Phoenix Rising Farm on tue 21 dec 10
For the record, I have just burned out my fourth corded Dremel in 15 years.
I am NOT at all pleased with that fact. It was one week past warranty,
and had been on its second (yes, 2nd!) use when it started smoking and
died. (See? Smoking will kill ya, but I digress...and I still smoke.)
When this one died, I was grinding the welds off hinges on a
trailer door. No room to use an angle grinder unfortunately, which is
what I would have used
otherwise. Just going slow and easy with the Dremel...and POOF! Gone.
I'm getting tired of "throwaway" tools that cost way more than they should.
There are some uses for which a Dremel is suited, and some for which
you would be much better off with a more powerful tool, which I would
willingly buy were I able to source one.
Does anyone have a source for a "Dremel-like" tool, but with a more
powerful or
longer lasting motor? I'm looking for handheld, not one of the motors
attached
to a flexible shaft that hangs (as in some jeweler's shops). I already
have one of
those.
Anyone?
Happy Holidays!
Wayne Seidl
Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2010 18:15:26 -0600
From: David Hendley
Subject: Re: Dremel tool - which one to buy?
If you only need the tool for occasional small areas of glaze runs,
forget paying for the Dremel name and buy a cheap knock-off.
Like someone on Clayart wrote last month about Harbor
Freight tools - if it's a tool you will use infrequently and lightly
then they are fine. If you are a professional and it's a tool
you will use regularly, buy good-quality name brand.
I recently bought a "rotary tool" (Dremel), in a nice plastic
case, with about 50 attachments, for $10 at the local True
Value hardware store.
After all these years as a potter I never felt the need for one,
preferring more substantial grinders. I bought this to remove
a nerd from the inside of a small bowl. I touched up the glaze,
refired it, and sold it for $20, recouping my investment with
one use. If the tool craps out I've already gotten my money's
worth!
David Hendley
david@farmpots.com
http://www.farmpots.com
http://www.thewahooligans.com
Phoenix Rising Farm
Waite, Maine 04492
A proud member of the Princeton Grange and
Washington County Food Alliance
Lee Love on tue 21 dec 10
On Tue, Dec 21, 2010 at 7:31 AM, Phoenix Rising Farm wr=
=3D
ote:
> trailer door. =3DA0No room to use an angle grinder unfortunately, which i=
s
> what I would have used
> otherwise.
Thanks for the explanation. I wondered why you weren't using an angle gri=
=3D
nder.
> Does anyone have a source for a "Dremel-like" tool, but with a more
> powerful or longer lasting motor?
At my teacher's workshop, we used a dental drill. I found one on ebay:
http://compare.ebay.com/like/320560817243?ltyp=3D3DAllFixedPriceItemTypes&v=
ar=3D
=3D3Dsbar&rvr_id=3D3D188172776039&crlp=3D3D1_263602_304662&UA=3D3D%3F*S%3F&=
GUID=3D3D4=3D
818bae11190a0bae101f141fffa0950&itemid=3D3D320560817243&ff4=3D3D263602_3046=
62
One thing that might be your problem is that you are not using the
right bits for the job. You can buy them here:
http://www.toolocity.com/
Also, you can buy more powerful angle grinders, routers and drill-like
devices there. But you get what you pay for.
--
=3DA0Lee, a Mashiko potter in Minneapolis
http://mingeisota.blogspot.com/
=3D93Observe the wonders as they occur around you. Don't claim them. Feel
the artistry moving through and be silent.=3D94 --Rumi
Suchman ceramics on tue 21 dec 10
Try these guys >http://www.foredom.net/
On Tue, Dec 21, 2010 at 5:31 AM, Phoenix Rising Farm wro=
te:
> For the record, I have just burned out my fourth corded Dremel in 15 year=
s.
> I am NOT at all pleased with that fact. It was one week past warranty,
> and had been on its second (yes, 2nd!) use when it started smoking and
> died. (See? Smoking will kill ya, but I digress...and I still smoke.)
