Amazon has this Bosch GWX10-45PE corded 4-1/2″ angle grinder on sale for $52.30, from $99.
The grinder features a 10A and 11,000 RPM no-load motor, paddle switch, and X-Lock wheel interface.
What’s the catch? Other retailers are selling the same grinder for $99, and so Amazon’s promo price seems legit.
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Amazon’s product page says that $52.30 is the “with deal” price, and so this looks to be a planned promo rather than an algorithm-based discount.
Bosch’s X-Lock grinding wheel and accessory interface is relatively new, and so this is a current model that’s unlikely to be on its way out.
So, this just looks to be a really good deal on a Bosch 10A paddle switch X-Lock angle grinder.
Note 1: This is a corded AC-powered tool.
Note 2: This deal was posted on 2/24/2022. There is no indication as to how long the deal will remain active, and I would assume that supplies are limited.
Note 3: This grinder only works with X-Lock accessories. Bosch says that most X-Lock accessories are backwards compatible with standard 7/8″ mounts.
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Chris S
Home Depot had some deep clearances 2-3 months ago on all the cordless x-lock grinders. I don’t think the x-lock caught on like they were hoping and will probably die a slow death. Prices were at least double on most of the stuff I saw vs non x-lock which most likely killed off most enthusiasm.
Dave
I see a lot of welders on job sites using X-lock rather than having 3-4 grinders with different wheels like they used to. Probably not enough of a market to be in a big box, but I doubt they will kill it completely.
Jared
That’s encouraging. I like the idea – but in practice I’m cheap and prefer to buy whatever standard accessories I find on discount. I need these to become ubiquitous so the accessories are cheap too.
Richard Schneeman
> Bosch says that most X-Lock accessories are backwards compatible with standard 7/8″ mounts
That’s a confusing statement. IIRC x-lock accessories can likely be used on a regular grinders but other existing accessories/wheels can never be used on an x-lock grinder.
I love the idea but my Home Depot doesn’t carry any xlock so if I ran out of anything I would have to mail order and wait for a replacement.
Stuart
I sought to avoid confusion by preceding that statement by explicitly reminding readers that this grinder only works with X-Lock accessories.
Let’s say you have two grinders, one standard and one X-Lock. Potentially, you can buy X-Lock accessories and use them with both grinders.
The StarLock oscillating multi-tool interface works the same way, with the blades backwards-compatible but not the tools.
Jim Felt
Maybe in your area as in mine there are several “commercial” and/or “industrial” tool vendors who actually stock nearly everything Bosch, Fein, Hilti and other less then Big Box-centric brands would ever try to stock. Let alone try to explain, recommend or sell over a counter.
And they nearly always know what they’re talking about. It’s a career. Not just a passing through kinda job.
Josh R
Too bad there isn’t some way to replace a part and convert an x-lock grinder to a normal grinder. I’d be in the market for another nice grinder for cheap, but being locked into more expensive accessories would quickly cost me more than just paying full price for a regular grinder
MM
I buy my grinding consumables from welding and industrial/MRO shops. I find the brands they carry are usually a lot better value for money than the brands I tend to see at Lowes, HD, etc. And maybe it’s just in my area but X-lock is poorly represented among the heavy duty industrial brands. I doubt very many welders and pipefitters are using them around here.
Julian Tracy
Looks like a great system when someone else is paying for the wheels and discs. For those of us that buy our own supplies, I’m sticking to the already fast enough standard wheel changes
lumpy idle
i suspect that this is going to be akin to finding an inkjet printer on sale at a great price because the goal is not to make money on the printer but on the peripherals down the line. inkjet cartridges as x-lock discs – all overpriced and while x-lock is not proprietary it is so rare that it might as well be. i don’t want to be locked into a specialty disc that is costy and harder to find even if it is a better mouse trap (to mix my metaphors.)
Sean
💯%
bj
I must admit that I jumped on the hype bandwagon and snagged a Makita X-lock grinder because of the promos. But the accessory I need right now is a diamond cup wheel for concrete, and I have not seen one in X-lock form yet. I continue to use my standard grinder while my BNIB X-lock is benched. Maybe I should return it…
Leo B.
I think X-Lock could be a nice system for welding schools. There aren’t really any non-standard wheels being used, and you could perform an efficient wheel change without having to go get a grinder wrench from the tool room or wherever they’re kept. If you are the only one using your grinder, you can set it up however you want, but wasting time beating on a grinder wrench with a sledge because the last person who used it tightened it like a gorilla is not uncommon. If the manufacturers helped the program out with accessory costs, I think it could be an excellent system for a lot of technical schools.