Was out working on the truck radiator support rebuild this morning and the grinder died. The brushes were shot and I stuck in the spare set. They lasted about 10 seconds and were toast so I'm looking for a new grinder. I can get the same grinder(Kawasaki 4.2a) for $29.99. Since this grinder lasted 2 years under what I'd call light use, I'm thinking of getting something a bit stronger. I'm considering the Dewalt DWE4011(7amp) for $59.00, the Hitachi G12SR3(6amp) for $49.97, the Dewalt D28110L Q(7amp) for $59.97, the Bosch 1380SLIM-K(7.5amps) for $66.97 and 1375A(6amp) for $69.00. I normally would get one of the Bosches but I need this now and I can't get either of those for 2 weeks.
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Dewalt 28402 (found at home depot) is what I buy. In most all Ironworking trucks. 89 bucks 10A The rest we call Marthas because KMart used to sell a Martha Stewart model. Milwaukee makes a nice one but the weight is alittle off.
Porter cable. I got it at lowes. It's a LOT heavier duty than the Dewalt. It's got the trigger instead of a on/off switch. AND it's only $45.
Is that a 4" or 4 1/2"? I don't like the 4" grinders, the wheels burn up alot faster and the last one I had (a Craftsman) burned the spindle bearings out. If its a 4 1/2", I'll definitely check it out. The guys I asked at a Contractor site I spend a lot of time at recommended a Makita but thats double the cost.
I have a makita 4" I bought at menards eions ago. It takes the 5/8" center wheels. That thing is a best and has been thru thousands of wheels. Steel, Masonry, etc.
I've got a couple of the orange 4 1/2" grinders from Harbor Freight. Surprisingly they've held up for several years of moderate use. Seems like I found a coupon code & they were only about $15 each. One of these days when they die, I may look into a PC 4 1/2" grinder though.
IMHO… DeWalt. I have used Sears, Black’n Decker, Bosch, Robe, Makita, and a few others over the years and the DeWalt have worked the longest and appear to have the best power. Also, no matter which you get, get a Corded unit; the Cordless stuff is OK and the newer higher amperage stuff is working better than the earlier stuff BUT, when you want it you won’t have to wait for a battery to charge or keep a battery charged just in case.
I LOVE my Dewalt. D28402. I used to use the same grinder 12hrs a day, 5-7 days a week doing weld finishing for x-ray and parent metal defect refinishing for pits in a spiral pipe mill......they seemed to last quite a bit longer than the Bosch and Makitas of similar specs we were using prior. We tried a few different combinations of grinders based on price, performance and reliability....the Dewalt's won out. The mill was new. My model may not be the exact model we used, but the specs are very very close to what we used in the mill. I got mine at Home Depot for around $75 or 80 I want to say. To me the extra money is worth it....I've fried Harbor Freight and Porter Cable at home....I wanted something reliable and long lasting. No matter what you end up with, CORDED CORDED CORDED. Wireless can do small small jobs (we used wireless and wired when inside the pipe cleaning up pits in the pipe wall), but they couldn't stand up to abuse or projects that required more than 15 minutes of grinding. Not to mention they were cumbersome and uncomfortable to use in tight areas (like 28" diameter pipe). lol.
