We had one of the central machinery grinders and the only feature worth mentioning is that it would clear the workbench, whether you wanted all of that stuff shaken to the ground or not
LOL Yeah, I've had two of the Central Machinery grinders as well. One of them did the same thing until I swapped the grinding wheels out with wire wheels. The one on the workbench in the video I had dressed enough to take most of it out, but it would still dance around on the table if you didn't bolt it down. LOL
LMAO. Not just that, but the CM grinders are weak as hell. I went the cheap route and bought a CM grinder. When I use the wire brush wheel, it completely stops spinning if you put any level of pressure against it. It’s nearly useless trying to wire brush with it. At times, I have to manually coax the grinding wheel after turning it on to get it spinning. Pay the extra money and get something more the quality of either of these two grinders. The CM is essentially a $40 paper weight.
I've had the Bauer 8" for a couple years now and it has really handy .! I had a home made one made from a 110/120 motor off a heat/air unit. I've learned how to sharpen bits since getting the Bauer. It has the little bench trough on the left wheel.!
Thank you. The grinder I have now boggs down so easily. I have been looking for another grinder for a while and this reassures me that if I get either of these from Harbor freight I will be good to go.
Just purchased the Hercules grinder. It’s awesome! Smooth as glass. Works great and feels really powerful. No feel of stalling at all. So far, I am please with both Hercules power tools that I have purchased. I also purchased the sliding miter saw as and that also works excellent as well.
Hi When are you going to build the bench top grinder stand?? I am going to purchase the Hercules 8".. Great grinder.. I recently picked up a Hercules miter saw table and that thing is Awesomely stout and light weight 149 bucks... Ps.. Do the grinder stand build thanks bud!!
I almost did put it in the review, but I was hesitant as they no longer sell it. I probably should have for the comparison! You are absolutely correct, they were pretty weak!
In my opinion, yes. They both don't stall as easy. They still have cheap wheels, but not as cheap as the orange ones. I've read some complaints of wheel wobble, but mine were minimal. The shrouds and tool rests are built better too.
I just picked up the Bauer, 8 inch variable speed. I thought it was a rebadged Hercules because it’s identical looking to the one in your video and they came out with a new industrial Herc with no variable speed. I like the Bauer, plenty of power and runs smooth with some aftermarket flanges/washers. My only issue is it gets really hot when torquing hard on the wire wheel.
I bought the 8" Bauer this weekend. Extremely bad vibration / wheel wobble. I spent about 30 minutes dressing the wheels, but it still has unacceptable vibration. I'm taking it back.
I've heard some people say that their wheels were unbalanced as well. You got to figure you're really buying the grinder and the wheels are probably about as cheap as you can get.
I like the Hercules model better can you take one of the grinding wheels off and put a polishing wheel on it? If so that will be my next grinder love that variable speed option too
Now on the HF website, the Hercules is on "clearance" and only available locally (no stores near me), but there is now a Bauer from HF with exact same specs (and variable speed). Any idea what gives? Did they upgrade the Bauer and an even better Hercules is on the way?
The Hercules looks great I just wish the speed controller would slow it down a little more, it would be nice to have a grinder/slow speed polisher in one
A light is wayyy under rated. Just the other day I was grinding a thread stick out off close to a machined surface that I didn't want to hit with the grinder, and I also didn't want to spend a ton of time sanding it flush. The light let's you see good enough to get it closer without hitting the other surface.
When swapping out one of the grinding wheels for a wire wheel, which grit wheel should I leave on? ie. which grit is most useful for general home owner use? (chisels, lawnmower blades, etc.)
This is the second Hercules I’ve seen (both in videos) with variable speed knobs. I have a Hercules and a Bauer bench grinder but the Bauer has the speed knob and not the Hercules. I’ve never seen a Hercules with the speed knob other than in two videos with this being one of the two.
