I forget what I paid for mine - which I built - but I'll bet after all is said and done, I'm not far from $1K.

One way to save some money is by piggy-backing more than one piece of equipment on the same controller.

Seems like none of what we do is cheap.

Britt,

Google Wayne Coe Blacksmith. He sells motors, vfd, wiring kits,etc. I think I put mine together for about 850 a couple of years ago.

Bob

Britt,

Also look at True Grit. They offer a variable speed, reversible 9" disc sander w/ an adjustable rest for $875. I believe it's 1 hp - looks nice, and it's plug & play! I'm probably getting one myself.

Ed C.

I second what Karl said. I use one controller for my belt grinder and my disc grinder. I just wired the controller out to a box that I plug either one into.

Works great and saved some money.

Steve

Thank you for the replies gentlemen. Yes, Karl, everything we use is expensive. Some of it staggeringly so. Still cheaper than redheads.

The True Grit is priced at $935. But looks like a very good setup.

Do you have to have a 3 phase motor to use the VFD?

I own both, and in my opinion the Beaumont (KMG) is the "better" of the two. It's just built heavier, more rigid, and is much smoother to operate.

I built mine for way less than 1k. The VFD was the most expensive part and I went with a KBAC 24d and added a reverse switch and an on/off switch for somewhere less than $300 shipped. The motor came from ebay and was just a 1 horse 3 phase motor for around $130 shipped. the wiring harness I bought from Wayne Coe. The disk came from Nathan the Machinist. total was around $600 and it runs smooth and true. If you are willing to do the work you can piece one together. the extra $$ is for someone else piecing it together and you just plug and play. Either way a disk sander is an excellent addition to your shop.

Look at pheer grinders they are $675 or $875 with a table . I built mine for less but I had to build an enclosure for my fm-150 vfd made the disc tiltable and mounted it on a movable table ($20 secretary table )

Gilbert

I'm in the market to buy one as well. Paying 1500 for the adjustable grinder from Beaumont vs the Pheer adjustable for 900.....600 dollar difference is hard to eat.

It's often a hard pill to swallow, but there's a reason there's such a price difference. Ya get what you pay for. <img src=' http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//smile.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':)' />

It's often a hard pill to swallow, but there's a reason there's such a price difference. Ya get what you pay for. <img src=' http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//smile.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':)' />

I agree - you get what you pay for.

I know. I have a KMG from Beaumont. High Quality for sure. This hobby is breaking my bank lol