My old Tools.

[bitmaker]

I perchase an old gravermiester from e-bay, and wonder if it would be worth mt time to have it gone over by GRS. I do mostly bright cut engraving in sterling silver.
I also have a GRS graver sharpening wheel that dose not sharpen flat. It is especialy noticable when putting the heel on a graver. Can this be fixed. Thanks.
Jim

 

[Barry Lee Hands]

The GRS dual angle fixture has an adjustment screw on the base, and an adjustment allen underneath for holding thetool holding anvil(the cylindrical steel insert on the bottom front of the fixture) which adjusts the angle of the tool to the wheel itself. With one or both of these adjustments you should be able to find the nuetral point by trial and error.

 

[monk]

you already own it. grs makes good stuff. good stuff deserves to be maintained. it should be sent to glendo for refurbishing. an inexpensive way to get a brand new machine. gravermeisters outlast their owners, if given proper care. the graphite vanes slowly wear down, but the basic machine will go for a long time.

 

[Powderhorn]

Bitmaker:
You might want to take a straight edge, and lay it across the case where the post fixture goes to check and see if it is true all the way across. Some of the early power hones had cases that were not true. I belive that if you sent it into GRS, they will fix it.

 

[thekoabenchgoldsmith]

Aloha Jim,
I would agree with Monk. You have the thing, its a great piece of machinery, and it definitely is worth getting into shape.

I imagine you must be at least some what mechanically inclined or you wouldn't have found your way into engraving. So I also imagine you would be able to do the refurbishing work on your gravermeister. I owned one for about 12 years and it is really a very simple machine. Way, way simpler than the gravermach, -max, or -mate. The vanes that Monk mentions are easy to access once the back plate is removed. They are about the only part that will wear out. And they don't wear quickly as long as oil is kept in the small plastic bottle. Also remember to keep the larger aluminum can emptied of oil or it can make a mess on your bench.

The only drawback to the gravermeister that I recall is its noise, which you can mitigate by putting it in a box. Attach a fan though to help keep it cool. I put a push-button switch on the Gravermeister's footpedal so I could turn the thing on and off with my foot. Even now with my Gravermach I find I have to unlearn the habit I acquired of pushing all the way down on the footpedal to start the machine.

If you don't have handpieces, or are thinking of puchasing new ones the quick-changes handpieces are really nice. I had the the large handpiece for several years before GRS came out with the QC system. What an improvement.

Finally, just a short note about setting up your tools for the large hand-piece, or any hand piece with a chuck. If you grind the tang of the tool with a taper, my experience was that the tool will jam into the chuck so tightly you will need a visegrip to get the chuck open. I cursed that chuck many times before I discovered that the problem was my tool setup, not the chuck.

Good luck with your Gravermeister. And if you decide you don't want to deal with it, let me know. I wouldn't mind having one setting in my shop as a backup, or portable unit.

Aloha,
Robert Booth
The Koa Bench Goldsmith