I use a 4.5 inch grinder a lot in my shop. I have 2 Milwaukee 4.5 inch grinders I have used for years and they last good. I have one with a 4.5 cutoff wheel and one with a 4.5 36 grit grinding disc.
I have a Craftsman with the slide style switch with a soft disc or flap wheel, a Ryobi I got at an auction with a trigger switch I use for cutting wheels and a paddle switch Harbor Freight one with a wire cup wheel on it now, I think. Gary
Another vote for Milwaukee. I have one that's about 20 years old. It's had to have the brushes replaced twice but in it's defense it got used really hard for about 15 of those years when I, and employees were using it in my fabrication business. I agree, the paddle switch is the only way to go. I cobbled a short piece of a paint stirring stick on the paddle switch of the Milwaukee for a while to make it a bit easier to hold but finally just got used to holding it a bit differently. I also have an old Black&Decker too, but now it generally is in the toolbox unless I need two different discs for a project. I goofed up the gearhead on it one time and went in to buy a replacement head. The counter guy pointed out that is was about $50 and I could buy a whole new grinder for $80 so why fix it. I told him that fixing it sounded like a better deal to me. I bought the head, saved the $30, and it's still going today. Often I see people using angle grinders just single handed but I find it easier to use the "side" handle too unless I'm in a really tight spot. Lynn
HARBOR FREIGHT...I have half dozen of them. Each one has a different use. They are the newer style with the paddle switch. They are like the bunny rabbit that never dies.
I have a 4" B and D that's about 40 years old and a Makita 7"(?) that's about 35 years old. Never any problem but that big boy is kinda heavy!
Anyone still using the 10 inch grinders? I have a 1970 Craftsman that won't die, plus a DeWalt and Makita. All are excellent grinders for the heavier work, but now I more frequently use the two cheap Chinese 4 inch grinders (Canadian Tire), that I have had for approximately 10 years. They both have the paddle switch, and have stood up well. I also have a heavy duty air grinder for 10 inch consumables, but it taxes my compressor to the limit. Bob
The orange ones are pretty tough. I've got who knows how many angle grinders the last one being the blue 40 something buck Hercules from HF that I really like. It's a bit bigger and heavier than the orange ones though and heavier than the black and deckers that I bought for 18 bucks each and had three so I had one for flap wheel, one for cut disk and one for grind wheel . I've got a nice one under the bench with a big brand name on it that has an odd size arbor that I can't get a nut for to use.
I used to get 4-5 years out of the DeWalt 13 amp 4 1/2" grinders at my welding shop. I work them pretty hard. The last time I needed one, I could only get a 12 amp, but it seems to be working OK. 80% of the work I did at my shop was repair of other peoples failed welds, there was always a lot of grinding going on, and those 4 1/2" grinders were subject to a lot of abuse. I looked at the HF grinders, all were in the 5-7 amp range, I bought one that lasted 3 days! That one never held up to what I would put a grinder through, so I didn't buy any more. At least I was able to get my money back. I can also tell you the HF 4 1/2" 36 grit grinding discs do not cut nearly as well as the 36 grit 4 1/2" grinding wheels I was buying through a supply house for a dollar more each wheel. If your using them, stop someplace else and buy good grinding wheels. Recently I had to grind 2 large failed weld blobs off of a steel bracket. I put a new HF wheel on the grinder, and spent a good 20 minutes and about 1/4 of the wheel removing about 1/2 of the first weld. Frustrated, I put on a new supply house wheel, and within 10 minutes, I had removed the rest of the first weld I'd started on with the HF wheel, and the entire other weld blob. The new supply house wheel barely had the bottom corner wore off. HF is OK for some stuff, but there are things there not worth bringing home. Gene
My 4.5" Makita has taken a beating (15 yr old plus) and keeps on working with no issues, but I too was looking for a cordless version recently, but they were all too spendy.
I use about any 4.5" grinder. Not too particular about brands. But when I want to use a cutting disk, I use my Metabo. Much safer than a regular grinder. It has a clutch for when the disk sticks in the cut. Much less chance of a cutting disk flying apart. They are expensive, but cheaper than the ER.
I have used Harbor Freight paddle switch angle grinders for all of my cutting , grinding, wire brushing for years.
Ridged come with a lifetime warrant also. You have to mail the warranty card in. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I have two makita grinders, the larger of the 4.5” with long handles and trigger switches. Three Dewalts, the smaller ones with thumb switches and an old skil brand. All have been trouble free with the exception of one dewalt that the brushes wore out in. All are quite old (5+years) and get used pretty heavily for various tasks. In my experience it’s usually the consumables that make the difference in how smoothly the job goes. I try to buy the better brand grinding wheels,cut off discs, and wire wheels. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
...I agree, I like the paddle switches best, you can start em with one hand, sometimes the slide switches are hard to switch...
Generally like most in life you get what you pay for. Quality tools will generally out live the user if taken care of. I've used Makita, Black and Decker, Dewalt, Milwaukee etc. for 30 plus years in the construction trades with little or no problems. Had my own B&D for well over 20 years with no issues. Today I have a Milwaukee..expensive but its a high quality grinder. I shy away from HF but if thats your ticket to success go for it. BTW I had HF grinding wheel literally explode on me several years ago so maybe it's personal with me! Thankfully I was wearing a face shield.
Got an air powered no name I’ve had for years. It has outlasted any electric one I bought. Got a no name cut off tool too. Use it with 4” cut off discs, carbide cutters, and grind rocks. Keep them oiled they’ll last forever.
I have about 5 cheap angle grinders. The cords always seem to give trouble from flexing where they enter the tool so I keep on shortening them.
I've got 4 die grinders, air tools...3 of them have lost power, kept them well oiled, in the drawer of my Snap On box...The Snap On die grinder has held up well, one of the weak ones is a Mac, the other a Matco...
The Key to making the HF grinders last, is when you take it out of the package, open up the the drive case via 4 screws and apply some good lube there. This is not a bad idea for any manufacturer. Mine have lasted years.
I teach a basics welding class, and we went all cordless. Holding up well for the 18 months we've used them. Sent from my LM-V405 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I got a porter cable from lowes a few years ago, its held up great so far, but I seem to have lost the nut that holds the non threaded disc on after using a threaded one .....I still need to check into getting another one I also have a porter cable compressor too...from Tractor supply....I do have a little harbor freight pneumatic cut off wheel tool thats been great for about 8 bucks
If I buy "anything"...from Harbor Freight, I buy it for one single task. If it lives longer than that one single task...great, I win..! NEVER...buy their insurance. As for my H.F. angle grinder, yep, still lives after many years of hard, somewhat abusive use. Mike
I would recommend a cheap one for the cut off wheels and if you want to spend the money on a good one use it for only grinding. I have a Porter Cable that I have had for a number of years. I recently started using it with cut off wheels and the bearings have gone out pretty rapidly. I think the grit and debris from tge cut off wheels is pretty hard on them.
I was looking at a friend's 4 1/2 inch cordless grinder. Realized it's a burglar tool, a methhead could steal that thing and cut a big ass door in my metal shop building.