I'm trying to decide whether to go with Electric or Air...

I've got a compressor...and after looking around various online stores the air die grinders are MUCH cheaper.

HD and Lowes don't have much selection if any :confused:

I personally use an air powered one. I may be over simplifying this, but

-you allready have a compressor,
-you can't really burn up an air tool as long as you oil them
-and theyr'e cheaper

go with air...you save enough money buying the pneaumatic ones to go ahead and get a straight and a 90*

Good call, the 90* are nice. Thanks.

Unless you have a crappy air compressor. Die grinders suck on my little 20 whatever gallon compressor.

A cheap harbor freight air grinder was one of my first air tools. After about one year I'm still really pleased with it. The dies wore out quickly but the tool is just fine.

Our 90* pneumatic Die grinder at the shop was about 600, but it was a heavy duty industrial one, it got used 8 hours a day for about 4 years to its demise... we have since just bought a new IR grinder every 2 years or so when they wear out. There is a defiant difference that can be felt between the two, the 600 dollar one ( don't remember brand) was very smooth and had almost no vibration what so ever and was very quiet. The IR does just fine, but its a little louder and has a slight vibe to it... any way, I would go with the cheaper IR pneumatic one

I've got a good 26 gal. 5hp belt driven compressor...should run the die fine.

You better have 6hp and 60gal or better compressor if you go with air.

My die grinder makes my 8hp/80gal compressor cycle somewhat frequently. It'll come on every 4-5 minutes with constant use of the die grinder.

Air ratchet is ~10 minute cycle, and impact wrench is 15-20 minute cycle. OT, but it surprised me that the ratchet uses more air than the impact.

You better have 6hp and 60gal or better compressor if you go with air.

Yah, 26gal wont cut it unless your only using it for short amounts.

:shrug:

my 30 gal. seems to do all right. I guess it depends on what your using it for...usually I'm using a scotch disk to clean a gasket surface, grinding down a seam inside a piece, or easing a sharp edge or something...not a whole lot of extened use in other word...I guess if I was porting cylinder heads or something I would probably have a different opinion

I have both and the air one just gathers dust...
stacked up next to the bosch electric one I've got its pathetic :laughing: air has no torque its not even worth comparing the two.... the only time it comes out on top is price but in the long run electric wins here to as it costs less to run... the electric one is 800watts, will do the job in a qauter of the time normally less!
the air unit needs a decent compressor to feed it at least 3/4hp and its gona be running alot longer
The only gripe I"ve got with the electric one and why I haven't sold my air one, is it has a larger body and in some spots this can make it impossible to get the angle I want

go and rent one for a day, trust me you won't buy the air one after you've played with electric

Cheers Reece

I have both and the air one just gathers dust...
stacked up next to the bosch electric one I've got its pathetic :laughing: air has no torque its not even worth comparing the two.... the only time it comes out on top is price but in the long run electric wins here to as it costs less to run... the electric one is 800watts, will do the job in a qauter of the time normally less!
the air unit needs a decent compressor to feed it at least 3/4hp and its gona be running alot longer
The only gripe I"ve got with the electric one and why I haven't sold my air one, is it has a larger body and in some spots this can make it impossible to get the angle I want

go and rent one for a day, trust me you won't buy the air one after you've played with electric

Cheers Reece

Ditto, my big Dewalt will kick any air powered die grinders ass.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=153527&stc=1&d=1098408724

Ditto, my big Dewalt will kick any air powered die grinders ass.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=153527&stc=1&d=1098408724


X3 I have a small milwaukee like the hitachi above, and a gigantic Milwaukee or souix that is about twice as big as that dewalt.

yea...but I bet if I could find a pneaumatic die grider the size and weight of your electric they would probably be just about even...it's all a tradeoff

Don't get me wrong Iv'e used electric die grinders...They are powerful...and if a project came up where I expected to be doing a lot of "die grinding", I would consider picking one up (or a larger comp.) but for everyday use I think I'm (notice I said I'm) better off with a pneaumatic.

DynaBrade brand air tools :smokin:
angle grinder about $380 IIRC
also note air consumption on cheap air tools is typically double a quality counterpart, but like previously stated a quality compressor is a must...electric is nice except in confined spaces...just my .02:D

using an air tool is not cheaper than an electric. The cost to run an air compressor is way higher than to run an elecectric tool. An air drill will make your 110V compressor run constantly, and it wont be able to keep up. The drill will suck and it will take forever. A hitachi 1/2" handrill will pull 9 amps or so, and be strong enough to brake your wrist if you are not care full.

An air powered die grinder will destroy any 110V compressor pulling 15 amps, and a few pounds of downward force will stop it cold. A 15 amp grinder with a flap disc will not be stoped.

Air tool are not better for high speed things

If you're talking about the air operated die grinders that most people use they're not worth much and they are better relagated to use with rol-loc pads and minor work with burrs. A good one will cost a few hundred dollars and the two shouldn't be compared. I've got 4 or 5 air die grinders and only one of them is a good one, you need to have a good grip on it when you pull the trigger or it will take off.

Gus

I've got a pneumatic one and it cycles my 21 gallon compressor constantly. But then again it cost me 6 dollars at Harbor Freight so I can't really complain too much. I'd get an electric if I used it a bunch.

