Lots and Lots of Dust. (Black & Decker Angle Grinder)

Member Name: daseaford

Product:	Black & Decker Angle Grinder
Date:	17/11/01 (1772 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Does a great job.

Disadvantages: Lots of Dust.

I had never owned (or used) an angle grinder before, but for cutting the paving slabs on my new garden patio I needed one to cut the slabs to size.

When buying power tools I have nearly always chosen Black and Decker as they always seem to be very reliable and it is easy to buy spares or accessories. I bought the Black & Decker CD500 angle grinder from the Black & Decker shop at The Yorkshire Outlet (near Doncaster) for £20. At this shop they sell reconditioned tools (fully guaranteed) for about 75% of the normal price. Also the staff at the shop are very knowledgeable and very helpful when you are buying tools. The only difference is that you do not get the tools in a pretty box.

Angle grinders come in different sizes and of different powers, but as I only really wanted the tool for the patio job I did not see the point of buying a larger cutter. The CD500 has a 115mm cutting disc and a masonry disc came free with the grinder.

I thought the angle grinder would be heavy and difficult to use, but this was not the case at all. The grinder is very comfortable to hold with two different handle positions, for left or right handed users. There is also an adjustable safety guard for cutting in awkward places, or at unusual angles.

The on/off switch is a slider, which clicks on when in use and just has to pressed to be released and a spring action returns the switch to the off position. The grinder cut our paving slabs very straight, but it did produce a fantastic amount of dust. Everywhere was covered in dust, including most of neighbour’s garden, our windows and ourselves. You must make sure that all your windows and doors are closed when cutting with the grinder.

The discs are easy to change and two special spanners are provided with the grinder for doing this. Each disc cut about 15 paving slabs for us and they cost about £1.50 each. The discs do not get blunt, they just get smaller, until they are too small to use.
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It is very important to use safety equipment when cutting with the grinder. We wore gloves, goggles and dust masks. Black and Decker also recommend ear protection. Can I also recommend that if you are anywhere near the person using the grinder you also wear safety gear. I say this from personal experience, as I was working on the patio as our eldest son was cutting some slabs for me. Of course I was wearing a dust mask, but I did not have any goggles on. A very small piece of dust hit me on the face and burnt a mark on my face. This made me jump and was not very painful, but this could have very easily have been in my eye. The discs get very hot (they glow red sometimes) and so any pieces flying off are very hot. I was lucky that time and now I don’t go anywhere near when anyone is cutting unless my goggles are on.

The discs spin at 10,000 rpm and this is certainly an awesome tool to use. We have been very pleased with the angle grinder and even though it is only the smallest disc size for grinders, it has certainly been up to the job. I haven’t yet used the grinder for sanding or cutting metal, but certainly for masonry cutting I can highly recommend it.

Summary: