Thread: Has anyone used the Wilton Square Wheel Grinder?

You need variable speed for post-H grinding which is the most heat sensitive step.
Without speed control, you'll burn up razors. Also in terms of wheel size, I find that 4" is the size I use most. 8" is something I use occasionally. 12" virtually never. The 12" was included by default.

I know very little about this topic but I do remeber one of the pro razor makers saying he used a 2" wheel for something or other and seemed to think that was interesting to the forum readers. I cannot remember the particulars beyond 2" wheel.

A 2" wheel is useful if you want to hollow grind. The easiest approach is to first grind the razor using a larger wheel, and when the bevels are ok, you switch to the smaller wheel to scoop out more metal from the hollow.

Originally Posted by Bruno

You need variable speed for post-H grinding which is the most heat sensitive step.
Without speed control, you'll burn up razors. Also in terms of wheel size, I find that 4" is the size I use most. 8" is something I use occasionally. 12" virtually never. The 12" was included by default.

What range of speed are we looking at?

Here is what I am running & you can pick up some wheels from Sunray. All said and done you can get running for about $1,000.

Polar Bear Forge

Cousin bought a Wilton Square Wheel back in the 80's. Well built machine, just wasn't that great for knife grinding.

Originally Posted by shooter74743

Here is what I am running & you can pick up some wheels from Sunray. All said and done you can get running for about $1,000.

Polar Bear Forge

Thanks shooter74743! Seems plausible... but I was wondering if you can change the wheel sizes and speed?

You see that square horizontal tube? I have a solid stock tube that replaces my "flat platen" that mostly keeps my 8" wheel on it. You can also attach a flat grinding "table" to the tube.

I had fits with this build. Putting together the grinder was a cakewalk. My first motor AND VFD were bad, drove me crazy. The 2 hp motor is a 3phase 1700 rpm (don't remember exact & it's raining out or I would check exact) and I can slow it down to a crawl with the vfd and it still has plenty of torque to profile blades. The drive is 3.5" IIRC.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions! I will take some time and slowly think about which works best for me

I've been using a Coote 2x6x48 belt grinder for about 20 years. It is a great heavy duty machine. I simply change pulley sizes to vary the speed. Even though it is "small", I have made everything from bowie knives to small pairing knives to razors with it. They are about $400 plus the motor, shipping and mounting. If you pick up a used motor, you can have everything for under $500.
Coote Belt Grinder