What is a needle scaler?

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Saw the thread on needle scalers, but I don't know what they are. I gather one use is cleaning up areas the grinder can't reach? I like the sound of that.Scott
Reply:It's used to clean the slag off of a weld, it's also good for cleaning off rust and paint.  you can get a pistol grip type or straight type.   I have the straight type (Jonnesway).  kinda works like a air hammer but with about 1/8" dia. "needles" sticking out rather than a chisel.  I think mine has about 12 needles.  They work great too.DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:Originally Posted by littlefuzzIt's used to clean the slag off of a weld, it's also good for cleaning off rust and paint.  you can get a pistol grip type or straight type.   I have the straight type (Jonnesway).  kinda works like a air hammer but with about 1/8" dia. "needles" sticking out rather than a chisel.  I think mine has about 12 needles.  They work great too.
Reply:So it's an air tool?
Reply:Yeah, sorry should've said that.  Mines also got an adjustment for the force.  The needles are replaceable.DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:Hmmm. Have to put a compressor on my shopping list. I'll make a post some time about the merits of buying a cheap Chinese compressor - I imagine if something goes wrong and it blows up it would be pretty ugly.
Reply:Hold on a second, if you're getting a needle scaler, you're going to need a very powerful compressor.  It takes at least 15 horsepower to run a scaler continuously.
Reply:Originally Posted by 76GMC1500Hold on a second, if you're getting a needle scaler, you're going to need a very powerful compressor.  It takes at least 15 horsepower to run a scaler continuously.
Reply:i supose it would depend on what you mean by continuosly.i also have a 5HP 60gal. compressor thats done a fine job of running any thing i have thrown at it.scotti would skip the lil china cheepo. if you are getting a compresor for the shop best bet is to go with a larg tank and as much compressor as you can aford. i have the home depot  husky version but its the same as the TSC camble housefeld. its got a good production rate and plenty of volume with its 60 gal. tank. as soon as you get a compressor you will start getting more and more air tools and some are prity air hungry. you should also be able to run a small sand blaster with one of this size. at right around $400.00 it seems like a lot but it should last a good long time and alow your air tool colection to grow without needing to keep upgrading. and trust me once you get air you will start finding more and more cool tools to run off it.i have had mine for a few years now and still just run it off a standerd air hose's its not plumbed in with steel lines or any thing i just have a air line reel over it hanging from the ceiling. some day i will probly run solid lines but its not needed right at the start if $$ is short. i have been realy happy with mine and several others have the same in both versions HD & TSC. best to get a synthetic oil for it. you only need to change it about 1 time a year so its not that much more to use the good stuff. i filled mine with synthetic let it fill up the air tank and drained it out and added new oil just to insure i got any packing grease or any thing out of it. not shore if its needed but it made me feel better.smaller compressors will just agrivate you, its best to get a good one right from the start, mine being about the chepest viable option. if you have more $$ to spend on it get a 2 stage 60 or 80 gal version but they usualy start at about $900+. i think there is a thread about them going on now but there have been several so a serch should produce plenty of info. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:Here's a photo of a needle scaler, as an FYI.The manufacturer of this one is Novatek. I don't know them, so this is not an endorsement or a pitch. I pulled the first image I could locate; as a courtesy to Novatek, here's a link to the website: http://www.novatekco.com/html/needle_scalers.htmlBob RosenbaumFormer PublisherPenton's WELDING Magazine
Reply:And most of the time on air tools you definitely get what you pay for.  I have had luck with the cheapie campbell-hausfeld air ratchets though.  highly recommend not buying the CH impacts though.  I like all of the Ingersoll Rand stuff though.DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:I guess it depends how big your scaler is.  Every needle scaler I've come across requires a ridiculous amount of air and pretty much maxes out the standard 3/8ths inch line.
Reply:Originally Posted by littlefuzzAnd most of the time on air tools you definitely get what you pay for.  I have had luck with the cheapie campbell-hausfeld air ratchets though.  highly recommend not buying the CH impacts though.  I like all of the Ingersoll Rand stuff though.
Reply:There are some smaller and bigger ones. The smallest ones I'v seen (but not used) are about 1" diameter and have very small needles. A good size handy size is the cheapy from Northern, which is about the size of a small air chisel. Doesn't hit real hard, but pretty easy on the air. holds uup... ok. Larger guns scale faster, use more air.http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...70_12817_12817
Reply:Thanks for all that guys. I can see a compressor will open up the possibility of a whole new range of toys.Scott
Reply:My experience years ago was that two of using them to clean stove enamel off steel castings would have the big 12hp compressor running flat out to keep up. I also used them in a confined space with a large amounts of sheet metal shelving and panelling - and it was the NOISIEST job I have ever undertaken, including breaking concrete with a road drill!
