Hand tools: alternative replacement/s for an angle grinder.

[b1k3rdude]

As I don't have a garage I am limited to battery powered power tools, I started looking for an angle grinder but at £50-60 for one its a tad too much for something thats gonna get used 1x/2x a year for grinding of the 3mm+ wide rivets on a 530 drive chain.

Then a remembered that I've been meaning to replace my mains powered dremel clone,  which I used a lot over the last few years with a cordless one. Would a battery poqwered dremel with the right grinding tip do the job?  I would use it for this job and flatting off the head of snapped bolts for drilling etc.

ta.

[NorthWestern]

I borrowed a lithium battery dremmel a couple of years or so ago. Very nice bit of kit, expensive at the time iirc. Might be more cost effective now or available second hand

[fazersharp]

You can pick up a cheep angle grinder for £20, a few years ago I had to replace a more expensive one half way through a job, and needed it NOW so I just got the cheapest one i could find and about 5 years later its still going, but like you I dont use it that often. If you see one at aldi then get that as it will come with 3 years garntee

[b1k3rdude]

Might be more cost effective now or available second hand

Yeah watching one now.

You can pick up a cheep angle grinder for £20, If you see one at aldi then get that as it will come with 3 years garntee

Im guessing thats a mains powered unit, NOT battery..? if so no use to me.

[fazersharp]

m guessing thats a mains powered unit, NOT battery..? if so no use to me.

Extension lead ?

[His Dudeness]

Just file it off with a hand file. I'd guess a good quality file would cost a tenner. It'd take about 10 seconds to file the head off a chain pin

[crickleymal]

Inverter hooked up to the car battery?

[Tmation]

Just get a chain splitter and riveter


You can get them cheaper, but a good one lasts a lifetime.  http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Heavy-Duty-X-ring-Motorcycle-Chain-Breaker-Spliter-Motorbike-Riveting-Tool-Link-/251884152742?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3aa57727a6

[stevierst]

Bought a cheapo aldi special grinder couple of years ago, abused the living daylights out of it making allsorts of metallic contraptions.
It's still going strong, only cost me £15-£20.

[b1k3rdude]

Extension lead ?

Not possible, hence needed a cordless.

Just file it off with a hand file. I'd guess a good quality file would cost a tenner. It'd take about 10 seconds to file the head off a chain pin

The pins on your average chain are hardened, the file would just slide over them.

[fazersharp]

The pins on your average chain are hardened, the file would just slide over them

no because the file is hardenerery, thats how they work so they remove stuff and not themselfs 

[His Dudeness]

The pins are riveted together right? So they are ductile not hardened. Hardening them would make them more brittle so they'd crack from stress rather than plasically deform to create the rivet head. A decent file will go through it no problem. But you don't even have to file the head off just use a chain breaker or you could even hack saw it if you wanted

[Nebuchernezzer]

You can knock the pins out with a hammer and a centrepunch if you can hold the chain solidly enough. The squashed over pin heads deform and slide through the chain rollers after a few good whacks.