>
> When this one died, I was grinding the welds off hinges on a
> trailer door. No room to use an angle grinder unfortunately, which is
> what I would have used
> otherwise. Just going slow and easy with the Dremel...and POOF! Gone.
> I'm getting tired of "throwaway" tools that cost way more than they shoul=
d.
>
> There are some uses for which a Dremel is suited, and some for which
> you would be much better off with a more powerful tool, which I would
> willingly buy were I able to source one.
>
> Does anyone have a source for a "Dremel-like" tool, but with a more
> powerful or
> longer lasting motor? I'm looking for handheld, not one of the motors
> attached
> to a flexible shaft that hangs (as in some jeweler's shops). I already
> have one of
> those.
>
> Anyone?
>
> Happy Holidays!
> Wayne Seidl
>
> Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2010 18:15:26 -0600
> From: David Hendley
> Subject: Re: Dremel tool - which one to buy?
>
> If you only need the tool for occasional small areas of glaze runs,
> forget paying for the Dremel name and buy a cheap knock-off.
> Like someone on Clayart wrote last month about Harbor
> Freight tools - if it's a tool you will use infrequently and lightly
> then they are fine. If you are a professional and it's a tool
> you will use regularly, buy good-quality name brand.
>
> I recently bought a "rotary tool" (Dremel), in a nice plastic
> case, with about 50 attachments, for $10 at the local True
> Value hardware store.
> After all these years as a potter I never felt the need for one,
> preferring more substantial grinders. I bought this to remove
> a nerd from the inside of a small bowl. I touched up the glaze,
> refired it, and sold it for $20, recouping my investment with
> one use. If the tool craps out I've already gotten my money's
> worth!
>
> David Hendley
> david@farmpots.com
> http://www.farmpots.com
> http://www.thewahooligans.com
>
>
>
> Phoenix Rising Farm
> Waite, Maine 04492
> A proud member of the Princeton Grange and
> Washington County Food Alliance
>
--
-e-in-o'side-
pagan by nature
>http://www.flickr.com/photos/42169721@N04/
Lee Love on tue 21 dec 10
I've seen these work nicely:
C I Grinder Kit & Accessories
http://www.continentalclay.com/detail.php?cat_id=3D3D193&sub_categoryID=3D3=
D59&=3D
PID=3D3D402
--
=3DA0Lee, a Mashiko potter in Minneapolis
http://mingeisota.blogspot.com/
=3D93Observe the wonders as they occur around you. Don't claim them. Feel
the artistry moving through and be silent.=3D94 --Rumi
James Freeman on tue 21 dec 10
On Tue, Dec 21, 2010 at 8:31 AM, Phoenix Rising Farm wr=
=3D
ote:
>
> There are some uses for which a Dremel is suited, and some for which
> you would be much better off with a more powerful tool, which I would
> willingly buy were I able to source one.
>
> Does anyone have a source for a "Dremel-like" tool, but with a more
> powerful or
> longer lasting motor? I'm looking for handheld, not one of the motors
> attached
> to a flexible shaft that hangs (as in some jeweler's shops). I already
> have one of
> those.
Wayne...
I think you are looking for a die grinder. A Dremel tool is a light
duty die grinder.
Look at the DeWalt DW888. It is a 1/4" collet tool, but comes with a
1/8" reducing collet to accept the larger sized Dremel bits and
grinders. It is a 5-amp beast that you will never burn out, but you
will also need two hands. It can be plugged into the wall, or
switched to DC and run off of your welder. $250.
The DW887 is a slightly smaller version, which can, theoretically, be
operated with one hand. $135
A good welding supply store should have both in stock, along with
similar Makita versions (though I do not think Makitas accept 1/8"
shaft bits), so you can handle these beasts and see if they are what
you really want.
Hope it helps.
...James
James Freeman
"...outsider artists, caught in the bog of their own consciousness,
too preciously idiosyncratic to be taken seriously."
"All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice.=3DA0 I
should not speak so boldly if it were my due to be believed."
