I am about to upgrade my sharpening another notch by changing wheels on my grinder.  Tormek might be a dream for someday. I'm just thinking of 

a cbn wheel right now.   As I work with more squirrely wood all the time, every effort to sharpen my tools better and more frequently shows positive results.  

 

Question

My grinder specs (before cbn was around) uses a 1 inch wheel. That includes two three inch diameter wheel flanges for the soft abrasive wheels that total more than 1/2 inch wide.

Do I still need the wheel flanges with a cbn wheel? I have read in a couple of places where you can just remove them, and as I look at some cbn wheels, the outside diameter of the cbn wheel center flange is much smaller than the wheel flange for the abrasive wheel.    If I don't need these wheel flanges, I could get a 1.5 inch wheel for just a bit more money.  

 

Thanks,

 

 

Here's a site with a lot of information-

 

https://woodturnerswonders.com/pages/cbn-wheels

 

https://woodturnerswonders.com/pages/videos

 

https://woodturnerswonders.com/pages/frequently-asked-questions

No flanges needed because CBN are solid metal. I would get the washers Woodturners Wonders sells to make the wheels turn concentrically. And you did not ask but 180 and 80 are the most common used  wheels.

Lew and Gerald, you are always a gold mine of information.

 

Thanks, guys. I will go do some more homework, but I think I'm close

Not really anything to ad, Lew And Gerald gave you good info. With that, you're going to love CBN wheels.

 

Thanks for the help on this.

A friend of mine gave me a 180 grit abrasive wheel to try the finer grit. It was 6 inches rather than 8 and the grinder wobbled so much that I had to take it off.

 

So, I ordered a Spartan cbn wheel. It is a significant investment but I thought it would be so good with my Wolverine sharpening system, another significant investment.

 

Alas, as I open the box, I read that I should not use the Wolverine with the cbn wheel because it is dangerous, and would void the warranty on the cbn.  

I am so disappointed even before I mount this thing. I don't think I would have ordered it had I known about this restriction.

 

Do other cbn wheels come with the same concerns, limitations and warranty restrictions?

 

 

Did you get the wheel from Ken Rizza?

Yes, from Wood Turners Wonders.  They have a lot of helpful information on their site about choosing

their wheels. Just not anything about not using the Wolverine grinding jig with the long arm.  That

restriction came in the instructions with the wheel.  

I checked their site for the warranty and there’s no mention of that on the Spartan wheels??

I don't have CBN wheels but had never heard of that restriction before.  Thanks for mentioning it.

A friend of mine went from a 180 to a 300 and said his tools seem sharper and it removes less steel. I got mine at DWay tools. The have bushings so they can make the wheel fit any spindle.

Lew, that was my surprise.  I don't see anything about restrictions on their website, so I thought it would be a natural to use my Wolverine "long arm" sharpening system with my new CBN wheel. Only in the instructions that came with the wheel does this restriction show up.  They are very clear not to do it, and say that their warranty will be voided if any damage occurs because of using it.  That was my surprise and I wonder if other brands have the same restriction.

54 minutes ago, Bob Hodge said:

That was my surprise and I wonder if other brands have the same restriction.

I've been searching for any references to that combination, so far I haven't been able to locate a reason for it.

Everywhere I look people are using the Wolverine Jig with CBN wheels.  I wonder if there is a legal action that caused this disclaimer.  There are a lot of bad actors out there that blame everything on someone else.

I'm wondering is a call to Ken Rizza could help explain the reaason.

Are the Spartan wheels solid Aluminum or do they have a nylon hub???

 

The reason I ask is I found this on a Sawmill Creek post-

"My curiosity would be how they handle or disperse heat or how it affects the nylon. Would overheating deform the wheel? I'm sure they have tested it thoroughly though and doubt that it'd be an issue, but that's the first thing that popped in my head."

 

https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?256620-Spartan-CBN-wheels

Quoting from their instructions included with the wheel:

"Do not sharpen spindle roughing gouges by placing the handle in the long arm pocket of the Wolverine jig...

Warranty is voided if damage to the wheel results because the long arm pocket was used for a spindle

roughing gouge or the tool gets caught or jammed in the tool rest because it was not properly supported. 

Purchaser assumes all risk of use." 

 

Playing amateur lawyer, which I'm neither good at or desirous of doing, I see the first part focuses on a spindle roughing gouge.

The second part about "the tool gets caught or jammed" may refer to just a spindle roughing gouge, but it suggests something

broader in addition to a spindle roughing gouge in the long arm pocket of the Wolverine.

 

What I really want to do is sharpen my bowl gouges using the Wolverine jig using a cbn.  So far, every investment I have made in sharpening

time, effort or tools has proven to well worth it. 

 

So, are there others that use the Wolverine and a cbn or have I created a mismatch of two quality tools? 

That makes it seem like there might be some tools that would be a little short causing the problem. If the edge to be sharpened rests on the upper third of the wheel, I wonder if there would be any problems.

 

From what you posted, sounds like bowl gouges are OK to use.

OK, I have the straight scoop.  Ken Rizza called me!  

Yes, their concern is only about a roughing gouge using only the "long arm" of the Wolverine.  That 

makes perfect sense and I appreciate that warning.

 

The rest is trying to interpret the warning, and I believe I have done a mighty fine job

of overthinking it.

 

Indeed, I can use the cbn wheel with the Wolverine system to improve my sharpening.  

 

As always, this group has much wisdom and is ready to share.

 

Thanks all

Arrived late but here is my take. I never use the long arm the way it is illustrated in the pic on box. Last month we had Jeff Hornung demo and he said pros have been trying to get them to remove the pic but have not. He also said everyone is cutting the arm off as that is a dangerous way to sharpen so I have cut off both mine and the club long arm. It was just in the way anywho.