How To Make A Rack For A Do-It-Yourself Grinder

  • By: Monica Shulz

Angle grinders are versatile tools that you can modify for use in various workshop tasks. By simply changing their attachments, you can use them for many tasks like grinding, sanding, cutting, etc.

In this article, we’ll show you how you can create a simple, cheap rack jig to help cut metal with your angle grinder. With this, you’ll have a stable, safe platform for cutting with the angle grinder, leading to cleaner, more accurate work.

We’ll also show you how to add a cutting guide to the rack for easier cutting. So, let’s get to the workshop!

What You’ll Need

Here are the items you’ll need to make the grinder rack.

  • 20mm x 150mm Rectangular Half-Profile Pipe.
  • 2mm Thick Sheet Metal
  • 70mm x 70mm Square Profile Pipe
  • 15mm x 50mm Rectangular Profile Pipe
  • 25mm OD Long Hex Nipple
  • 25mm Bore Roller Bearings
  • M25 Nut
  • 15mm x 15mm Square Profile Pipe
  • A Spring
  • 20mm x 20mm Angle Iron

Cut Out the Blanks for The Rack’s Base

Place the rectangular half-pipe on your workbench. Using a ruler and a pencil, divide it into two halves lengthwise.

Divide the half-pipe along the line you just marked. Next, place the 2mm thick sheet metal on your workbench.

Mark out a rectangular section measuring about 400mm x 250mm. Cut out the section from the sheet metal using the angle grinder.

Weld The Pieces of The Base Together

Place the blanks alongside the rectangular sheet metal piece in the middle. Make sure their edges are well-aligned.

Next, weld them together where their edges meet. Once you’re done welding on one side, turn the platform over and weld the other side for a stronger joint.

Cut Off the Uneven Ends of the Platform Base

If there are any uneven parts on the ends of the platform’s base, you will have to trim them. Using a meter rule, draw a straight line across the platform under uneven parts on both ends of the base.

Cut along the lines with the angle grinder to remove the uneven parts.

Mark and Cut Out the Stand for The Angle Grinder

Place the platform’s base on your workbench and put the 70 x 70 mm square profile pipe right in its middle. Remove the disk from the angle grinder.

Place the angle grinder right against the profile pipe and angle it down as if you are press cutting with it. Choose the appropriate height for cutting and mark it on the square profile pipe.

Cut out the marked section from the profile pipe.

Drill Holes for The Hinge on The Platform’s Stand

Place the stand on the workbench. Next, mark a point about 30mm from the edge of the stand.

Drill a hole with a diameter slightly larger than the diameter (30mm) of the hex nipple on the point you marked. Next, do the same on the opposite side of the stand.

Open Out a Section of The Stand

Draw a line 60mm from the edge of the stand on a side without any holes. Next, use the angle grinder to cut one side of the profile pipe down to the line you drew.

Next, cut along the line you drew with the angle grinder. After cutting, open up the section using a plier. Be careful not to remove the metal, as it will be needed later.

Assemble The Hinge for The Grinder Platform

Take the hex nipple and screw the bearings on either side of the hex nut. Place the nipple nut with the bearings through the section you cut out from the stand.

Next, make sure both sides of the hex nipple connector are placed through the holes on the stand. Next, screw the M25 nut over the hex nipple on one side. On the other side, screw the pipe plug over the hex nipple.

Weld The Hinge Together

After screwing the hinge into the holes on the profile pipe, close the section pipe section with the plier. Next, weld the nut locking the hinge to the hex nipple.

After welding the nut in place, weld the cut-out section of the profile pipe back to the main body of the pipe. Once the cutout section is secure, ensure the hinge can move freely in a circle without any restrictions.

Cut Out Blanks for The Bottom Section of The Grinder’s Frame

The grinder’s frame is the part of the stand that will hold the grinder in place. Place the 50mm x 15mm profile pipe flat on the grinder’s side.

Ensure the grinder’s tail is even with the bottom of the profile pipe. After this, mark out a length equal to the bottom section of the grinder on the profile pipe.

Cut out the section from the profile pipe.

Cut Out Blanks for The Top Section of The Grinder’s Frame

Place the 15mm x 15mm profile pipe against the side of the grinder’s top section. Mark out the length of the top section of the pipe with an additional allowance of about 15mm.

Cut out the section from the profile pipe. Next, cut a 45° section from the 15mm allowance of the pipe, so it sits flush on the grinder’s body.

After this, place the pipe section on the grinder’s side and mark where the grinder’s hole coincides with it. Next, drill a hole in the pipe section at the point for the grinder’s bolt.

Repeat the process for the other side of the grinder and cut another section for it. Finally, place the 15mm profile pipe on top and cut out a section equal to the width of the grinder’s top section.

Now, all the parts of the frame are complete.

Assemble The Grinder’s Frame

Place the angle grinder on your workbench. Attach the frame’s sidepiece to the grinder using a bolt. Next, take the top part and place it on the grinder.

