CHAPTER 5

Grinding Machines and Processes

Here are reasons why grinders are used in the machining industry:

1. The cost of grinding wheels is lower than the cost of cutting tools.
2. There is no sharpening cost.
3. Fixture costs are small because of the magnetic tank.
4. It is easy to mount and remove material because of magnetic chuck.
5. Heavy stock removal and final finishing can be accomplished in one setup.

GRINDING MACHINE

Magnetic chuck – common device for all works in the grinder. The holding power of the
chuck is given by direct current which energizes electromagnets. Non-magnetic
surfaces that are to be grounded are surrounded by blocks of steel or iron as stop or
hold-downs. There are two types of magnetic chuck: the rectangular and the circular
types.

Surface grinder – is generally used for grinding plane surfaces.

1. Horizontal surface grinder – of two classes:

a. with a reciprocating table, it travels under the revolving wheel
b. rotary type; the work table revolves
2. Vertical spindle surface grinder – also of two types:
a. reciprocating table
b. rotary table

The horizontal surface grinder – has a spindle mounted horizontally and commonly
used for grinding horizontal and flat surface. The wheel head is mounted so that the
wheel can be raised or lowered to accommodate various sizes of works. The table
moves back and forth longitudinally. It can be moved manually, but usually is set
automatically. The speed of the table can be set to the required one tie the amount of

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feed and the material being machined. The vertical adjustment of the wheel is made by
turning the handwheel at the top which has a dial indicator graduated in ten-
thousandths of an inch.

Vertical spindle surface grinder – commonly used for mass production. The
workpiece is fed under the cylindrical wheel by a slowly rotating or traversing table.

How to select a wheel for surface grinding

1. Select a fine resinoid wheel, if the finish is desired.

2. Select a large, soft, coarse wheel for rough grinding on a large surface.
3. Try a harder wheel when dry grinding if using a coolant workpiece.

How to compute for the wheel speed

Example Problem

1. If the diameter of the grinding wheel is 9”, what is the required RPM of the
wheel?
(Note: Surface grinding work is accomplished with a wheel speed of less than 5500
RPM)
surface speed
RPM = circumference of wheel
9 ×3.1416
circumference of wheel = = 2.3562′
12
assume a surface speed of 5000. Therefore,
5000
RPM = 2.3562′ = 2125.8503

Cylindrical grinder – commonly used to machine cylindrical work on its outside

surface. The workpiece is commonly mounted between two centers supported by a
lathe dog. The machining is done as the work revolves and as the wheel head is made
to operate to and from the work. The grinding wheel is mounted at the end of the
spindle. The wheel is fed either manually or automatically.

a. Form grinding – is done with a wide-faced wheel. The table is stationary, and the
wheel is fed into the workpiece. The grinding wheel is formed into the required
shape or whatever external shape of the material.
b. Plunged grinding – is done by feeding the grinding wheel until the work is
grounded into the required diameter. Grinding wheels used may be as much as
9” wide and they can shaped to the required shape.

Mounting the workpiece

Most plain cylindrical grinding works are mounted between centers, as in the lathe.
Instead of using a live center and a dead centers are used with the support of lathe dog
which is pinned in a drive plate or a face plate.

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 Long cylindrical workpieces are commonly held in the same style with a support of
steady rest and sometimes a follower rest. The jaws must keep away from the rotating
work, otherwise they might break the wheel.

Center grinder – to perform the grinding operation in this grinder, the work is held
among the regulating wheel, the work rest blade and the grinding wheel. The grinding
wheel performs the actual grinding; the work rest blade positions the workpieces; and
the regulating wheel performs the following:

1. Guides the speed of the workpiece rotation

2. Guides the sizing process of the workpiece
3. Manages the rate of workpiece travel through the machine through feed
grinding
In the actual operation, the grinding wheel and the regulating wheel rotate in the
direction and commonly establishes a “climb cut”. Commonly, the grinding wheel
operates at 6,500 fpm and the regulating wheel, at 12 to 300 fpm.

