Tapered contact wheel for fullers

[Gareth Barry 2]

Been watching Man At Arms - Matt sometimes uses a 'tapered' contact wheel when grinding fullers. This seems to me to have the advantage of reducing the speed of the contact wheel-which for me is an issue because my grinder only has one speed. It could also in principle grind much thinner fullers than a 2.5 inch wheel could. My question is, what is this type of contact wheel actually called, where can you find one and does it work with normal belts? I am thinking it might put stress on the belt. 

Thanks

Gareth 

[steven smith 109]

ive seen them use one of these before on man at arms https://www.lehighvalleyabrasives.com/tools-and-equipment-1-dia-x-3-8-w-contact-arm-assembly-tapered-rubber-wheel-with-no-platen-dynabrade-11232-dyn11232

 

its not going to reduce the speed of your belt, it looks like its just for narrow fullers

[Gareth Barry 2]

OK so it's literally just a tapered contact wheel. 

My concern with a wheel that small is the high speed of rotation in terms of whether the bearings can handle it-no problem if you can vary the speed, which I can't. 

Hence myg thought is to use a tapered wheel, with a larger diameter. 

Still not sure if a standard belt can handle being deformed over a tapered wheel. 

 

[Gareth Barry 2]

I guess the tracking wheel is tapered to lesser extent, maybe I am worrying about nothing... 

If my concerns regarding belt deformation as it goes over a non flat surface are baseless, then why not just screw a narrow raised area onto the flat platten, made from delrin or something? Then the belt goes over the raised area on the platten, causing it to grind in a narrow manner? Sounds like a crazy idea, somebody please talk me out of it... 

[Alex Middleton 831]

Anything is worth a shot, but my gut is that trying it that way would shred a normal belt.  If you do try it I wouldn't use anything that will melt.  Stick with steel or ceramics, you're going to create a ton of friction on the surface of the rib.

[Alan Longmire 3,788]

Most people use a "small wheel attachment" for that, and by adjusting your angle of attack on the blade you can taper and narrow the fullers after some practice.  

 

Two things to know about Matt and the BKS crew:

 

1. They use Bader space-savers in the main grinding shop, and those are far more flexible to configure than a standard 2x72 machine, far more forgiving with tracking and such, and 

 

2. Matt is a wizard on the grinder.  I've watched him whip out a completed sword blade on one of those grinders in about 15 minutes.  

 

I haven't watched the clip you posted, but I know for some jobs they use a wheel that's been ground to a point in the center of the contact area, i.e. a V-shaped cross-section in the rubber.  Using a split belt and grinding vertically, you can get as narrow and deep a fuller as you would want.  Maybe that's what he's doing there? don't have time to watch in at the moment.  Space-savers are set up to run 3x132" belts, but you can split those belts down to 1/2" wide or so and get really sharp fullers without the wash-out that a wider belt would produce.  

[Gareth Barry 2]

Thanks Alan

You confirmed what I had observed in the videos, ie that Matt and Illya are really at top of their game, and that the belt grinders they use are much larger than a 2 x 72, they look massive. 

On swords I have made in the past, I ground in narrow fillers by hand, and it was a PITA, so I am looking for a more efficient method. I am considering making up a jig to work with an angle grinder. 

[Alan Longmire 3,788]

Yeah, I have to laugh when I say "Bader Space-Saver."  They bolt to the floor, stand up to six feet tall and five feet from front to back, and can be set to run up to a 4" x 132" belt with additional wheels.  5hp 3-phase motors.  On wood you can use them as a wide-kerf bandsaw with a coarse belt.    They are true beasts and I'd love a set of them,  but I'd have to build a wing on the garage to put them in.  I think BKS has four...  probably more now, I haven't been up there since 2010.