Record Power WG 250 Wetstone Grinder User Review.

[@rustytoolworks]

Hi John, just a quick question regarding lathe tools jig: is it perhaps designed so that the wheel should be going TOWARDS your gouge so that the wheel is actually pushing one part of your jig into the other? Instead of, of course, lifting the gouge over the wheel like shown in the video.

[@Donegaldan]

Thanks John for the review and practical demonstration.

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

very welcome

[@uknowulikethat4042]

I'm using the 8" system and got the woodturners jigs set as well, it does take a bit of getting used to but for me it's fine. I put a ball of blue tac into the gouge gig holder helps with keeping it centred, doesn't stop the chisel riding up onto the wheel. skew, parting and roughing chisels come out great, detail gouge is giving me a bit of trouble but i think it's just practice for me. like you showed do the flat blades first and then gouges. Just a hobby but I'm happy enough with it. Would love one of the better systems but the price is the problem. one thing for sure this is a lot better than my belt sander upside down on the bench.

[@bobbyfranklin5924]

You’ve come up a few times for stuff I’ve been researching great videos mate. Cheers

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Thanks 👍

[@2spoons]

I have a lot of Record Power tools in my workshop, and you can see Record Power don't sharpen their tools on the WG200 or the WG250 other wise they would have fixed it.... its common business to remove what doesn't work off your shelf and replace it in time..... its easy to make a jig to fix the issues, but you shouldn't have too.... it should be ready to use when you buy it! Thanks John for bringing this issue to us all (and may be RP too)

[@jessicakaine4364]

You can use a fine diamond plate or ultra-fine wet stone on the wheel and it makes it super fine and will give you a polished edge. Also, I used some sandpaper on a block to lightly true the leather strop.

[@999pil]

I'm so glad it's not just me. I got mine about same time as you got yours and I too assumed because it was from Record Power then it would be decent. Iused it yesterday for what was only the third time, not because it does such a great job that I can go ages between having to resharpen but because it was such a faff to set up and the spindle jig so badly designed that it was actually making my tools worse. The angle-finder that came with mine has less than a nanometer between being locked up solid and in three pieces. The green tool setter is not much better; trying to hold that against tool and wheel while trying to adjust the support bar seems to require more than the two hands god deemed adequate. Water slops everywhere and the gouge jig is a pain to use. My first attempt left my tools with more faces than your average politician. Second attempt looked better but bowl gouge wouldn't cut at all and I had to adopt some unconventional handling to get the spindle gouge to cut. As I mentioned earlier, I bit the bullet and bought the Tormek TTS-100 to use with their SVD-186 jig. Both come with 'formulas' to obtain some of the popular grinds and the TTS-100 makes setting the support arm a doddle. And it will do so even as the wheel reduces in diameter. It also takes away the trial and (mostly) error of where to position the jig on the gouge. That was a lot simpler and smoother to use than the RP version with none of the slipping out of a poorly designed cradle. A couple of minutes later I had gouges worthy of the name. They worked brilliantly without needing to contort into all manner of weird and wonderful shapes. The SVD-186 costs about 10% more than the entire RP woodturners package but the difference in quality, ease of use and the final result soon shows why.

[@johncrable3349]

Just an idea but perhaps you can attach a spring near the pivot screw and then snap over the bar in order to pull/keep the pivot point in the saddle. Thanks for sharing and have a happy day!

[@roltol7539]

11:38 you can easy fix this water issue with plastic bottle cut a shape and thats it it goees back. Issue is you have to mutch water and machine speed is to high.

[@arturdominiak8363]

I I put a board 1.5 cm under the legs on the side of the wheel with the skin and the water did not spill over the machine. I also used a cuvette on the side of the grinding wheel. I sharpened an 8.5 cm blade. The water did not spill onto the table

[@grantfullbrook2324]

I have the same setup review spot on.

[@johndunbar8326]

I drilled a small hole in the receiver for bowl gouge sharping tool to sit in, moving the drill bit in a circular motion to allow for the movement

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Cool idea!

