Project: Diamond Dresser

Bench Grinder Diamond Dresser Part 1

Over years I’ve used almost every type of bench grinder dresser on the market, But I’ve never been completely happy with any of them. Star wheels do a good job of opening up the grinding wheel but don’t always produce a flat cutting surface. Carborundum sticks do an okay job of opening the pores, but they too don’t always yield a flat surface. T-handle diamond dressers produce a very flay face in my experience, but have a tendency to dull the wheel. The only type of Dresser I haven’t use is the single point type, mainly because the few that are commercially available wouldn’t work well with any of the grinders I’ve owned.

Back before Christmas, I decided it was finally time to give a single point dresser a try, so I sat down and designed one, that would work with my current grinder. The following video shows making the small parts associated with it.

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Bench Grinder Diamond Dresser Part 2

As I explain in the video, The lathe operations required to make the body of the dresser are more difficult than are probably needed, but it was a fun exercise in maintaining concentricity between features. The milling operations were strait forward and quick to complete. After initial testing I was pleasantly surprised to find that the dresser works even better than I originally anticipated. It yields a nice round wheel, as well as a face parallel to the front of the rest allowing grinding fixtures to be set-up quickly and accurately. It also does an exceptional job of opening up the wheel, thus allowing for a more aggressive cut to be taken while still producing very little heat.

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