TIL a 20 year veteran told me I was burning up my grinder discs too fast

I was on a job last Tuesday out at the refinery in Whiting, doing some tank work with a older guy named Frank. He saw me swapping out a cutoff wheel after like 15 minutes and just shook his head. He said I was pushing too hard, that the wheel does the work not my arm muscle. He showed me how to let the tool glide with just light pressure and it cut way cleaner and took way longer to wear down. Ive been in the trade 4 years and nobody ever explained it that way before. Now Im saving a ton on consumables and getting less burned out by the end of the day. Any of you guys had a old timer drop a simple tip that made you feel like an idiot for not knowing it sooner?

3 comments

3 Comments

simon_carr15d ago

Next you'll tell me I don't need to breathe on the welding torch.

grant15515d agoMost Upvoted

You ever notice how the old guys never seem to rush or break a sweat but still get more done? Same with Frank, he probably saved you a hundred bucks a month on discs alone. My mentor was the same way with torch tips, kept telling me to let the heat do the work instead of jamming the tip in. Took me way too long to listen, but now I feel like a chump for all those wasted consumables. Crazy how the simplest stuff can change your whole day, right?

violag8015d ago

Hated admitting it at first, but yeah Frank is right. I used to think you had to lean into the wheel to get any real cutting done, especially on thick steel. Watching him barely touch the metal with the same disc and have it eat through faster than my gorilla grip approach made me feel real dumb. Now I tell every new guy I see the same thing, just let the tool sing and your discs will last twice as long.