I dont care if you have a gold plated billion dollar one. If it is powered by compressed air, it will not work as good as an electric. Now the electric might be bigger, and not fit everywhere, but using a 15Amp motor to compress air, and then have that air try to do work through the tool is not as efficient as having a 15amp motor on the tool. end of story.

Ditto, my big Dewalt will kick any air powered die grinders ass.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=153527&stc=1&d=1098408724

X whatever number we're up to. I have that exact same Hitachi die grinder and it kicks the everliving shit outtah any air one i;ve ever used.

like said, it can be too large alot of the time though.

its a POWERFUL mo-fo. I've had it almost ripped outtah my hands multiple times. definitely not a tool you're going to throw at a newbie fabricator to use.

one of the most valuable electric tools in the cabinet IMHO.

I had a milwaukee electric that I used for porting a set of heads. It was way nicer than using air, and I rigged up a little stand to keep the weight off my wrist. I would imagine that there is a flex shaft that would work.

The die grinder is a big air hog. I use it, and don't have the electric anymore - its just a question of the right tool for the job.

Jim

the only upshot to an air tool is size, like somebody mentioned before...and the only air tool in this category that i'd consider worth getting is a low profile 90* grinder. with a low prof grinding head or single flute bit, you can grind or put holes in places an electric will never fit. i have a small body saw for sheetmetal for the same reason...some places i just cant fit the sawzall.

not much use if you have a well planned build and can avoid creating tight spaces, but great if youre working from a stock frame and tub.

imho air tools are for small precision stuff and blasting metal dust off your parts.

X whatever number we're up to. I have that exact same Hitachi die grinder and it kicks the everliving shit outtah any air one i;ve ever used.

like said, it can be too large alot of the time though.

its a POWERFUL mo-fo. I've had it almost ripped outtah my hands multiple times. definitely not a tool you're going to throw at a newbie fabricator to use.

one of the most valuable electric tools in the cabinet IMHO.

What are you guys using these for? I've always hated air die grinders, but I do have a dremel (the large version, though nowhere near the size of that hitachi) that I use when I need to do small things. I can't imagine that large grinder being very good for anything if you have an angle grinder, drill, and small die grinder--but to port a set of heads the dremel takes forgoddamnedever. Convince me that one of these would save a lot of time and not kill the wrists.

You better have 6hp and 60gal or better compressor if you go with air.

x2

What are you guys using these for? I've always hated air die grinders, but I do have a dremel (the large version, though nowhere near the size of that hitachi) that I use when I need to do small things. I can't imagine that large grinder being very good for anything if you have an angle grinder, drill, and small die grinder--but to port a set of heads the dremel takes forgoddamnedever. Convince me that one of these would save a lot of time and not kill the wrists.

If you have to ask what we use them for you likely do not have a real use for a big(er) one:

Use with a 3x1/4" grinding disc to grind pipe roots in tight spots.

Use with a 3x1/16" cutting disc to cut 4"+ pipe from the inside, this also cuts curves quite well if you were tubbing out 4Runner fenders.

Use with a carbide burr to enlarge holes, cope tubing and pipe joints, remove weld defects in butt and fillet joints, grind internal roots in olet welds, remove material in spots a grinder cannot access.

Use with a wire wheel to clean and polish weld and gasket seating surfaces.

Use with a flapper wheel to clean the ID and OD of pipe and tubing butt weld joints.

my 30 gal. bluepoint keeps up just fine with the die grinders i own.

What are you guys using these for? I've always hated air die grinders, but I do have a dremel (the large version, though nowhere near the size of that hitachi) that I use when I need to do small things. I can't imagine that large grinder being very good for anything if you have an angle grinder, drill, and small die grinder--but to port a set of heads the dremel takes forgoddamnedever. Convince me that one of these would save a lot of time and not kill the wrists.

i use it for cutting. thats it. anytime i;d haul out the sawzall, and its less than 1/4" thick, i use the die grinder. tube, rod, fenders, skins, floors, firewalls, anything sheetmetal, bolts.

I'd say it gets plugged in on yearly average at least twice a week.

air will work for small jobs.

electric will not cost as much to run, and will last just as long. It's also not as loud or noisy.

one thing to consider with air grinders is oil contamination in the weld metel, or oil on the surfice you going to paint, for that reason we went to electric, pluse warranties on electrics are usealy a year long, 90 days on most air grinders

Dotco.

get a 2 1/2 right angle grinder, 10,000 rpm pencil grinder, and standard die grinder. there goes 1k. if you have the compressor to run them they will last for decades in your worst conditions and do everything. Electric will not hold a flame pound for pound or for tool life. 20+guys, making huge precision dies for more than 30 years know what lasts and what does not. There was exactly 1 other right angle grinder that was equal. It's made in japan and sold there only. I've only had mine for 10 years :grinpimp:


get a $300.00 electric metabo with a 4 1/2 disc for everything else.

I'm going to say it depends on what you want to do. For me, that huge electric stuff posted would not do ANY good at all in my job. I couldn't even get it to 90% of what I use mine for. A light, small pneumatic IR is what I use, and it works fine. i do want to go to an aircat one due to noise, though.