Glad to see you Doc.I still think you could make a cutterhead pretty cheap based on the stacked dado cutters like we use on a table saw.All you need is a shaft and the right diameter blades. RB
Thanks, man, appreciate the kind words.
lets see - a 2" plus a little diameter dado setup, you know, I would almost swear I have seen such a thing someplace, mebbe in a catalog of modellers supplies. Figure the drum itself is 2" and the cutter blades project a little beyond that…
aha! while looking for shell milling cutters , lookie what the old bald fat man stumbled across: http://www.niagaracutter.com/techinfo/millhandbook/styles_apps/interlock.html -
and yes, 2 1/8" diameter is a very available size. You’d have the sorta-like-helical setup like we have in our Rockwells with a tooth in the work at all times so no speed bumps to sand out, a keyed shaft would work just fine, as they interlock it might even fly with only one cutter keyed and the rest interlocked with it or possibly press-fit, drill a rebate into the hub for a press-fitted retainer or … screw it, use a snap ring ot two to keep 'em in place, that’s what they are good for. Yeah, I LIKE this idea. Replace as needed, don’t have to sharpen 'em, and tool life in foam would prolly be nearly infinite, as these things were meant to mill steel castings.
heeeee… i missed this place. I don’t often get to play with ideas like this.
doc…
Doc…PeteC.This sounds like it may be do-able and any decent machinist could make one easily.The shafts are standard dimension steel.All you have to do is cut to length,round of one end and thread the other.Putting the stack blades on would take a little figuring.Pete knows his stuff about machine work so hopefully he will go for it.Pete you mentioned earlier about the weight thing and how RPM’s may affect it.Perhaps you could use a Speed Control and dial it down.Seems to me that using the stacked blades you would be cutting and may need less speed (kind of like a table saw) versus a planer.I betcha it would be quiet also.If this works I bet the woodworkers would buy in to it also.That’s where the profit would be.Woodworkers spend zillions of dollars on useless thingamajigs from fancy catalogs.(I’m one of them LOL) RB
You know - I was thinking about that overheating thing. And I wonder if it’s the weight of the drum or if it’s maybe that those abrasive drums put a lot more torque-work on the motor, with umpty-seven wee dots of carbide or whatever in pretty much constant contact with the workpiece versus an occasional blade cut. Plus, it’s friction, not a cut, so mebbe that might have some effect?
Dunno- I’d guess that the planer, running with no load, would stay about equally cool with an abrasive drum or with a standard cutter barrel. And one way to mebbe test my nickel and dime theory might be to time how long it’d take for two planers to slow to a stop after letting go of the trigger, one with an abrasive barrel and one with standard cutters, maybe advancing both into foam at a constant rate?
Wild-ass guesses, of course… but I’m a curious sort.
doc…
Think of the Byrd cutters and the ones you found, doc, as heat sinks. Lots of room to move that heat comparied to the grit drums.
vs.
I’ll look into adapting Doc’s cutters into a stack arrangement on a drum shaft. Probably be next week before I can get to it. Are these going to be sharp enough?
Now, that’s an interesting question - but compared to the apparently beadlike sintered abrasive drum surfaces, they oughtta be ok. The cutting angle wasn’t something I paid a lot of attention to but a rough guesstimate tells me it’s at least as good as that on a standard replaceable cutter set in a standard drum/cylinder.
And, I’d think that these are hardened steel rather than carbide, which tends to be sharper anyhow.
Dunno - find out, I guess.
doc…
Go for it Pete.I bet it will work.Thanks RB (thanks to Doc also)
I was searching to see if anyone has a word for me on their experience(s) with the abrasive drums versus regular blades…I’ve got to of the big Hitaci planers that were rigged from Clark when they were still around. I’ll keep one w/blades and want to try the other with abrasives for some of the new foam that wants to cheddar when you wanna mow production.
My main question is: are the abrasives a lot quieter? Anyone try these on Homegrown (BioFoam) blanks? EPS.what densities?
Thanks
I haven’t used one myself DS, but I have heard several people here say that they work well.
I am curious if anyone knows whether they will fit into planers other than the Hitachi or Skil?
I am going to be buying a better planer shortly, and am wondering if I should go the expensive route of a Clark model Hitachi, (already pricey without buying a shaping barrel) or if any of the drums will fit into say; a Bosch planer, that I could then mod myself.
Here’s my two cents. I’ve had a grit drum for 12 years, old faithful. It’s a full grit drum, like the one advertised on Sways. I really like it. It DOES turn away from the work (but the lightweight Hitachi’s do that anyway). I bought the set from foamez that just replaces your blades. Those were nice because there was less area of grit to slow down the cut. I still felt like they lost cutting power quickly, or just didn’t cut as well as blades. THEN I recently got the spiral grit bit. This bit has changed everything for me. It cuts fast, pushes the foam out fast, doesn’t push away from my work as much, works really well on all foams from poly to eps to dcell etc. So now I took out all my blades and just using three diff. planers all with grit bits. Oh, I use both the Clark modified Hitachi and a “stock” Hitachi with old faithful in that one for detail and rails etc. Hey, good luck. I’d definitely suggest putting the spiral grit bit in one of your planers.
Thanks for the feedback…still wondering, are they quiet compared to blades? How do they do on stringers? Can you move fast through Extruded, EPS and tighter celled PU/s?
How fast do they blunt? Have you run backwards with them? (for knocking down bumps and blending).
Drewtang,
Where did you get the spiral grit drum?. I have one and it came from F/G Hawaii. Is that the best source. I love mine.
Dave_D
Don’t know if they’re quieter, I’ve always got plugs in. They do fine on stringers, forward and backwards. The grit bits move plenny fast through all foams. I clean mine off with acetone or laquer thinner and a wire brush about once a year. GOt the new one from FoamEz. Hope that helps, got so limited computer time lately…
…yeah, it’s at Fiberglass HI…great source for everything…good people too.
aloha,
Have them made with max 2 spirals or even better 1 spiral.
There’s big difference between the motor of a jointer and the motor of a hand held electric planer.
Over just foam, you may get away without burn out. but a board with wide stringers or even all wood…gotta give da planer a rest.
I’m looking forward to seeing one in a hand held planer
Sheartak Tools Ltd. in Canada has a wide range of spiral cutterheads for hand held planers, Skil, Makita,Hitachi,DeWalt etc… Website: www.sheartak.com
What is the model number of your Bosch planer? https://www.sheartak.com/bosch sheartak has a couple of spiral cutterheads for Bosch planers.
An aliexpress seller has pretty much the same but sadly no skil available :
Similar, but not the same cutting design.