Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[colwyn500]

I was singing the praises of the "Value" (£14.99) grinder from B&Q. It had a faulty flex after one week.

I have just been back to cash it in and came away with a mid-range own brand at £24.99.


_JAN7148 by peterthompson, on Flickr

This is 750W rather than 500W and comes with two discs included. It does feel heavier and better made but I liked the lightness of the other one.

Anyway; off to the garage to road-test it.

[buzzy bee]

I hope Performance Power have changed their designs. I had one a few years ago, when using it with all the kit on, I noticed my hands felt all squishy with the gloves on, so I looked in detail, and was surprised to see my hands were sinking into a melting Grinder case. I then switched off, locked the Shed, went all the way to Crewe, about 15 or 20 miles, and called in to the DIY store, they were surprised it was so hot, it was a lot hotter when I was using it, and spoke about maybe having to have a recall, they soon gave me my money back, which I then put towards a Makita 115mm Grinder which I am still using, maybe need some new Brushes for soon.

I got a Hitachi 230mm Grinder not to long ago, that seems decent too.

Like I say I think Performance power will have sorted their issue by now, let me know how it goes.

I always thought the cam toggle on the guard was a clever idea..

Anyone seen the easy change disc nuts on the Bosch Grinders, think it costs a bit more, but looks handy!

Cheers

Dave

[gresham flyer]

It is false economy buying very cheap tools.
They are frankly dangerous to use sometimes.
You cannot repair them like better models.

Go for a Makita,Dewalt,Ryobi,Panasonic etc.

I use my 115mm Makita grinder nearly every day,I use it for cutting,grinding and cleaning,it has fallen off many temporary resting places onto the floor,been dropped etc and still works fine.

I think it retails for around the £60.00 mark,I was in Travis Perkins one day and noticed the lad clearing a display area of power tools,in the end I purchased it for the pricely sum of £25.00 from him as they had lost the cardboard box.

A good deal.


Gresham Flyer

[IanAl]

I bought a blackspur grinder to replace the floor panels in my MGB and before I had removed one panel the motor burned out. Took it back and got another and that did the same. Really is false economy.

[MikeEdwards]

I have three grinders - my old B&D Pro 4" with a grinding disc mounted, a B&Q cheapy (£20-odd) with a twisted wire brush, and an Aldi special with a cutting disc. So far the list reads:

Aldi grinder: brushes went literally 2 days after the end of the 3 year warranty. Posted my frustration on a forum and was advised to look in the box, where I found a spare set of brushes, fitted them, all good again.

B&Q grinder: mains cable outer insulation has split where the strain relief ends. Took apart, couple of thicknesses of heat shrink tube, OK now but will need doing again soon.

B&D grinder: has been fine for 20-odd years, but had the same problem with the mains cable outer insulation. Did a temporary repair, but that's failed again now with bare wires showing. Mains connector to body of grinder is unique to B&D, seems the only fix is to buy a new cable at £20-odd, the cost of a new grinder. Have soldered the wires to the pins for now, but need some way to support the end of the cable in the body of the grinder. Not yet given up on this.

I'm doing a lot of bodywork at the moment, so it's a big time saver to not have to keep switching between cutting, grinding, wire brush and so on. In fact I could do with another with a flap disc mounted all the time, perhaps next time they're in Aldi. I generally agree re cheap tools, but all of these have been good for the use I've given them.

[ukdave2002]

Mike, I may be able to help with your B&D pro 4" grinder, I have one, bought in the mid 80's that got dropped from a fair hight a few years ago and demolished the switch (the switch was a slide switch as I remember?) I didn't repair it as my other grinders were 115mm, if its the same as yours and I can remember where it is you are welcome to it.

Dave

[MikeEdwards]

That would be great Dave. I can see you're unwilling to scrap things "just in case", like me. Connector is two pins with a thing that twists to hold the cable in place, if that sounds the same.

[MikeEdwards]

And another grinder has gone west this week. My old B&Q cheapo one that usually has either cutter or flapwheel now fails to start at all. I've swapped the main lead (fixed on that) in case there was a break, have now ordered some carbon brushes from eBay China to see if that helps.

[ukdave2002]

Oops , completely forgot about digging that old grinder out , I'll have a look at the weekend.

Dave

[emmerson]

[baconsdozen]

Power tools that are cheap as chips and last about as long,burgers marked up as beef but used to be called Neddy or Dobbin.
You get what you pay for.

[colwyn500]

Entering 6th week with £24.99 grinder ... No problems yet!

[ukdave2002]

[MikeEdwards]

Thanks Dave, that would be great. I'll PM you when my internet connection is up for more than thirty seconds at a time.

[turfer]

I have been buying 115mm angle grinders for the past 25 years for use at work and for diy. They are used almost daily and get some abuse! I have used cheapos - waste of money, usually noisy and bad for vibration. The ones that have lasted well have been Bosch, Ryobi and Black & Decker. I particularly like the Black & Decker ones because of the 2 year guarantees and free discs included. I always buy from Machine Mart using the VAT free vouchers if possible.