Theย Porter Cable PC60TCTAG 4-1/2 Inch Cut-Off Tool and Angle Grinder Kitย comes equipped to tackle just about any grinding or metal cuttingย project you can throw at it. Given that two different blade guards are included, one that is optimized for grinding and the other for cutting, you can be sure that you can complete the task at hand safely. To sweeten the deal and get you started on your projects, they threw in 5 general-purpose grinding wheels and 5 cut-off wheels in the box! With 6 amps of power, aย compact size, and a rock-bottom price, we are pretty sure that this angle grinder combo pack is a winner.
Build Quality and Features
Porterย Cable ships this tool kit in a retail-ready cardboard box, with everything individually packaged and wrapped inside. Inside the box was the PC60TCTAG 4-1/2โณ Cut-Off Tool and Angle Grinder, which includes an assortment of grinding and cutoff wheels, a removable side handle, a grinding guard, a metal cutting guard, a spanner wrench, and, last but not least, the instruction manual.
Since this grinder comesย with some extra parts and tools, we were a little bummed that it didย not include even a simple tool bag or something for a more permanentย storage solution. The motor frame and main body are made of black or gray ABS plastic, and the front gear housing is made of cast aluminum, which should go a long way towards increasing durability and tool longevity.ย
The screw-in handle is also made of black ABS plastic, is textured for good grip, and is slightly oversized to make it easy to hold onto evenย with gloves on. We liked that there were three different points inย the gear housing where you can install the handle for better grip and control. In the front and back of the body, there are air vents toย keep the 6.0 amp motor running cool. On the left side isย a sliding thumb switch that activates the grinder. By pressing theย switch forward, it can be slid to a point where it will lock, keeping theย grinder in the On position without having to hold the switch in.ย This can be particularly advantageous when you need to use the toolย for extended periods.
Changing cutting/grinding wheels is a cinch; simply press the red button on top of the gear housing to make the spindle lock, and then use the included spanner wrench to loosen the nut. One thingย that we really liked about this grinder is that the blade guards canย be swapped or adjusted by loosening a lever where the guard attachesย to the grinder and then locking it back in place โ all without any extraย tools. The power cable has a heavy rubber strain relief where itย enters the body, and the cord is about 6 feet long.
Porter Cable PC60TCTAG Grinder Testing and Use
Toย test Porter Cableโs PC60TCTAG 4-1/2 Inch Cut-Off Tool and Angle Grinderย Kit, one of the very first things we used it for was to sharpen someย lawnmower blades. Using one of the included grinding wheels forย metal, we proceeded to sharpen the blades, being careful to maintainย the original cutting angle on the edge of the steel. While doing ourย grinding work, the Porter-Cable demonstrated plenty of power by notย bogging down at all, even when we leaned into it. Needless to say, itย made very fast work of getting the blades sharpened thanks to anย 11,000 RPM spindle speed. The angle grinder also worked great forย smoothing welding beads because, with the handle mounted on the leftย side, we were able to control the grinder so we could make smoothย strokes and have plenty of control.
Just to test how fast it couldย cut through steel, we took a piece of 1/8โฒ x 2โณ cold steel and sliced offย a couple of pieces. To do this, we first took the metal grindingย wheel off, then we removed the grinding guard and installed theย cut-off guard. With a fresh cut-off wheel loaded in, we locked itย down with the spindle nut. It is worth pointing out that there areย two sides to the lock nut; one side has a small rim around it, and theย other side is flat. When using it for a metal cutting wheel, the rimย must face out, or the wheel will not tighten correctly. For standardย grinding wheels, the rim on the nut needs to face in towards theย wheel.
When we were finally ready to start cutting the steel, weย first clamped it down and then went to town. The angle grinder cutย very well for its small size, as it sliced through the steel withย ease. Just like the mower blades, it never slowed down and had more thanย enough power to do what we asked of it. Just like using most angleย grinders on the market, this one is pretty loud, so we definitelyย recommend that you use hearing protection and throw on some safetyย glasses while you are at it! All in all, when holding the grinder inย my hand. I found that it fit very well. The body is fairlyย small, and we also appreciated that it felt rugged enough to handleย lots of use.
Conclusion
Theย Porter Cable PC60TCTAG 4-1/2 Inch Cut-Off Tool and Angle Grinder Kitย proved to be a very handy tool to have around the shop. We reallyย liked the power that this relatively small tool demonstrated and theย interchangeable wheel guards. The fact that grinding and cut-offย wheels were included in the kit is great because itโs what makes thisย kit ready to work right out of the box.
For our Performance rating,ย we gave this grinder a 7/10 score since it came with two blade guards, a stack of cut-off wheels, and grinding disks. We do wish that it had some rubber overmold on the grip points and a little better solution for storing all the parts and pieces. For a Value rating, we gave this grinder kit an 8/10 because of its power, features, and price, which makes it a pretty good deal.