I have the Bauer Bench Grinder and I have received new grinding wheels from Harbor Freight to replace the original wheels and it still shakes everything off my bench! While powering down it shakes so bad the wheels hit the spark guards! I am taking it back today. I wish mine ran as smooth as yours does! Light shakes and the eye guards shake really bad. I don't want to trash the unit too badly right now because I know every once in a while you get a lemon out of the box but I am close to it. SMH!
Did you dress the wheels? When you turn it on without the wheels is it smooth? I also would expect the wheels that come with these are pretty cheap, most people probably will replace them with something of better quality.
No I didn't get that far into it. New out of the box i expected a little more. After seeing your video I see there is something wrong with the one I got. They sent me another set of white 60/80 grit wheels that is better than what came with it and not much better as far as shaking. The led light shakes so bad its like a strobe light! Lol
Well done sir! Whether reviews or how-to’s, I always learn something and I’m always surprised at how similar our tastes are at this kinda stuff! Great job as usual!
I bought the huskie it seems to take a long time when cold to get up to speed is this normal? I haven’t used it yet as I am not sure this is the way it should run. I did the first startup with the speed set on low and it still took well over a minute to get up to speed. I then turned it to maximum speed and it responded quickly. Should I take it back if I can or is this how they operate in cold Minnesota garages? The motor housing was hot to the touch and it smelled like an electrical type fire
Thanks. I would have liked to see you intentionally try to stall each of them. Could use just some steel/rebar/whatever vs. messing up a good chisel for that.
Did you have any out of balance wobble with the grinding wheels? I had bought a brand new Delta 8" variable speed bench grinder at Lowe's and the wobble on the grinding wheels was so bad and the vibration that I had to take it back. Very disappointing for a well known name in tools for it to be so bad. Plus the quality of the grinding wheels was not good either.
Very little, easy enough to use a dressing tool and true up, though I felt they were good enough. I also suspect everyone is using cheap wheels though. The wheels on the Bauer where Bauer brand, on the Hercules, I couldn't find a brand name.
damn good vid, good coverage on both, im fixen 2 buy the hercules , was hopeing to catch em on sale but they verly ralerly ever put the hercules stuff on sale, i may have 2 pay full price but i dont want to, once again thanks 4 your help on this...
Nope. I didn't misspeak. I was reading the information on the side of the box. :). How do you know the HP is wrong and they didn't make a mistake with the amps? But out of all seriousness, I'm not really sure how they are coming up with the HP, looks like Delta is rating theirs the same way, 5 amps, .8hp. Probably some kind of marketing nonsense. I have a friend I can ask who will probably have a better answer. I'll let ya know.
The Hercules looks much smoother and quieter than the Bauer. I’d like to see how these compare to say a 8” dewalt. I was looking at these and had ultimately settled on the dewalt. But the Hercules looked really nice in this video!
@@jorgehetnandez1696 honestly. I’d say they are about the same. I haven’t personally used the Hercules but I’ve been very impressed with the 8” dewalt for the price. I’d say you would do well with the dewalt or Hercules. But either way be sure to buy high quality stones or wheels. They will make it run smoother than cheap wheels
@@JustinTopp How "smooth" it runs has zero to do with high "quality" and everything to do with how you mount it. The grey wheels furnished on most grinders are more suited to lawnmower blade sharpening than woodworking tools. For that you want a softer bond that is less likely to overheat and is more free cutting. Dress often. Grades for the hardness of bond run from softest "A" to the hardest "Z". The wheels furnished are seldom marked, but act like an "M" when what you want is more like :'J'.
Polishing is best accomplished at about 1700 thru 2500 rpm so you may be better off putting the polishing wheels on the Hurcules variable speed grinder .
I would stay away from the bauer...I have the 6inch and it boggs down alot...obviously this one doesn't but it has the same noise motor plus the vibration...I would go with the lue one...sounds smoother...$50 more but you pay for what you get...
Just an update for everyone. The Variable Speed Hercules is no longer available at Harbor Freight, it's only single speed. For me, that killed the deal.
