TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR VALVE GRINDING

For the best results when grinding valves a little prep work goes a long way to making the process faster without sacrificing the results. There&#;s nothing more frustrating than to start a valve grinding job only to have the first one come out with chatter or out of round and leaking like a sieve.

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Here are several helpful quick tips to get you going along at a record pace with perfect results.

Clean, Lubricate, and Dial in adjustments!

Clean quality grinding oil not only helps with getting a good finish, it also keeps your chuck from misaligning a valve in the chuck and reduces the number of times you will have to redress your stone. Dirty oil will gum up your stone quickly and then you will be polishing instead of actually cutting. If you tend to do a good many valve jobs you may want to invest in the optional external pump system from Kwik-Way. It holds much more oil allowing longer time between changes but also because of the distance from the work it can allow more of the debris to settle out of the oil giving a longer time between oil changes.

Do a quick check of your machine&#;s various adjustments.

• Check the Grinding Motor Gibbs. Move the traverse handle to the 12 o&#;clock position. Place your hands on each end of the motor cover aluminum end caps and use a twisting motion. If you feel any movement then your Gibbs need to be adjusted. (see owner&#;s manual for instruction)

• Check the Chuck Gibbs. While looking at the location where the degree plate meets the swivel plate (the part that moves the check angle) unlock the swivel plate as if you were going to change the angle and moderately wiggle the in and out adjustment wheel up and down. If you see movement in the oil along where the two plates meet then your Chuck plate needs adjustment. (see owner&#;s manual)

• Check for any lateral movement of the Chuck. Place one hand over the end of the Chuck where you insert the valve and your other hand over the end of the splined pully on the back of the chuck and try moving the Chuck body back and forth in the saddle bearings. If there is any movement then your pully on the back end of the Chuck needs to be adjusted to take up that slack without increasing rotation friction.

• Check the Chuck Belt tension. The belt that turns the chuck should have as much slack as possible without slipping. If it&#;s tight then adjust your Chuck Motor to give it more slack.

These fast and simple checks can make all the difference in the world. Grinders produce vibration and vibration will loosen set screws over time. It&#;s the nature of all grinders to become out of adjustment over time and require this kind of maintenance to get and keep them in tip top operating condition.

Do a quick check of the Chuck

You don&#;t need to do this for every job, but you should check your Chuck runout every so often using a dial gauge and magnetic mount. Be sure to chuck and re-chuck a known to be straight machined shaft (like a seat grinding pilot/arbor) and take multiple readings. Place your dial indicator about 1 inch out from the face of the Chuck. If your readings are out of spec or they change from re-chucking you will need to clean your chuck as outlined in the manual.

Use the right stone!

Valve grinding is NOT a one abrasive suits all proposition. Different substances require specific abrasives. General Purpose wheels are meant for your basic, everyday passenger automobile valves. They are an amazing place to begin however they might not do the whole job. Yes, it&#;s possible a general purpose stone could likely be made to work for all valves, but that is just going to cost you a lot more time than it&#;s worth. You can not get fast, accurate, and good results from all valve materials using a single type of grinding stone.

As valve manufacturers are using increasingly complex metallic alloys to lessen weight, grow energy, and to enhance heat tolerance, the activity of valve grinding turns into something a bit more complex. This is why you see a massive choice of valve refacing stones available out there. You should test and experiment to find what works best for you and what you&#;re grinding.

It may seem to be a waste of time to be changing out grinding wheels simply due to the fact that the valve material is different, but in the big picture, you&#;re actually saving time. You could easily waste an hour trying to grind a valve with the incorrect abrasive. Isn&#;t it really worth the little while it&#;s going to take to change the wheel? Here is a selection of valve grinding stones.

Dressing, Truing, and Shaping

Before you dress take a moment to inspect your Dresser Diamond. If it doesn&#;t look sharp or if the diamond is even missing of the tip you need to replace it.

Dressing the grinding stone isn&#;t just about making the surface flat (truing/shaping). By removing a thin layer off the stone face you are also opening up the pores of the stone to make it actually cut material away. And there is more to it than you might think. Depending on how aggressive (deep) you cut and how fast you move over the grinding stone, the cutting diamond will change the properties of how that grinding stone will do it&#;s job on the valve surface. See the back of your manual for some examples of the differences.

As mentioned earlier, if these pores become clogged with debris your stone will do less cutting and more polishing which is not what you want and will increase the time it takes to get a good finish.

Using the wrong type of stone for the material you are grinding will cause you to have to dress the wheel more frequently. The harder the material being ground the softer the grinding stone should be. Unfortunately that also means that softer stones will wear down faster.

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Keep it moving while keeping things cool

It should go without saying that you don&#;t want to linger when grinding a valve. Going to slow or even pausing the stone movement over the valve face leads to increased heat at the grinding surface. This reduces effectiveness and can prematurely wear or plug the abrasive surface of the grinding wheel.

Make sure you have good clean oil flow over the grinding surface of the valve to also reduce heat and carry away the debris created by the grinding process.

Make your last pass over the valve with no adjustment and traveling up the valve face. Then move the valve away from the stone before retracting back to the start position for best results.

Organize your work flow

Especially true if you intend to do multiple valve grinding operations in a batch you should minimize your stone changing for different valve materials. Do all the stainless valves then switch to a Stelite or Titanium stone and do all of those types of valves, etc. Get your work area organized for not only ease of operation but also for safety. Have cart or cabinet space that is not cluttered and has enough room to hold your work as you complete each valve. Make sure you have good lighting and any additional tools for measuring, marking, as well as proper safety gear. Glasses or a shield, protective gloves, and no loose clothing or hair when operating the valve refacer.

By incorporating these methods of operation and attention to detail you will improve your valve grinding process. You will get the jobs done faster and with better accuracy.

If you need supplies for your valve grinding process you can visit the Kwik-Way by Irontite online store for quick and easy purchase of OEM products designed to work together for the best possible results from your Kwik-Way Valve Refacer.

Use mineral based grinding oils for best results.

Mineral based oils cool while grinding so you won't burn the surfaces of your valves. These oils also help remove particles and inhibit rust.

Choose the right stone for the right material

Valve grinding is NOT a one abrasive fits all proposition. Different materials require different abrasives. General Purpose wheels are intended for your basic, bread and butter, everyday passenger car valves. They are a great starting point but they won't do everything. Yes, it would be great is a single stone would work for every valve (it sure would simplify our inventory) but that isn't the case. You cannot get by with a single stone. 

As valve manufacturers are using increasingly complex metal alloys to reduce weight, increase strength, improve heat tolerance, the job of valve grinding becomes more complex which is why you'll see such a large selection of valve refacing stones in the Goodson catalog. You must test and experiment to find what works the best for you and what you're grinding. 

It may seem a waste of time to be changing grinding wheels just because the valve material changed. In the long run, though, you're saving time. You could easily waste an hour trying to grind a valve with the wrong abrasive. Isn't it worth the few minutes it'll take to change the wheel?

A quick tip from an old machinist ... group your jobs together based on the stone you have on the valve refacer. Do all of your stainless valves at the same time, swap to a stone for stellite and do those, etc. Work smarter, not harder. 

Use a sharp diamond when dressing for best results.

We can't say this enough &#; sharp diamonds are essential. Not only do they cut faster, but they give a superior finish. Always, always, always check your diamond before beginning to dress your stone. If it's starting to get rounded, rotate it to a different point or order a new one. You'll do more harm than good with a dull diamond.

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