DIY white wall buffer/cutter jig or machine?

[Rust-O-Matic]

I'm not sure where to post this, but here goes:

I'm looking to grind another set of white letter tires into white walls for my '66 C20, and am looking for a more "precision" method of doing it than the last set I did. I used a 5" rotary sander with 80 grit discs for those, and just free-handed it around the unmounted tires. It turned out surprisingly well, but it was difficult to keep things even and uniform.

I would love to have one of the old machines meant specifically for this purpose, but they are few and far between and ungodly expensive if you can find one. So I've been thinking about building some kind of jig to hold a grinder with a tire buffing wheel, and some kind of apparatus to spin the tire, which would be mounted on the rim, installed on the vehicle. Basically a poor man's version of the Cosmo G3000 I saw in another thread.

I have read through countless links and threads to try to get ideas, but I have yet to see anything homemade like what I'm describing. Does anybody have any ideas and/or pictures they can share?

[curvedglass]

saw someone on the youtbe that had the car on jack stands, front wheels chocked, and the car was running and the rear tires were spinning while he held the grinder in one place.

[Rust-O-Matic]

Yeah I think I watched the same video. Still seems kinda sketchy because there's nothing but the operator's hands keeping the grinder steady. I wanna make something that would allow me to steadily move the grinder/cutter/whatever across the surface without gouging it or grabbing it and throwing the cutter against a nicely painted rim.

[DPowers]

Let Google be your friend
http://www.homemadetools.net/homemad...l-tire-machine

[Rust-O-Matic]

I've seen that too. It's a piece of crap.

I"m a computer tech by trade, btw, so Google and I are fairly familiar.

[spacedebris]

Ok, now stay with me here. I hope I can explain this so that it makes sense. A few years ago I built a rig for a friend to make a "home made wood plainer" that I think may be made to do what you want.


1st. I'd make a rotating platform for your tire. I'd think a piece of plywood with 4 skateboard trucks mounted so that you can set the tire on the trucks and be able to spin it evenly. Simple enough.

Then to one side of that plywood I'd mount a flat screen TV mount Something like this



These can be used on TV's weighing 50 lbs or more so they should be able to hold a grinder with no issue. Use some large hose clamps or something similar to mount your grinder to the TV mount arm. Then take the arm with the grinder and move it against the tire and adjust it until you get the pressure you want and then lock the swing arm in place. The arm should hold the grinder steady while you spin the tire getting an even and steady grind. Move the arm as needed to make it wider or deeper as needed.

I hope this makes sense. Worked very well when we used it with a belt sander on wood.

[spacedebris]

you know, I got to thinking about it and I dont think that would hold the grinder steady enough so I gave it some thought and came up with another idea. cheaper too


same base, plywood and skateboard trucks to spin the tire. Then take two 2x4's vertical on either side of the tire. drill a hole in the end of each 2x4 so you can run a pipe between the two over the tire. mount the grinder to the pipe and rotate it against the tire. Then use a set screw on each side to lock the pipe in place so it cannot turn. Would be much more stable this way. Then you can just spin the tire by hand to get an even grind.

[69chevytrucker]

buy white walls

[Rust-O-Matic]

Originally Posted by 69chevytrucker

buy white walls

Hey, I'm takin donations if you'd like to contribute.


I like your style, spacedebris, you have my wheels turning. Those are exactly the type of ideas I am looking for. I hadn't really thought about just a rotating platform. I kept picturing a spare hub and wheel studs holding the mounted tire vertically, but a lazy Susan type platform with a vertical tube to center the wheel would be simple and cheap. Could be used regardless of lug pattern too. I have an old drill press motor or two laying around I could use to make it rotate on its own. And I bet the local farm store has some kind of flange bearing that could be used to support the platform. Most of the skaters I grew up with have all succumbed to the realities of adulthood (haircuts and real jobs, so to speak), so spare trucks are few and far between these days.

For the cutter holder, the two verticals idea sounds simpler to me than the adjustable arm version, though that's what the real machines use. I'm thinking I could fashion a plate of some sort to slide along the horizontal pipe spanning between the two verticals, and attach the grinder to that plate (sideways so the disc is spinning vertically) with bolts threaded into the holes meant for the handle. Then the grinder could be slid side to side, perfectly perpendicular to the tire, and could be tilted up or down as necessary for cut depth, and to follow the profile of the sidewall. I would think this would provide a steady, stable means of controlling the grinder.

[spacedebris]

Originally Posted by Rust-O-Matic

Most of the skaters I grew up with have all succumbed to the realities of adulthood (haircuts and real jobs, so to speak), so spare trucks are few and far between these days. .

LOL, same here, but that's why I mentioned them. So many giving into adulthood and ditching the skateboards that the last time I needed rollers I went down to the thrift store and bought 5 boards for a buck each. but anything that will hold level, steady, and spin should work fine I would think.