Ratcheting rotary throatless bench shear.

[Odd]

Am looking at getting into proper armouring, and out of my grassy patch in the back yard stage. In this, I am researching tools and implements of metallic manipulation.

At Amazon, I cam across the item in the thread topic. It looks like a cross between a Beverly and the Edwards disc shear. And rather than having a full swing handle you would need on a rotary shear, it has been replaced with a ratchet.

Has anybody used one of these? The couple places I found reviews seemed overly nice about it. I need to know the bad things. Would a standard throatless shear be better?

Also.. the real deal Beverly B1 is out of my price range. But I am capable of modifying the HB Knockoff. Do the real Beverly blades fit the knockoff, or will I need to further modify it to accept proper blades?

The Minister of Finance, is also in charge of noise pollution. Thus, the silent or near silent methods needed. Yes, I am going to lie to her about there being such a thing as a "Silent grinder".

[CT03]

Silent Grinder? aka big ass bastard file? I have one that is about 2" wide and about 18 inches long... chews steel like its butter. found it at a swap meet for about $5.

[Odd]

Silent Grinder? aka big ass bastard file? I have one that is about 2" wide and about 18 inches long... chews steel like its butter. found it at a swap meet for about $5.

Bah, that would be silly. I'm just gonna tell her the grinder makes no sound. Sure, she'll learn better.. I'm looking to drop maybe, MAYBE a grand on tools and materials. So that I can get away from cutting with an angle grinder.

Oh, a note on grinders.
I had a Chicago Electric 4.5 angle.. Yes, from HF. It worked wonders so long as I only asked it to sand. Extensive grinding and cup brush use caused odd wear, and it's cheapo imbalanced motor eventually exploded on me.

Yes, ON ME.
Yes, physically. On me. Motor parts. High velocities.

There are names to associate with tools. These names are like.. Makita.. DeWalt.. Milwaukee.. Grizzly..

Chicago seems ok in the store. Seems ok for a while.. but I've been burned on a grinder and a spiral saw so far. Spend the cash, save yourself frustration and bleeding. Chicago Electric makes tool shaped objects. Please don't confuse them with real tools.

[Armourkris]

Something like this?
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/ ... _200350435

I had one like that, i didn't really like it and eventually donated it to some friends of a friend who were trying to set up a communal shop.

mine was apparently rated for 10ga, but i honestly cant imagine doing that on it. Mine could only effectively cut up to 16ga.

the ratchet in the handle quickly broke, so i replaced it with a box wrench and some pipe.

the blades had a tendency to pop out of alignment if you cut to tight of a curve. they would also pop out of place randomly if you used it for too long. to re-align the blades you had to pretty disassemble and reassemble the whole shear.

when the shear was working right it cut beautifully, it felt very similar to a b1. it just never worked right for more than 10 or 15 minutes at a time.

Mine was also cheap chinese knockoff, so there may be a quality brand of these somewhere.

[Odd]

That's it. I haven't been able to find a reputable brand name on it either, which was one worry.

Thanks for the input.

[GuntherofOrkney]

thats looks kinda cool,it if always worked without problem like a beverly does it seems like it would cut curves very well. They to make a more reliable one thats larger to cut 12ga. sstainless steel hehe.

[Halberds]

I hear tell on the Armour Archive that the replacement blades work the best.
I do not have a HF B1 knock off Beverly Shear.
I use a genuine B-2.

At least when you are replacing the blades you learn how to adjust it. Yes?

Hal

PS: Some good must come of this. No?

[losthelm]

Keep and eye on craigslist and local Ebay as well other local auctions.
I would sugest working out something with the finances to keep cash on hand when you find a good deal.
I have a nice bench top drill press from Ebay total is 45 after replaceing two belts. High Low gearing clockwise and anticlockwise, Hercules foot switch and three pully stacks.
Buying something symalar would run me 400+ new.