I try not to include prices in my videos as they can change over time. Luckily Harbor Freight does post their prices on their website in case you are interested.
I WAS entertained. Now I feel guilty. I would like to see a comparison between the Bauer in-line with the Speed Control (Router Speed Control ~$15) - and the Herc. The plug-in has the advantage of having a switch by-pass -- which means no power loss full speed if you want it.
@@Absurdlybig1 I actually have the answer to that one, but "it depends." Any tool that has a "soft start" feature will NOT work with a speed controller. And most decent large grinders use a soft start, to keep the motor from literally melting down in the few seconds of being left in a heavy start mode, like if there's a tool at the wheel. And that means there is now an electronic circuit that gets in the way. So now you know what to check for. It's basically a good excuse to spend the money on a built-in speed control.
I think because it's just an obvious use. I keep one of the older orange harbor freight ones in the shop with buffing wheels on it. I see a lot of tool restoration folks/UA-camrs with wire wheels on them.
BTW, it's RPM, never RPM's. The "s" for plural is already on the end of the word "revolutions". So, it's 2000 RPM, or more or less RPM, not 2000 RPM's. Too many youtubers say RPM's and it totally wrong... Just so you know and can sound more intelligent than many youtubers. ;)
I watch his channel! He has some good content! We disagree on some things and if he has talked poorly of these grinders, I strongly disagree. These are actually made by Delta, they are pretty good for the price! In his bench grinder review video he did not say they were junk but addressed them as being in the "sweet spot for DIY Pro Consumers".
The Bauer in my experience is trash. Absolutely unbalanced, loud as an air compressor, and literally shakes itself apart. I've had to secure the base of it three times.
The Bauer is fine, the issue is your grinding wheel(s) needs balanced. Do some googling on how to balance your wheels, it will be a skill set you'll appreciate. I also imagine most folks who buy grinders probably buy better wheels than what is provided as they are not that great. I'm amazed at the people who return their grinders because the wheels are out of balance and they think the grinder is bad.
@@1D10CRACY That's the thing though, it does this with two wire wheels on it. For the hell of it, I tried giving it a spin without anything on it and it acted the same.
We had one of the central machinery grinders and the only feature worth mentioning is that it would clear the workbench, whether you wanted all of that stuff shaken to the ground or not
LOL Yeah, I've had two of the Central Machinery grinders as well. One of them did the same thing until I swapped the grinding wheels out with wire wheels. The one on the workbench in the video I had dressed enough to take most of it out, but it would still dance around on the table if you didn't bolt it down. LOL
LMAO. Not just that, but the CM grinders are weak as hell. I went the cheap route and bought a CM grinder. When I use the wire brush wheel, it completely stops spinning if you put any level of pressure against it. It’s nearly useless trying to wire brush with it. At times, I have to manually coax the grinding wheel after turning it on to get it spinning. Pay the extra money and get something more the quality of either of these two grinders. The CM is essentially a $40 paper weight.
This is the most relatable comment I've ever read
I've had the Bauer 8" for a couple years now and it has really handy .! I had a home made one made from a 110/120 motor off a heat/air unit. I've learned how to sharpen bits since getting the Bauer. It has the little bench trough on the left wheel.!
Thank you. The grinder I have now boggs down so easily. I have been looking for another grinder for a while and this reassures me that if I get either of these from Harbor freight I will be good to go.
That was a great review! Both look nice, I was surprised at just how much more the Hercules VS model cost over the Bauer! Very interesting! Thanks!
Just purchased the Hercules grinder. It’s awesome! Smooth as glass. Works great and feels really powerful. No feel of stalling at all. So far, I am please with both Hercules power tools that I have purchased. I also purchased the sliding miter saw as and that also works excellent as well.