[@johndunbar8326]

@@JohnMcGrathManInShed I've since set up the rectangle platform that comes with it at 40° (almost horizontal to stone) and with digital bevel marked two 40° lines pointing towards the center of stone for doing 40 40 grinds, i can sharpen everything just off that. Thinking of cutting the platform with dremel to go in further so wheel will be in on it if ya get me

[@Woodwork-Learner]

I have the smaller wg200 for getting old plane blades back to having a primary bevel. It works well. Coarser the stone quicker grind. Have a plastic tray under it to catch the water and so long as you don't turn speed up water stays within 6 inch of the machine. Tormek just as bad I've heard. Angle guide does work once you get hang of it tho is fiddly as you say. Strop on mine not too bad but I always free hand polish on mine. Turn speed to full and with the metal polish leaves a mirror finish, so long as you remove the water bath else you get water everywhere! Not noticed stone being soft but I don't sharpen turning tools on it yet. I get better result than a grinder and no risk of overheating. Would love a CBN wheel for it but that's for loads later. I think you wouldn't like the Tormek either from what you say and the pro edge seems to be a belt Sander with a jig. Not supprised you disappointed considering extra cost of the 10 inch model. Should have been better made tool not just bigger wheels.

[@kierannolan8859]

great review John,, wonder how this compares to the Triton,, or does anyone know??...

[@williamn01]

I've got the Robert sorby pro edge and it's an ideal machine, it's absolutely solid brilliant for putting a new grind etc on old tools, nothing worse than getting something and not liking it, I knew you weren't pleased after the first video.

[@malko3434]

Hi! I listened carefully. I understood that nothing beats the Tormek. We have in France the Scheppach (which costs 120€ or three-four times less than the Tormek). We reproach him that the grinding wheel does not rotate round and the lack of micrometric guidance of the template support: which makes me hesitate . Does recordpower have the same disadvantages or is there just the problem of the quality of the stone, too soft and a poor general qualitative aspect.Because if the bearings are correct and just a wheel problem to change it can remain interesting. as you did with the diamond wheel. thank you for your opinion

[@markpope6162]

Hi John, an interesting review. I nearly bought the WG250 but in the end, I went for a Tormek T4. I don't do wood turning (at the moment) and agree about the usefulness of wet stones for plane blades and chisels. One point that I would make is that I think its best to view the water stone (Tormek or Record) as a consumable item and accept that after a period of time it will need to be replaced. The same is true of the Sorby system or a bench grinder. They all wear out albeit at different rates so will need replacing. As far as the water problem is concerned, I came across a post on the Tormek users' forum which suggested not filling the water trough up so much. Once the stone has absorbed water, it only needs a relatively small amount to keep the stone wet. I have tried it with the T4 and the amout of overspill is much lower. Keep the videos coming. I really liked the tool cabinet series. It's certainly given me plenty to think about. All the best Mark

[@geraldb2656]

Hi, John, nice video. Have you already tried to sharpen against the direction of rotation?

[@oldfart9287]

Very good review, I dont care how cheap it is I would not buy one, noticed the concave on the plane blade, so I doubt I would like any power wheel system, thankyou for your honest opinion

[@MartynStubbsTBS]

I bought a scheppach tiger 3000 vs , instructions naff, so watching this video was great ! . Very well explained thanks. I wonder if any of the tools will fit my sharpener? . Look forward to your next video, thanks again.

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Glad it helped

[@kieran.stafford]

I have to say John, this thing is shockingly bad. I don't understand why these tools are the price they are. The Tormek is a bit like Festool when it comes to price; Obscene and disgusting. These devices are simple. Nothing more than a motor that turns a wheel with a set of jigs. That's it. IMO, you should be able to get quality and function in a machine for under 300 quid at the high end of the market. Your video was very good, nice to see some honest tool reviews in this day and age of makers on youtube becoming nothing more than late night shopping channels. Love the channel John, keep it up.

[@AveyroadOfficial]

Very interesting thank you. Just found out your vid, after I received the WG200. Maybe I would have thought twice before purchasing... anyway, sharpened about 6 chisels yesterday, then I coumd see this little recess right in the middle of the wheel so I will likely consider changing it as you adviced. in the meantime , it does the job. I have the fingernail profiler from R Sorby, works fine with it although I had to make some kind of installation/raise the RS system in front of the WG200 wheel. The only thing I never figured out: as opposed to dry wheel machines, grinding is done in the opposite sense with wet wheels. not a problem. Oh, and I love this Strat body in the background ;)

[@PaulSmith-rd8yc]

Great review John. But sorry priority all the way. You’ve got to upgrade the wheel and the tour Mick jig so what’s the cost of that your mads were just gone and got the pro edge but does every think you wish every time and a blind man can use one. Like the site budget is everything but you Gotta think long-term with that budget it’s going to cost you more and you still got issues with tensioning water leaking. But like you say they are amazing company for other products. So great review and honest, That’s why I’m loving listening to your demos you tell the truth and don’t hide any issues

[@NickLM2008]

It's exactly the same machine as the Sherwood (sold in Australia), just with a couple of cosmetic differences. No doubt there is an American version too (Rigid or similar - haven't looked). So don't be too concerned with the brand name when buying low to mid-range machinery, they all come out of the same factory, just branded differently for different markets.

