be home made and seldom able to contain a wheel if it burst. I have the original Clarkson with dust extraction on mine and could measure if need be.

For all things Clarkson see “The Bedroonm Workshop”

If you don’t have the manuals with the various info, most can be found on the net. Or PM me and I will see what I have. Good luck. Noel.

 

[Andrew TinsleyParticipant @andrewtinsley63637]

Thank you Noel,

I seem to have the usual manuals, but thanks for your offer. I found the “Bedroom Workshop” a few weeks ago and would recommend it to anyone with a Clarkson T&C grinder!

Thanks again,

Andrew.

[David George 1Participant @davidgeorge1]

If you want to grind carbide cutters you will have to use a diamond wheel and that needs a diamond wheel dresser attachment.

It uses a grinding wheel which makes contact with the wheel and rotates on contact but with a centrifugal brake trues and dresses the wheel.

David

 

[Clive FosterParticipant @clivefoster55965]

David

What is the advantage of that style of diamond wheel truing attachment over simply accurately mounting one of the usual type for properly controlled traverse at exactly 90° to the diamond wheel axis? Which would be fundamentally using same method as you do for ordinary wheels.

How is the grinding wheel on the attachment properly trued and dressed before use?

Looking on t’net those devices are impressively expensive for something that seems so simple a concept. Over £1000 for a Norton one and approaching £300 for the MSC “cheap far eastern knock off” version. Yikes! Interestingly MSC are probably cheaper than direct from China via Alibaba once the delivery and duty stuff is done and dusted.

Seems a valid DIY project if a simple drag brake will do rather than the centrifugal device used by Norton.

Clive

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