Hi When are you going to build the bench top grinder stand?? I am going to purchase the Hercules 8".. Great grinder.. I recently picked up a Hercules miter saw table and that thing is Awesomely stout and light weight 149 bucks... Ps.. Do the grinder stand build thanks bud!!
I wish you would have shown how the old orange one did with the test. I have that grinder and find it to be pretty wimpy. It bogs down a lot for me.
I almost did put it in the review, but I was hesitant as they no longer sell it. I probably should have for the comparison! You are absolutely correct, they were pretty weak!
@@1D10CRACY So the Bauer and Hercules are a step up in power and quality?
In my opinion, yes. They both don't stall as easy. They still have cheap wheels, but not as cheap as the orange ones. I've read some complaints of wheel wobble, but mine were minimal. The shrouds and tool rests are built better too.
I just picked up the Bauer, 8 inch variable speed. I thought it was a rebadged Hercules because it’s identical looking to the one in your video and they came out with a new industrial Herc with no variable speed. I like the Bauer, plenty of power and runs smooth with some aftermarket flanges/washers. My only issue is it gets really hot when torquing hard on the wire wheel.
What is the trough for on the Husky on the guard? Drill sharpening?
I bought the 8" Bauer this weekend. Extremely bad vibration / wheel wobble. I spent about 30 minutes dressing the wheels, but it still has unacceptable vibration. I'm taking it back.
I've heard some people say that their wheels were unbalanced as well. You got to figure you're really buying the grinder and the wheels are probably about as cheap as you can get.
Thanks, can you demonstrate how to correctly sharpen knife, chisel, gardening scissors, hue, with Bauer Thanks again
I like the Hercules model better can you take one of the grinding wheels off and put a polishing wheel on it? If so that will be my next grinder love that variable speed option too
Now on the HF website, the Hercules is on "clearance" and only available locally (no stores near me), but there is now a Bauer from HF with exact same specs (and variable speed). Any idea what gives? Did they upgrade the Bauer and an even better Hercules is on the way?
I got the Hercules. One thing the motor runs hot when it's on lower speeds.
The Hercules looks great I just wish the speed controller would slow it down a little more, it would be nice to have a grinder/slow speed polisher in one
A light is wayyy under rated. Just the other day I was grinding a thread stick out off close to a machined surface that I didn't want to hit with the grinder, and I also didn't want to spend a ton of time sanding it flush. The light let's you see good enough to get it closer without hitting the other surface.
When swapping out one of the grinding wheels for a wire wheel, which grit wheel should I leave on? ie. which grit is most useful for general home owner use? (chisels, lawnmower blades, etc.)
Good question I’m interested in as well!
red one same as the baba for 14usd?
Thanks for the update on these two gringers
This is the second Hercules I’ve seen (both in videos) with variable speed knobs. I have a Hercules and a Bauer bench grinder but the Bauer has the speed knob and not the Hercules. I’ve never seen a Hercules with the speed knob other than in two videos with this being one of the two.
I believe this model later became rebranded to Bauer when the 1hp grinder came out for Hercules.
I have the Bauer Bench Grinder and I have received new grinding wheels from Harbor Freight to replace the original wheels and it still shakes everything off my bench! While powering down it shakes so bad the wheels hit the spark guards! I am taking it back today. I wish mine ran as smooth as yours does! Light shakes and the eye guards shake really bad. I don't want to trash the unit too badly right now because I know every once in a while you get a lemon out of the box but I am close to it. SMH!
Did you dress the wheels? When you turn it on without the wheels is it smooth? I also would expect the wheels that come with these are pretty cheap, most people probably will replace them with something of better quality.
No I didn't get that far into it. New out of the box i expected a little more. After seeing your video I see there is something wrong with the one I got. They sent me another set of white 60/80 grit wheels that is better than what came with it and not much better as far as shaking. The led light shakes so bad its like a strobe light! Lol
Well done sir! Whether reviews or how-to’s, I always learn something and I’m always surprised at how similar our tastes are at this kinda stuff! Great job as usual!