-Michel de Montaigne
http://www.jamesfreemanstudio.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesfreemanstudio/
http://www.jamesfreemanstudio.com/resources
Philip Poburka on tue 21 dec 10
I've been pretty happy with this one for various things -
http://public.fotki.com/PhilBphil/1960-chevrolet-thri/mvc-685s.html
"Thor" - one of my favorite Brands.
They used to build wonderful Racing and Sport Motorcycles also at one time.
Vince Pitelka on tue 21 dec 10
Wayne Seidl wrote:
Does anyone have a source for a "Dremel-like" tool, but with a more powerfu=
l
or longer lasting motor? I'm looking for handheld, not one of the motors
attached to a flexible shaft that hangs (as in some jeweler's shops). I
already have one of those.
Wayne -
For situations like that grinding job on the trailer, the most accessible
small tool would be a pneumatic die-grinder, such as the "Ingersoll-Rand
3108 Super-Duty 1/4-Inch Pneumatic Die Grinder" on amazon.com for about $80=
.
It is very similar to a Rodac die-grinder I bought new around 1972, and it
is still going strong. These grinders come equipped with a 1/4" collet, bu=
t
can easily be adapted to an 1/8" collet.
You can find pneumatic grinders for far less, and if accessibility into
tight places is really an issue you might want to consider one of angle-hea=
d
die-grinders. Stick with the known brands - Chicago Pneumatic, Ingersol
Rand, and Rodac. Campbell-Hausfeld is best known for their compressors, bu=
t
they also sell good air tools, which I am sure are just re-branded Chinese
tools, but they do control the quality. Air tools by the major brands used
to be very expensive, but when the Chinese started making air tools for les=
s
than $20, competition lowered the prices across the board.
Of course you need to have a good compressor to run pneumatic tools. If yo=
u
don't have an appropriate compressor, then you can consider getting an
electric die-grinder, available from Makita, Bosch, DeWalt, and others. Th=
e
good ones are pricey. I saw some on amazon that are competitive with the
pneumatic grinders, but they are bulkier than the pneumatic ones, and no
guarantee on the quality.
I am not sure why you do not want to consider a Foredom or something
similar. The whole point is that it gets the motor out of the way so that
the handpiece can get into tight places, but it gives you much greater powe=
r
than a small tool like a Dremel.
I should mention that one of the Dremels I purchased before I gave up on
them completely came with a flexible shaft that failed almost immediately.
I always advise serious tool users to stay away from Dremels, but especiall=
y
the Dremel flexible shaft.
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Craft
Tennessee Tech University
vpitelka@dtccom.net; wpitelka@tntech.edu
http://iweb.tntech.edu/wpitelka
Vince Pitelka on tue 21 dec 10
Phil Poburka wrote:
"I've been pretty happy with this one for various things -
http://public.fotki.com/PhilBphil/1960-chevrolet-thri/mvc-685s.html
Phil -
I was an early aficionado of Thor, Sioux, Mallsaw, and some of the other
long-gone brands that built REALLY heavy-duty power tools. At a flea marke=
t
in Arcata, CA around 1975 I picked up a straight grinder like yours, but it
was a Sioux. It worked, but the brushes and bearings sounded terrible.
Sioux was still in business making machine tools and valve-grinding
equipment, and I was able to order new brushes and an updated reinforced
cord. My local auto parts store found the bearings. I completely
disassembled it, cleaned it, painted it (it had originally been painted
battleship gray, as was the brand new Sioux 9" angle grinder I bought about
the same time and still have) and reassembled it. I installed a new 6" by
1" grinding wheel and painted the guard red. It was a beauty. A little
later, when I was working full-time as a potter, the first mountain bikes
came out, and I really wanted one but had no money. I put want-ads in the
paper and quickly sold that grinder and a few other similar things that I
was not using, and had the $350 to buy a brand new Univega mountain bike. =
I
used the hell out of that bike, riding it almost every day for an hour or s=
o
after lunch while I was still in my studio in Blue Lake (CA), and then to
and from grad school in Massachusetts. I still have the bike, but it has
not been touched in fifteen years and is in the crawl space under my house.
