Anyone add a grinder to a shaper

This came to mind and have been thinking on it a little. Mount a grinder shaft vertical and put on a cup type wheel and angle it slightly so it grinds on backside of wheel so it pushes itself against the ram. Also kicks most abrasives away from machine. Space ran out a long time ago and was thinking this would be a good space saver for the very few times a surface grinder would be the thing to use .
Thoughts on anything I might not have thought out please. would run a cool mist system for coolant and though not ideal would get me by for the very occasional use it would see. think the slow stroke and rigidity of this machine would make it pretty nice.

Shapers are not really very accurate machines. As the ram extends, it sags. The more wear the ram ways have, the worse the sag. It's not a big deal in a cutting operation because the tool pressure is always in the same direction (it only cuts on the forward stroke). With a grinding wheel, I would think the wheel would skip on the return stroke.

If you need a grinder, buy a grinder.

The backstroke could get interesting . Already have the shaper is why was even thinking it. Didn't think about sag till you mentioned it. Noticed it does cut pretty straight now and figured the tool bit kinda keeps it that way . If I did anything long would just have to get someone to do it . Figured as long as I kept it to small shorter parts would be good. Just after the occasional hardened part or really good finish it might produce .

It is better to not have any grinding machine of any sort close to a machine that you want to maintain accuracy.
Surface grinders are pretty cheap.

Yes, I have been considering making a toolpost grinder for the lathe and making it so I could bolt it to the shaper too. The point about a shaper not being that accurate is valid, and I agree I don't like grinding around machine tools. However I too don't have a lot more room and would rarely be grinding, and the level of accuracy would probably be OK for the work I usually do, home shop type jobs.

wdTom said:

Yes, I have been considering making a toolpost grinder for the lathe and making it so I could bolt it to the shaper too. The point about a shaper not being that accurate is valid, and I agree I don't like grinding around machine tools. However I too don't have a lot more room and would rarely be grinding, and the level of accuracy would probably be OK for the work I usually do, home shop type jobs.

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Tool post grinder mounted on the saddle of a lathe - good. Tool post grinder mounted on the front of a shaper ram - not so good. I would imagine the results would be a bit rough and ready, especially with a cup wheel. The wheel would take an age to " spark out ".

Ewsley's right. Get a regular surface grinder. A " Jones & Shipman " 540 takes up not much more room than a decent sized pillar drill.

Regards Tyrone.

I once (and only once) mounted a tool post grinder on my 8'' Boxford shaper in order to get out of hole I'd dug myself in to.
After one hell of a fight I got somewhere near where I wanted to get, but pretty it was not, and needed a lot of hand stoning to finish.

Don't waste your time.

I mounted an angle grinder in the clapper box of my 10" Royal shaper in order to surface some cast iron that had severe hard spots from weld repairs, after the shaper couldn't handle them with conventional tooling. It worked. It wasn't good to the shaper. I wouldn't do it again.

As Tyrone and Sami say:- Don't waste your time. Get a surface grinder, they are designed not to be destroyed by such use.

The surface grinder will remove metal as well as a shaper, just slower and more accurately. I've currently got both and the shaper will be for sale once I've finished re-scraping it to repair the damaged ways...

Mark Rand said:

I mounted an angle grinder in the clapper box of my 10" Royal shaper in order to surface some cast iron that had severe hard spots from weld repairs, after the shaper couldn't handle them with conventional tooling. It worked. It wasn't good to the shaper. I wouldn't do it again.

As Tyrone and Sami say:- Don't waste your time. Get a surface grinder, they are designed not to be destroyed by such use.

The surface grinder will remove metal as well as a shaper, just slower and more accurately. I've currently got both and the shaper will be for sale once I've finished re-scraping it to repair the damaged ways...

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Only better suggestion I can offer - hobbyist, for-sure, or most other "smallholders" especially - is DON'T get a surface grinder.

A better mill might see the shaper sent-off as well

For all the learning-curve, re-training after periods of disuse, wheel and hub and dresser and mag-vise and other accessories that want kept in good nic, and the use of mastered for any DECENT grinder and reliable on-time, on-budget, low scrap results?

Faggedaboudit and go find an affordable grind shop that HAS made the whole nine yards of investment in the lot, mastered it, does it every day, all, day, all year to get it "right" first time, every time.

Waay cheaper that way, "life cycle cost basis", even at what might SEEM to be high per-job fees.

Also a part of the reason so many shops have kicked SG's they had held for long years out the door.

Machine tools being used even NEED grinding as a final op that often, might be better to upgrade those and their tooling instead.

That can be a win-win, regardless, as less critical work also goes better and faster as part of the package.