Great username! Love the movie!
Do you know if the Harbor Freight router control would work with the Bauer grinder?
I bought the huskie it seems to take a long time when cold to get up to speed is this normal? I haven’t used it yet as I am not sure this is the way it should run. I did the first startup with the speed set on low and it still took well over a minute to get up to speed. I then turned it to maximum speed and it responded quickly. Should I take it back if I can or is this how they operate in cold Minnesota garages? The motor housing was hot to the touch and it smelled like an electrical type fire
What happens when you grind that wheel/stone all the way till the end?
No idea, as I typically replace the stones when they wear too much.
Thanks. I would have liked to see you intentionally try to stall each of them. Could use just some steel/rebar/whatever vs. messing up a good chisel for that.
I am trying to find a knife sharpening jig for these ... any ideas ?
Did you have any out of balance wobble with the grinding wheels? I had bought a brand new Delta 8" variable speed bench grinder at Lowe's and the wobble on the grinding wheels was so bad and the vibration that I had to take it back. Very disappointing for a well known name in tools for it to be so bad. Plus the quality of the grinding wheels was not good either.
Very little, easy enough to use a dressing tool and true up, though I felt they were good enough. I also suspect everyone is using cheap wheels though. The wheels on the Bauer where Bauer brand, on the Hercules, I couldn't find a brand name.
just dress your wheels
@@1D10CRACY No bench grinder company makes their own wheels.
I wish the 2023 model had that LED ligh n the Hercules.. Looking at the ad, it doesn't
damn good vid, good coverage on both, im fixen 2 buy the hercules , was hopeing to catch em on sale but they verly ralerly ever put the hercules stuff on sale, i may have 2 pay full price but i dont want to, once again thanks 4 your help on this...
Why does nobody have a review on the 6in Bauer Grinders like these. Are you able to do a 6-inch Bauer grinder review ?
All the 6" grinders I've used, aren't suitable for heavy duty work. So, no grinding. LImit their use to polishing, sanding and wire wheel.
Ok ok.... they look pretty legit. I bet they are made in the same factory as the Delta ones sold at lowes
That Hercules looks (and sounds) suspiciously like the Delta ones, I agree.
I like the harbor freight bench grinders that we can put a wire brush or a buffer in or something but I wonder witch grinder won hercules or bauer
5 amps@120v = .8hp
4.8 amps@120v = .77hp
Unless you misspoke, the Herc is not .9hp.
Nope. I didn't misspeak. I was reading the information on the side of the box. :). How do you know the HP is wrong and they didn't make a mistake with the amps? But out of all seriousness, I'm not really sure how they are coming up with the HP, looks like Delta is rating theirs the same way, 5 amps, .8hp. Probably some kind of marketing nonsense. I have a friend I can ask who will probably have a better answer. I'll let ya know.
@@1D10CRACY maybe they base it on a 135v circuit? That would be .9hp :P
The Hercules looks much smoother and quieter than the Bauer. I’d like to see how these compare to say a 8” dewalt. I was looking at these and had ultimately settled on the dewalt. But the Hercules looked really nice in this video!
Would you say the Dewalt is better then the Hercules? Iam debating on which one to buy.
@@jorgehetnandez1696 honestly. I’d say they are about the same. I haven’t personally used the Hercules but I’ve been very impressed with the 8” dewalt for the price. I’d say you would do well with the dewalt or Hercules. But either way be sure to buy high quality stones or wheels. They will make it run smoother than cheap wheels
@@JustinTopp thanks for the info.
@@JustinTopp How "smooth" it runs has zero to do with high "quality" and everything to do with how you mount it.
The grey wheels furnished on most grinders are more suited to lawnmower blade sharpening than woodworking tools.
For that you want a softer bond that is less likely to overheat and is more free cutting. Dress often. Grades for the hardness of bond run from softest "A" to the hardest "Z". The wheels furnished are seldom marked, but act like an "M" when what you want is more like :'J'.