If you wait deals will be found. It helps to have cash in hand a way to cart it home.
haveing other people watch

[Baron Alcyoneus]

I picked one up when Enco first started selling them at a much higher price, and was rather unhappy when the price dropped...

I found that it chewed on some 0.100" aluminum shield material, although I did eventually get it done. Teeth broke off of the gear when I was cutting some 18g SS.

Made in China, I'm sure.

Maybe they are better made these days, but I'd rather have a Beverly.

[Odd]

Well, the knockoff B1 from HF seems to be getting somewhat better reviews lately. not just armourers, but auto body shops and such.

I know it will not be up to the standard of a true Beverly. However, until I can prove to myself, and more importantly she who holds the checkbook, that the Beverly is a better, and worthwhile investment.. then I have to use what I can afford. And with the other items I need, I cannot justify the purchase of a true B1.

With a grand or so in the budget, I need to kit the shop as well as purchase materials. Once I make a little money back out of it.. then I move on to better and better tools.

[Halberds]

Sounds like a good plan to me.

[sha-ul]

I have one that I bought here. make me an offer if interested.

[schreiber]

I cannot justify the purchase of a true B1.

Nor should you, really.... Go for the B2 if you get a beverly.

The file suggestion isn't a joke, really... spend $40 and get yourself a usable (not made anywhere west of California) set of files, and some decent file handles. Get a 10" half-round bastard, a 10" half-round smooth, a 10" single cut mill, and some other shorter odd shapes (the shorter ones will fit in helm breaths & stuff, since they can be thinner).

If you look at production armor, some of it is just plasma cut and left at 90 degrees. Other stuff is just run over a sander so that the user doesn't get cut. If you look at the better stuff, you'll see things like bevels carefully filed onto the outer edge so it looks sharp, but no sharp edge anywhere. It's all done with files - you can't do stuff like that with a grinder.

For cutting, don't discount the old stanley unishears. I have one that'll do 14g mild easily, and I can coax it to do some 16g stainless. You can find them used for about the same price as the HF B1 knockoff, if you're patient.

As far as noise... the finance minister needs to realize that this is a hobby that is fundamentally noisy. Dishing is going to be the loudest thing you do, and unless you're going straight to raising (which is marginally quieter) or you're building a hydraulic press, there's not much that you can do about it. Not to mention that the stereo has to be loud enough for you to hear it through your mouse ears.

[losthelm]

harbor freight has some decent deals.
The Dolly's are ok and the tear drop mallets are worth picking up.
Ebay usualy has some decent fiiles for the money.

If noise is a big concern you might want to take up leather or chainmail armour.

[Pitbull Armory]

Hi there Odd, The HF shear is a good one to start with for the first few years. Cheap, available and decent quality.

Take care

Pitbull

[CT03]

The file suggestion isn't a joke, really... spend $40 and get yourself a usable (not made anywhere west of California) set of files, and some decent file handles. Get a 10" half-round bastard, a 10" half-round smooth, a 10" single cut mill, and some other shorter odd shapes (the shorter ones will fit in helm breaths & stuff, since they can be thinner).

I go to allot of swap meets and have found a whole tool box full of files calipers and such that some lady just wanted to get rid of for $15 (including the old Sears tool box to boot)... after a little work with a wire brush they all turned out to be Nicholson's... I also like German and Austrian made files. the chinese stuff is not worth your effort.
Most of my files including big ol bastard files were bought for less than $5. You can frequently find somone selling that old tool box full of junk Granpa had in the garage... Even found a draw knife made out of an old file... again $5. The only files I have ever bought new were small armourers files as I tend to be a bit rough and snap some in half frequently... Even if you find an old file that has been totaly worn out you can always make a knife out of it.

[Steve S.]

I have the Harbor Freight throatless shear and it is working fine for me cutting 18GA mild. I have also cut 16GA stainless.

You do have to adjust the blades to make sure you have the proper gap for the thickness of metal you are cutting.

Steve