Three methods of centerless grinding

1. Through feed grinding – accomplished by passing the workpiece between the

grinder and regulating wheels. Excess material is removed by passing the
workpiece from one side of the wheels to the other. In this process, only
cylindrical workpieces can be performed.
2. In feed method – commonly applied for workpieces which have shoulders or
other portions larger than the ground diameter and for finishing pieces with
irregular profile. However, the length of the sections to be grounded in any one
operation is limited by the width of the wheel.
3. End feed method – commonly used for tapering work. The grinding wheel,
regulating wheel, and blade are set in fixed relation to each other. The workpiece
can be fed either manually or automatically to a fixed end stop. The grinding
wheel, regulating wheel or both are dressed to the proper taper.

Internal grinder – commonly used for finishing holes to accurate diameters and inches,
such parts as gears, bushings, cutters, and gauges. The wheel which is mounted on a
rather slender spindle is much smaller than other types. Because of the small wheel
size, the spindle of internal machines runs at a very high rate of speed in order that a
necessary surface speed of 4,000 to 6,000 surface RPM may be obtained.

Three basic constructions of an internal grinder

1. One has the wheel mounted on the compound slide so that, as the wheel
traverses the wokpiece, the latter is fed simultaneously on a cross slide to bring
the hole to size.
2. Another type has the wheel head traversed on one slide and the workhead
mounted on a cross slide; the workpiece fed into the traversing wheel.

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 3. And the other type has the wheel spindle suspended from an overhead bar which
acts as a slide. As the wheel traverses, it is fed into the workpiece to bring the
hole to size.

The wheels used in an internal grinder are small and diamond-charged

wires, with diameters ranging from a few thousandth inch to 18 inches.

Universal tool and cutter grinder – commonly used for sharpening milling cutter: It has
two general classifications:
1. Cutter used to sharpen the periphery or sides of the workpieces.
2. Formed cutter.

Two methods of grinding tools and cutters

1. The grinding wheel rotates from the body of the cutter tooth “off” the cutting edge.
2. The grinding wheel rotates from the cutting edge towards the body of the tooth.

Formula for the wheel speed

4 × surface speed
1. RPM = wheel diameter
wheel diameter ×RPM
2. Surface speed = 4

Universal grinder – used to perform a variety of operations such as internal and external
cylindrical grinding, face grinding, reaming, and cutter grinding. This grinder has a head
stock, wheel head and table that can be swiveled and has a fixture for internal grinding.
Sharp internal tapers are cut by swiveling the wheel head or the tailstock. The wheel
head can be swiveled 90o at any side from the center. For angular setting, a graduated
scale is provided. For internal grinding, the work is held in the chuck attached to the
nose of the headstock spindle. The work and wheel speeds of internal grinding should
be faster than that for external work.

Grinding on the lathe – to perform this operation, a tool post grinder is commonly used.
This post is attached to the carriage in place of the tool post. This machine can be used
for internal or external grinding and is very handy for sharpening reamers of the
compound rest assembly. In using the grinder, the V-ways of the lathe and the nose
spindle must be covered with cloth to protect them from the grit of the wheel.
Its components parts are:

A.Swivel table; B. Workhead C. Front table hand control; D. Front cross slide hand
wheel; E Tilting wheel head; F. Table swivel scale; G. Right-hand tailstock; H. Sliding
table; I. Cross slide; J. Wheel head vertical control hand wheel; K. Attachment power
receptacle; L. Main electrical control panel; M. Front table hand control; N. Wheel head
vertical control hand wheel; O. Differential table traverse control; and P. Main
disconnect switch.

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Grinding wheel – commonly made of crushed abrasive material and held together by
strong porous bonds. Its characteristics are abrasion, grain, grade, structure, and bond.
The commonly used abrasive materials are silicon carbide and aluminum oxide.
Grain sizes are coarse (6 – 24), medium (30 – 60), fine (70 – 180), and very fine (220 –
600).
The grade of the wheel indicates the relative strength of the bond. And the grade
is determined by the grain type and the amount of bond.