Did you mention the price?
I did not, and on purpose. Prices can change, so I usually stay clear of quoting prices. There is a link in the description to the HF web page.
@@1D10CRACY Ok where did you get that coupon...
I think you should have quoted the price you paid to make the comparison more worthwhile.
This was an attempt at humor as the coupons are a thing of the past.
The rumor is they are still going to offer them, just on special occasions.
Polishing is best accomplished at about 1700 thru 2500 rpm so you may be better off putting the polishing wheels on the Hurcules variable speed grinder .
More to do with surface speed than direct rpm. So it's a function of rpm AND circumference
@@Lazaralis Surface speed per minute.
Just ordered the Bauer. How wide are the shrouds on the sides? I can`t find any information on this. I would like to run a wide wheel.
Hercules looks actually like my lowes delta
The rumor is Delta is now making HFs grinders. Delta also makes the Master force branded ones at Menards.
thanks for sharing
I would stay away from the bauer...I have the 6inch and it boggs down alot...obviously this one doesn't but it has the same noise motor plus the vibration...I would go with the lue one...sounds smoother...$50 more but you pay for what you get...
Just an update for everyone. The Variable Speed Hercules is no longer available at Harbor Freight, it's only single speed. For me, that killed the deal.
My understanding is it is still being sold, it's just been rebranded to the Bauer name.
Unfortunately, you didn’t didn’t see how much either grinder cost. It would’ve been nice to know which one was best for the money.
I try not to include prices in my videos as they can change over time. Luckily Harbor Freight does post their prices on their website in case you are interested.
I like the Bauer one better based off the video
I WAS entertained. Now I feel guilty.
I would like to see a comparison between the Bauer in-line with the Speed Control (Router Speed Control ~$15) - and the Herc. The plug-in has the advantage of having a switch by-pass -- which means no power loss full speed if you want it.
Do you know if the $15 router speed controller would be compatible with the Bauer?
@@Absurdlybig1 I actually have the answer to that one, but "it depends." Any tool that has a "soft start" feature will NOT work with a speed controller. And most decent large grinders use a soft start, to keep the motor from literally melting down in the few seconds of being left in a heavy start mode, like if there's a tool at the wheel. And that means there is now an electronic circuit that gets in the way. So now you know what to check for. It's basically a good excuse to spend the money on a built-in speed control.
Why dont people realise you can also use these machines for buffers and wire brushing i am yet to see a complete video on these facts . 🤔
I think because it's just an obvious use. I keep one of the older orange harbor freight ones in the shop with buffing wheels on it. I see a lot of tool restoration folks/UA-camrs with wire wheels on them.
BTW, it's RPM, never RPM's. The "s" for plural is already on the end of the word "revolutions". So, it's 2000 RPM, or more or less RPM, not 2000 RPM's. Too many youtubers say RPM's and it totally wrong... Just so you know and can sound more intelligent than many youtubers. ;)
Den of tools says these are junk a stay away from them..
I watch his channel! He has some good content! We disagree on some things and if he has talked poorly of these grinders, I strongly disagree. These are actually made by Delta, they are pretty good for the price! In his bench grinder review video he did not say they were junk but addressed them as being in the "sweet spot for DIY Pro Consumers".
The Bauer in my experience is trash. Absolutely unbalanced, loud as an air compressor, and literally shakes itself apart. I've had to secure the base of it three times.
The Bauer is fine, the issue is your grinding wheel(s) needs balanced. Do some googling on how to balance your wheels, it will be a skill set you'll appreciate. I also imagine most folks who buy grinders probably buy better wheels than what is provided as they are not that great. I'm amazed at the people who return their grinders because the wheels are out of balance and they think the grinder is bad.
@@1D10CRACY That's the thing though, it does this with two wire wheels on it. For the hell of it, I tried giving it a spin without anything on it and it acted the same.
If it is out of balance w/out the wheels on it, take it back!