Hold it in place with some magnetic squares and weld it to the side piece. Be careful to ensure their edges fit together correctly that you don’t weld the frame to the grinder.

Secure the second sidepiece to the other side of the grinder with a bolt. Next, weld it to the top parts.

Once the weld is strong, remove the bolts and place the frame on the workbench so you can weld it better on the other side.

Weld The Sections of The Frame Together

Remove the top section of the frame from the angle grinder. Place it on top of the 15mm x 50mm bottom frame piece.

Make sure they are correctly aligned, then weld them together. Re-attach the frame back to the grinder.

Cut Out A Cross Brace For The Grinder’s Frame

Measure the distance between the two sides of the top frame section over the grinder. Take a metal strip and cut it to that size.

Place the metal strip over the grinder and bend it to suit the grinder’s shape. Once it’s in the proper shape, weld the ends of the strip to the sides of the grinder.

Fillet The Grinder’s Frame

Draw a 45° line on the grinder’s frame, opposite the side with the grinder. Net, cut off the 45° section with an angle grinder.

After cutting off the section, cover up the hole there with a strip of sheet metal. Weld the strip metal to the grinder frame.

You can use a mallet to bend the strip metal while welding it to ensure it’s flush with the grinder’s frame.

Grind The Base and Stand

Take the rack’s base and place it on your workbench. Use a grinder to sand off any surface impurities and protruding welds to ensure the surface is smooth and ready for painting.

Next, remove the grinder from the grinder frame and clamp the frame in a bench vise. Grind all the welds on the frame’s surface and make sure the surface is flush and smooth.

Join The Stand To The Bottom Platform

Take the 15mm square profile and cut out two 100mm sections. Turn the bottom platform over and weld both sections to the middle of the base platform with a space for the stand in between them.

Turn the platform back right side up. Place the stand right in the middle of the sections and weld them together.

Paint The Rack

Place both the grinder frame and the platform on a covered surface. Spray or paint them with your favorite rust-inhibiting paint.

For a great result, you can use different paint colors for the stand, frame, and bottom platform.

Create a Brace for The Grinder’s Frame

Take the 50mm x 15mm profile pipe and cut two sections, 120mm and 100mm long, from it. Weld both sections together in an L shape.

Weld the Grinder’s Frame to The Stand

Place the L-shaped brace at the bottom of the grinder’s frame. Ensure the frame and the brace are at a right angle and that the 100mm L-section faces outwards.

Weld both of them together.

Weld The Grinder’s Frame to The Stand

Place the brace and the frame on the left-hand side of the rack’s stand. Weld it to the nut on the left side of the stand’s hinge.

Measure the distance from the top of the brace to the pipe cap at the right-hand side of the hinge.

From the same 50mm profile pipe, cut out a section equal to the length you measured. Round the end of the section using a grinder.

Weld the top of the section to the brace and weld its rounded end to the pipe plug at the right side of the stand.

Add a Grip

Cut a 100mm long piece of rebar. Place it on top of the grinder frame and make sure it faces directly upwards.

Weld it to the grinder frame. You can cover it with a piece of rubber or insulating tape for a better grip.

Spray the grinder frame and the grip with paint for a uniform surface

Add a Spring

The spring returns the angle grinder to its initial position after pulling it down to cut. To install it, drill a small hole in the center of the brace’s side.

Next, drill a hole directly under the brace at the top of the rack’s stand. Now, make sure that the drill’s mount is facing upwards.

Once it’s facing upwards, connect the brace and the stand by slotting both ends of the spring in the hole in the brace and the hole in the stand, respectively.

Create a Cutting Guide

Take a 20mm x 20mm angle iron and cut a 150mm long section from it. Using an M10 drill bit, drill two holes 100mm apart on the cutting guide.

Install The Cutting Guide

Place the angle grinder in the frame and power it on. Bring it down to make a slight cut on the rack’s base.

Measure a distance about 4cm away from the cut in the horizontal direction. Drill a hole with the M10 bit there.

Secure the cutting guide to the base via the hole with an M10 bolt and nut. Turn the base over and weld the nut to the base platform

Drill Guide Holes in The Base

Make sure the cutting guide is perfectly horizontal on the platform. Use the second hole on the angle iron as a guide to drill another M10 hole on the build plate.

Next, place the cutting guide at an angle of 45° and use the second hole as a guide to drill another hole at that point. Now, you can use any of these two holes as guides depending on if you want a straight or an angled 45° cut.

All you have to do is to secure the cutting guide to either the horizontal or 45° hole with an M10 bolt.

Final Product

Great Work! Now you have a sturdy rack for your angle grinder. You can use it to press cut different metals in various ways.

For more options, you can add more angled guide holes to the base of the rack.

If you like this DIY grinder rack, you can check out more projects like this on the Do It Yourself YouTube Channel and his Instagram. You can also follow their Yandex Zen page for more updates and project ideas.

Photo by Do It Yourself / CC BY 3.0