BUCKTOOL 10" 1.5HP Low Speed Bench Grinder,High Precision Wobble Free Wheel

Reviewing BUCKTOOL SCM8103 10-Inch Variable Speed Wet Sharpener …..I was impressively surprised at the overall workmanship/value at $229. Bucktool workmanship and finish…..overall metal case feels strong, tight and well assembled. The finish on my tool has a manufacturing defect on the surface of the top plate (photo) that does not impact function. Electrical toggle switch and speed knob are solid, smooth and crisp. Electrical power wire and plug meet spec. The 10” honing stone…… appeared smooth and worked well right out of the box. No vibration or wobble when spun at full speed (160 RPM). I was impressed that the stone was very close to true. The stone also turns bidirectional. Jig universal support arm …….. very close to square with the stone (photos). A number of reviews reported issues with this. I adjusted the jig alignment slightly with a little vice work. Stropping wheel…….wheel rotates smooth with only very slight wobble. But it feels “light weight”. It has very thin 1/16” leather (photo) and I suspect it may have to be replaced during the life of the machine. I did locate Bucktool parts (photo) and ordered an extra wheel, stone and jig-arm (being shipped from Hong Kong). Jigs….Nice to have two jigs (short knife and grinding/square-edge) provided. I use the Tormek square edge and truing jigs, which will work with this Bucktool. NOTE - The mounting position of the Bucktool support arm prevents the Tormek truing jig from anchoring on the arm shaft, so I will look at adding a “flat” on the jig-arm to help anchor the truing jig screw. Sharpened my first four plane blades today. Process was easy, and I am glad I used a waterproof mat…..water management vs RPM can be interesting. Sharpening took about 3-5 minutes per blade and my first edge (at 30 degrees) was reasonably smooth and square (photos). However, I did notice the stone is rough and will not leave an extremely smooth edge, especially when sharpening at less than 25 degrees (very fine chips in the blade’s leading edge). Happiness factor….I was pleasantly surprised how quiet this machine runs. Even at full 160 rpm, it is impressively quiet (video), especially when compared to other 10” stone sharpeners. Also, considering the cost, my plane blades sharpened well. But if you are looking for that “razor-super-sharp” result, this stone will probably not get you there. However subsequently lapping the blade on a flat diamond stone for a quick second bevel, does provide a very sharp blade that serves my wood shop well. First impressions, this feels like a solid investment. Overall, quite pleased with “first day” experience. The bidirectional variable-speed wheel that is ready "out of the box" with only minor tweaks, strong metal frame, square support arm, multiple jigs, stropping wheel, compound, 2 year warranty, great value-for-money and “really quiet” yields a healthy 5 stars.

Good grinder, I use it everyday! runs true and quiet and smooth.

This low speed grinder is perfect for sharpening wood chisels and blades for wood planes. My old grinder’s rpm’s was too fast and would heat the tool blades and burn the edges. This Bucktool 6” low speed bench grinder spins at a comfortable 1750 rpm’s, has negligible vibration and all in all is a well made tool. I am very happy with the purchase. Also, the delivery was four days ahead of the scheduled date how’s that for spectacular.

I began my search for a new 8" bench grinder with a good deal of pessimism. My history with these important tools has been mixed. I have a couple of well-made 6" grinders, but they are underpowered, and I really wanted one with 8" wheels for grinding my turning tools. I am replacing the equivalent model made by Rikon. Right out of the box both wheels of the Rikon wobbled badly. I took it back to the retailer, who insisted that the grinder itself was fine and that the wheel collars were a little asymmetrical. All I needed to do, he said, was to fiddle around with them until the wheels ran true. That didn't work, nor did turning the collars flat, or replacing them with precision-ground ones. Finally, I checked the grinder itself with a dial gauge, finding that both arbors have significant runout. The grinder has sat mainly idle for several years now. Having recently bought several high-dollar items for the shop, I decided that I couldn't justify buying a name brand like Jet or (gasp!) Baldor. Turning to reviews, I saw that the Buck (which I had never heard of) was highly rated. I managed to suppress my skepticism and ordered one. Being about 70% certain that I was going to end up returning this grinder, I decided to check everything before even switching it on. I was dumbfounded to find amazingly tight tolerances! The arbors (shafts sticking out from either end of the motor) are within 0.0002" of perfectly round, and the steps against which the collars rest are within 0.0004". The collars themselves are another matter. Although robust and apparently well made, they are not machined, and near their edges (they have a diameter of just under 2") they wobble by 0.006 to 0.008". That doesn't sound like much (about the summed diameters of 2-3 human hairs), but where it counts, on the periphery of the 8" wheel, that translates to about the 0.025" that I recorded there. I switched out the collars with the aftermarket, machined ones (made by Raptor) I had on hand from the Rikon failure, which wobble only by 0.001-0.002". I consider this to be really stellar performance for a bench grinder in this price range! The Buck grinder is nicely finished. I was delighted to see that the wheel covers, although stamped and not cast like a Baldor, are of heavy construction, probably about 1.5 mm thick (about 16 ga). This is a really high quality grinder for the price, and I highly recommend it.

I've used this past week since I received it and it is a nice machine. Set-up was easy and intuitive. I did watch a few YouTube videos to make myself familiar with the operation. I took the recommendation of one YouTuber and bought a Tormek sharpening jig and it made a huge difference in keeping the chisel square to the wheel. The jig supplied with the Bucktool was difficult to keep square and I had trouble fitting timber framing chisels into the jig. These chisels fit nicely in the Tormek. The supplied angle finder worked well enough for me; others may have a more professional opinion. I have not used the jig for sharpening planes. For years, I have put off sharpening all the chisels I have and after using this sharpener, I am back in business.

a chef, so this is my input: the system itself is high quality without breaking the bank. If you have Japanese knives, I highly recommend buying a 3000-grit whetstone, because the wheel that comes with the system is a 200-grit stone and it will eat up your knives. Other than that, it’s a solid buy and highly recommended.

This 6” low speed bench grinder is fantastic! I bought it to replace an old bench grinder that was on its last legs. I’m so happy I did! I have a sharpening business and use this low speed grinder mainly for cleaning up knife blades (Scotchbrite wheel) and stropping the blades after sharpening (leather wheel). The low speed is consistent, wobble free and a lot safer than high speed grinders. It runs very quiet and smooth. It is very easy to set up right out of the box. I would absolutely recommend this low speed grinder to anyone who wants a safe but effective grinder.

I have been happy with this purchase. Sharpened dozens of knives and have gotten them hair shaving sharp. I've sharpened a few chisels and planer blades and the results have been amazing. I bought the Tormek knife clamp as the Bucktool clamp is so long with the handle. I used to work so long on stones to raise a burrito. Now one pass on the Bucktool and a burr is raised. The trick is to perform lighter and lighter passes on alternating sides until the burr is very small. I still use stones and passes on wine corks to remove the burr, and then move to honing/stropping.

Muy buen, pero muy buen producto de calidad, recomedable

I've sharpened everything from kitchen knives to scissors with this machine, and it has worked great. The variable speed control is a nice feature because it lets me take my time on finer edges and speed things up when removing more material. The water-cooled system helps keep the blade from overheating, and the results have been much better than I expected. It runs smoothly, feels well built, and was easy to set up right out of the box. After using it for a while, I can honestly say it has saved me time and produced sharper edges than I was getting by hand. Very happy with this purchase.

El uso que le he dado es para proyectos en casa y me ha funcionado muy bien. He logrado buenos afilados en las herramientas que utilizo y de forma fácil. Su funcionamiento es muy silencioso y eficiente.

Smooth running, no vibration, quality built.

Works great