[@donnorth1156]

add jet to this list

[@tim62744]

Water leak is a disaster alone ,good review all around

[@HasanAhmed-ex6jv]

Thank you Green (You John), I'll say what you can't: WTF Record Power get your s**t together and correct those small (to record power) issues which are in fact critical for the end user and or result.. Your honesty is greatly appreciated and I can only imagine how much money you have saved so many.

[@dougmanter8002]

Really appreciate the straight up honesty. Over here in the US is a company called Woodturners Wonders. They make a not too expensive CBN wheel. Not sure about shipping, but I really like mine.

[@myfaceback100]

Great Video It is rare to see a honest review. When you are going to replace the wheels I would suggest the Tormek wheels as i have found the great. They can be a bit pricey but they last.

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Yeah I think a Tormek wheel is the way to go.

[@wayneblythe5713]

Really appreciate people taking the time to review tools, I use a a cheap diamond stone and strop to do my sharpening at the minute and have been looking at Tormak type sharpeners and this review would make me stay away from this tool at that price. 👍🏻

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Hope it helps

[@vulcanville]

Excellent video and review. Really appreciate it. Our local retailer Canadian Tire has what I assume is the same product re-branded.

[@haemhorrhoidian]

Great review,i really like your honesty,i personally don't own the 250 but i am looking to get a wetstone grinder,the 250 is at the top of my list for the very same reasons you have,it's very good to know about the Tormek upgrades and i might very well go down that route,cheers Dude :-)

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Glad it helped

[@MCsCreations]

Great and honest review, John!!! 😊 Thanks a lot! Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Thanks, you too!

[@Brian18741]

Nice review man, from your accent I'd say I'm not too far away from you in Carlow town. 😉 I have the Rutlands version of this machine, looks identical except branding. I used it once to managed to make a massive valley in the wheel like you spoke of. Must pull it back out from under a bench and set it up for establishing primary bevels on flat chisel and place blades. Like you say, I think it will work ok for that before hitting the diamond stones or whatever.

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Not to far away at all

[@Annaisineire]

Very good review John, experience of tool use is evident... :)

[@petrsidlo7614]

Hi, I am looking into buying something like this for reestabilishing bevels on planes and chisels, no curved blades, no final honing, I found a few models under different brands, with the same specs, for a third cheaper price, or a smaller version of this (wg 200). They all look quite the same. Do you think that the brand might matter, or am I safe in asuming that it will most likely do just fine for its intended purpose?

[@peterides9568]

Thanks for finding out the hard way for the rest of us. I had a Triton branded machine that was much the same, before I got into turning. Brilliantly sharp edge, but the tool rest bar moved out of square when tightened down. Not a single square edge came off that thing. I think I'll get a CBN grinder for my needs- Like you, I'm not willing to spend the $1500AUD to join the Tormek club.

[@theyorkshirelad.]

hi john can you advise how i start to setup for bowl gouge as mine has wrong grind and want to setup for a different angle

[@RyanBengal1]

Sounds like a very honest and balanced review there John. I just want to point out that you can find like new Tormeks (second hand) for a very similar price to this machine new. I recently picked up a genuinely almost brand new T7 for £350. Sold a jig that I didn’t need for £100 (crazy!) so I effectively paid £250, less than this record power is new. I’ve seen better deals than mine since I bought it so they are definitely out there. Definitely worth checking out second hand options before making a final decision.

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

I saw a T8 for 400 awhile ago I kicked myself!!!!

[@Chris-vp9ht]

tormak do a diamond wheel as well don't know if it was fit but they do do one

[@steveh755]

very good review . much appreciated

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

My pleasure

[@michaelplays2449]

Good review John thanks

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Very welcome

[@vogonpoet5860]

can you put the gouge V the other way round and the rest point facing toward the machine so the stone pulls the point into the V ?