Well, that was a pretty good piece of stream-of-consciousness rambling . . =
.
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Craft
Tennessee Tech University
vpitelka@dtccom.net; wpitelka@tntech.edu
http://iweb.tntech.edu/wpitelka
Bonnie Staffel on wed 22 dec 10
> For the record, I have just burned out my fourth corded Dremel>
Very early in my career I purchased a Dremel hand held motor tool and =3D
got
the array of bits to use with it. I found the bits offered didn't do the =
=3D
job
I needed. One day a salesman stopped in to the studio to show me his
product, a "never needed to be sharpened" rotary bit for the Dremel =3D
tool. I
purchased two shapes, one with a pointed end and the other rounded. They
were carbide bits. I still have those bits, they are still as workable =3D
as
when I purchased them back in the 70s.=3D20
About a year ago, I thought I had lost the tool, looked everywhere, so
succumbed to purchasing another. I used some of the bits in the kit =3D
which
wore down in one session. Then putting on my (where could it be hiding?)
cap, during one of those late at night relaxed times when things come =3D
into
one's mind, I pictured it and the next day, there it was in my furnace
storage room. Sorry to say that the company (local) went out of business
years before, as who wouldn't if you have a tool/bit that never wears =3D
out.
It has really been through tough jobs working beautifully, including
drilling an occasional plugged hole in bisque or stoneware, glaze runs, =3D
etc,
over all these years. When my studio was very active in production, the
Dremel was handy when a problem came up that called for its use.=3D20
Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/
http://vasefinder.com/bstaffelgallery1.html
DVD=3DA0 Throwing with Coils and Slabs
DVD=3DA0 Introduction to Wheel Work
Charter Member Potters Council
Randall Moody on wed 22 dec 10
It could be argued that if you are burning out Dremel tools at this
rate that your time would be better spent on making things that you
don't need to grind on so much.
More than likely you are putting too much pressure on the bit and
binding the motor down rather than allowing the tool to do the work.
--
Randall in Atlanta
http://wrandallmoody.com
On Wed, Dec 22, 2010 at 6:27 PM, Bonnie Staffel wr=
ote:
>> For the record, I have just burned out my fourth corded Dremel>
Philip Poburka on thu 23 dec 10
Hi Bonnie, all,
Solid Tungsten Carbide Burrs for 1/8th in Collet, 1/4 inch Collet, 3/8ths
inch Collet, have been available for at least 75 or 80 years, to anyone
browsing Industrial Supply Catalogues.
The Salesman possibly had not mentioned that.
High Speed Steel used to be the ubiquity, or still is, and was/is of course
much less expensive, and, serves well for most things.
If you - or anyone else - need further Tungsten Carbide Burrs of various
shapes for your 'Dremel', just google it or look on e-bay or call any
Tooling/Machine-Shop Supply or Automotive Tool Supply outfit.
As -
http://www.google.com/images?um=3D1&hl=3Den&tbs=3Disch%3A1&sa=3D1&q=3D1%2F8=
th+inch+Carbide+Burrs&btnG=3DSearch&aq=3Df&aqi=3D&aql=3D&oq=3D&gs_rfai=3D
Of course, various of the cheapies now, made in iffy places, might be
alright, or, might be not so good...hard to know until one tries them.
Best wishes,
Happy Dremeling!
Phil
Las Vegas
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bonnie Staffel"
> For the record, I have just burned out my fourth corded Dremel>
Very early in my career I purchased a Dremel hand held motor tool and got
the array of bits to use with it. I found the bits offered didn't do the jo=
b
I needed. One day a salesman stopped in to the studio to show me his
product, a "never needed to be sharpened" rotary bit for the Dremel tool. I
purchased two shapes, one with a pointed end and the other rounded. They
were carbide bits. I still have those bits, they are still as workable as
when I purchased them back in the 70s.
<<< snip >>>
Bonnie Staffel
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