Reply:Thanks for all that guys. I can see a compressor will open up the possibility of a whole new range of toys.very, very true. so keep that in mind when you go shopping for your compressor. you dont want to be shopping for a new one 3 months later as you find more uses for it.air for a shop should be a minimum of a 60gal tank. this will take you into the $400 and up range depending on the make and modle. but considering the huge step up in volume and outupt from the $200-$300 priceed 25 gal. versions it is not only well worth it but you will be happy later not having to try to add to or start over.later as you add a plasma cutter and maybee a small sand blast cabenet, a few grinding and sanding options, the possibilitys are endless. you will truly see the need and be glad you went big to start out. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:I agree that bigger is almost always better in air compressor, but let's not discourage Scott by telling him that smaller compressors are useless for needle scaling or many other home shop uses.  My "5 HP" (Hah!) 60 gallon Home Depot compressor did a LOT of work during my recent seismic upgrade of a 3-story apartment building including, would you believe it, concrete breaking with my (now stolen) "60 Pound" IR pavement breaker.  Of course, duty cycle was very limited and I would never recommend such a compressor in a commercial setting, but for home use and duty cycles where productivity is not an issue, you can do a lot of very useful, heavy work with a typical larger home type compressor.Sure the duty cycle was limited using this compressor with a needle scaler.  But I get the jobs done, stopping to alternate tasks like grinding or wire brushing or have a sip of soda while the compressor catches up.And, yes, once you get a compressor and a few tools, the NEED for more tools becomes urgent.awright
Reply:awright,i have the same one from H.D. had it a few years now and its done a great job. taken care of every thing i have asked of it. for the home shop i think its a excilent option and well werth the $400 i paid for it. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:I have in the past worked in a small fab shop & like most of us those fellas where fools for tools like the rest of us. But I have to admit this is the first I have heard of a needle scaler....BUT that is why I like this sight.
Reply:Its a paint chipper, its a flux remover, its a weld peener and rust remover.. It slices it dices-not really.  Sometimes its gentle, some times it beats the living tar out of a pretty weld.  Thats what I learned about it.  Havent got one yet, but does sound like it has its uses.Various GrindersVictor Journeyman torch200cf Acet. 250cf oxygenLincoln 175 plus/alpha2 gunLincoln v205t tigLincoln 350mpEsab 650 plasmaWhen you can get up in the morning, Its a good day.Live each day like its your last.
Reply:i keep hopeing it will be on sale some time when i have some $$ left over to get one. the uses seem to make it well werth the price....i'm just broke all the time. but i'm thinking it could realy make for some nice texturing options in metel art work.has any one tryed the one from HF?? it would shore be a lot easyer to pick one up if the HF one wasan option. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:Originally Posted by fun4now.awright,i have the same one from H.D. had it a few years now and its done a great job. taken care of every thing i have asked of it. for the home shop i think its a excilent option and well werth the $400 i paid for it.
Reply:My needle scaler attachment works great once I ironed out the bugs. Like everything else you never had, you don't know how you did without it.I don't think CH makes a needle scaler do they? I can't kill my CH air tools, they hold up as well as my IR stuff. Mind you, they sleep a lot.I can't kill my CH compressor either. Good thing, I don't have the spare $$$ to buy another. Craftsman 230a Buzz-box,  Lincoln 140T & 180T, Century K2789, PUROX W202 O/A14" cheapo chop saw that cuts straight and square!A toolbox of the cheapest Chinese tools money can buy"Real" tools all old reliable Husky/Craftsman/Proto stuff
Reply:Originally Posted by wallythackerI don't think CH makes a needle scaler do they? I can't kill my CH air tools, they hold up as well as my IR stuff. Mind you, they sleep a lot.I can't kill my CH compressor either. Good thing, I don't have the spare $$$ to buy another.TSC is also carieing the IR compressors now too, not too much more $$ up front and they carie an in house repair warentee, that could be werth the extra $100 if ya got it to spend.nice to know the CH air tools hold up well, i been looking real hard at there air rachet, keep telling myself it would shore be nice to have. lots of places working the standerd rachet is a bit tuff. i finaly sprung for a set of the racheting wrenches and man they are nice, i'm shore i'll feel the same way about the air rachet if i ever get off my but and spring for it. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:Originally Posted by scott brunsdonWhat is a needle scaler?
Reply:What CH tools have you tried, littlefuzz?  I certainly realize that CH tools are not top grade, but I have been using several of their high-speed cutoff tools and die grinders for years with complete satisfaction.  I have also been using their small impact wrench and two models of air ratchet with satisfaction, but have not given them very much use.Are you sure you are lubricating them adequately?  You can't over-lubricate an air tool, but you can destroy them quickly by under-lubricating them.  Any excess oil is just blown out the exhaust.  I put several drops into the air port at the beginning of each day and periodically when I think of it during heavy use.  I have never had a failure.  I prefer that to using an air line lubricator because it avoids contaminating my air hose with oil.I've gone from buying top-of-the-line tools in my youth to buying cheap, but adequate tools because I find that they get stolen way before they wear out.awright
Reply:i always do 3 drops befor ataching any of my air tools. had great results. the lil self oilers that atach right at the tool tend to leak and are easy to break, best to just add a few drops and go for it. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.