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

No it doesn't work

[@welshwoodsman]

Excellent review. 👍

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Thanks! 👍

[@sumandl]

great video man!

[@MrWillgray17]

Hey John, i just watched your milwaukee packout review and i was wondering how did you manage to get it in red as i can only see black outside of US i live in ireland. Thanks

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

There was some red ones available early on but not anymore. Hilti have the rights to red boxes in Europe.

[@MrWillgray17]

@@JohnMcGrathManInShed ah yes ok, thanks very much for the reply John

[@skipperstan]

Just bought this sharpener and really wish I hadn’t. The instructions that came with the machine are terrible, so confusing. The actual jig is appalling as it keeps jumping out the saddle. Extremely poor design, really only fit for the bin in my opinion. Thanks for the honest review, in fact I think you are being a little too kind!

[@frankslittleworkshop]

Nicely done John 😁. 6 months.... where the hell did that go 🤔. Great review and love the honest comments. It's a shame that Record Power have taken a risk with this, as you say, most of the RP range are excellent. Keep up the great videos John, stay safe 😁👍

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Time is flying

[@handyjayes1]

Very surprised Record were happy to put their name on that tbh...

[@samrix5793]

Year on any better?

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

With the tormek diamond wheel on it , it is better

[@samrix5793]

@@JohnMcGrathManInShed would you get something else if you had the chance?

[@warrenwright6]

Good review.glad I saw this. Don't think I would touch that tool with a barge pole and I'm a fan of record tools too

[@PaulC1980]

Damn, was going to order one today online from EPT in carlow. Think I'll pass. The scroll saw was a disappointment already. Made in China?

[@markjarman7819]

Mmm bit like snickers and screwfix special trousers 😂😂 I had a woman with issues I sent her back😬

[@markusbeppler8414]

Thank you for saving me the money! I thought as a hobbyist the Tormek would be overkill (actually not overkill but to much money) and was considering this as an alternative. Please continue to take your time before a test video. I'm happily waiting 6 month if it results in a brillant test like this. And there are your vlogs for short updates on how your experience is.

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

No problem.

[@petermartin6077]

I have to say I have 1 of these at work I have no problems with it I can get a mirror finish mabie u need to look at ur technique

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

Maybe

[@brianinch4710]

Think's John great review it help me to make my mind up and not go for this one

[@vogonpoet5860]

I have 3 grinder all bought mid price to expensive and now they are set one for grinding, one for sharpening and one with felt polishing wheels. when bought the all came with grinding wheels so low quality the wore quicker than sugar cubes in water. whatever i buy, grinder,bandsaw or chop saw i always remember my dads words "no matter how good a maker builds a tool, they will always use the cheapest consumables for better profit and after all they expect users to add their favourite consumable, so why put a top line bandsaw blade on when the buyer will probably swap it straight out for their favourite make and size". with that in mind when i buy a saw etc i expect the blade or whatever to be crap and either have or buy one to my standard ready. these days customer interest and consumable quality have been replaced with profit andinstant consumable replacement. once if a maker made power tools or cars the law and morality said spares had to be made and available for 10 years after production ceased, these days your lucky if theyre available 2 years after launch.

[@kieran.stafford]

Strip that Strop, Strip that Strop . . . say it fast over and over :)

[@markarmstrong2592]

I bought a Sheppac and it was CRAP i sold it at a local auction

[@clarkfox7961]

I got one of these a few months ago horrible thing very difficult to sharpen my lathe tools with it , I'm going to sell it if anyone's interested let me no .

[@MrHighflyingclive]

i bought the smaller version. utter waste of money! the toolbar isn't square so it is impossible to sharpen a chisel - unless i really want a skew chisel! rubbish!

[@jimbo2629]

What a time consuming palaver to touch up an edge. Water all over the place. The whole system is poor, whether you buy a high quality version or a cheapo. The best solution. Buy a Worksharp. Having a slope is a much superior system for dry reproducible results. It takes more time to get to the Worksharp than it takes to renew the chisel edge almost😀. 1 click if you want to change the angle. Adjust to the width of the chisel and away you go. Same angle every time.

[@denuijs]

So you buy a cheapie cheapie machine and then start complaining for 24 minutes about all that is annoying about it. Now, am I stupid or you?

[@stevendouglas3860]

Is this a Advert vlog pretending to be a tradesman

[@JohnMcGrathManInShed]

😂 If this is an advert it's a pretty terrible one. 🙄