As to structure, coarse grain and open structure almost always go together as do

fine grain and close structure. Wide grain spacings are used for snagging, soft
materials, and materials requiring pressure. Snagging is the grinding of the yates,
sprues from casting. Close structure is needed for brittle materials and fine finish.

The kinds of bonds are:

1. Vitrified – used for general purposes of grinding.

2. Silicate – commonly used for grinding edges tools because it keeps the heat in
minimum.
3. Rubber – used on a center-type cylindrical grinder for rapid stock removal.
4. Shellac – a soft bond used on a cylindrical grinder when good finishing is highly
needed.
5. Resinoid – soft, but tough and excellent for producing finishing on hard steel.

Mounting the grinding wheel

Before mounting the wheel, it is necessary to check that the wheel is free from
cracks and the alignment of the motor’s shafting is free from wiggles. In meshing the
wheel to the shafting, use washer or some compressible materials such as blotting
paper, rubber, or leather. The wheel must be gently mounted and should fit freely, never
too tight and never too loose. The nut must be tightened smoothly against the flange.
Before any operation is performed, let the machine run freely for at least five minutes to
check if it and the wheel are in good running condition.

Dressing and trueing a grinding wheel

There are four types of dressers:

1. Diamond point
2. Abrasive stick
3. Mechanical dresser
4. Abrasive wheel

Dressing the wheel may be defined as the process of removing materials from the
entire surface of the wheel for he purpose of restoring the cutting properties. Thrueing
the wheel is the process of removing high spots in the wheel and bringing it back to its
original shape.

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Trueing with diamond tool

A diamond trueing tool consist of one or more industrial diamonds mounted on the end
of a rod or holder.

Procedure

1. Place a diamond trueing tool in a fixed tool post or attachment.

2. Adavance the tool to the wheel at its horizontal center line, with the nib pointed
down at an angle of 10o to 15o.
3. If there is doubt the center line of the wheel, lower the nib slightly. If the tool is set
above the center, the tool may gouge the wheel.
4. Since the grinding wheel usually wears most of its edges, start trueing at the
center of the wheel face to prevent excessive penetration with consequent
damage to the diamond. Take a series of cut 0.001 in depth back and forth
across the wheel until it is perfectly round. This should leave a satisfactory
surface for rough grinding. If a finer finish is desired, take one or two more
passes without infeed to let the wheel “spark out.”
5. Machining – removing of excess material of chipping with tolerance and finish of
secondary consideration.
6. Grinding – considered a finishing process with surface finish and tolerance as
primary objectives.

Abrasive machining is advantageous because it decreases the production time of

metal removal operation, and it improves the quality of the finished product.

Nowadays, most of our multiple-point cutting tools are done by means of

abrasive machining such as drills, taps and milling cutter. In forming a tap say for
example, there are three operations included: (a) flute and gun pointing; (b) thread
grinding; and (c) squaring the shank.

The whole concept of abrasive machining is really interesting and helpful to the
industry because more pieces of work can be finished.

Check Your Knowledge

1. What s a grinding machine?

2. What are the types of grinding machine?
3. What are the two types of surface grinder?
4. What is from grinding?
5. What is plunge grinding?
6. Differentiate centerless grinding fro plain grinding.
7. What are the main uses of universal grinder?
8. Describe an internal grinder.
9. Give the different kinds of bond commonly used in grinding wheels.

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10. Explain the procedure on how to mount a grinding wheel.
11. What determines a grinding wheel’s hardness?
12. Why do need to use a magnetic chuck for holding workpieces on a surface
grinder?
13. Name the two classifications of cutter for grinding.
14. Explain the procedure on how to operate surface grinding.
15. Briefly explain trueing and dressing a wheel.

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