GyrosGuard Rotary Tool Safety Shield Review

Manufacturer:
Model: 50-12510
Price: $19
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If
you have ever used a mini cutoff wheel with a high speed rotary tool,
you just might know what it’s like to have tiny pieces of a cutoff
disk thrown at you when it breaks. To ensure a safer user experience
with just about any rotary tool on the market, the GyrosGuard Rotary
Tool Safety Shield offers protection, visibility and performance for
rotary tool users. This unique blade guard does not impede
visibility, yet offers complete coverage of the cutting wheel or
blade. Thanks to an ingenious spring loaded design, and an easy to
operate thumb stud that makes opening the guard easy, you can access
and cut the material that you are working on. Along with the
GyrosGuard Rotary Tool Safety Shield, Gyros Precision Tools offers a
complete line of rotary tool accessories and miniature tools.

The
GyrosGuard Rotary Tool Safety Shield, model 50-12510, arrived in a
clamshell style plastic package along with a 1/8″ mandrel and a
fiber disk cut off wheel. The GyrosGuard Rotary Tool Safety Shield is
constructed of a shatter resistant clear plastic. The guard is
constructed in two half circle parts, where the inner shield can slip
into the outer shield which allows for up to 180 degrees of the blade
or cut off disk to be exposed. To make sure that the guard protects
the user, the guard halves are spring-loaded so that in its natural
state the guards fully enclose the cutting wheel or blade. By
utilizing the thumb stud on the guard, the lower half can easily
opened to exposed the blade. With this model of Rotary Tool Safety
Shield, you can use blades and accessories that are up to 1-1/2″
in diameter and 5/8″ of an inch wide. If you have larger
accessories or blades, there is a 2-1/2″ diameter capacity kit
available (model 50-25010) for about the same price.

Installing
the GyrosGuard Rotary Tool Safety Shield

Just
for fun, the guys at Gyros Precision Tools also sent along a really
nice 7-piece Accessory ProPak, model 61-11817, which is available
separately from the Blade Guard and costs about $30. The included
selection of circular saw blades and fiber disks represent some of
the most popular varieties of blades that Gyros Precision Tools
offers. Included in this set are the following:

• 7/8″
  Ripsaw (general purpose cutting of wood & plastic)

• 1″
  Coarse Tooth Circular Saw (fast cutting of wood, plastic & wax)

• 1-1/4″
  Fine Tooth Circular Saw (precise cutting of wood, plastic and soft
  metals)

• 1-1/2″
  LT Low Tensile Fiber Disk (glass, plastic, store, ceramic, soft
  metals)

• 1-1/2″
  HT High Tensile Fiber Disk (steel, steel alloys and hard bronze)

• 1-1/2″
  ST Super Tensile Fiber Disk (stainless, titanium, nickle, carbon &
  chrome alloys)

• 1/8
  x 1/8 Screw Mandrel

GyrosGuard
7-piece Accessory ProPak

Upon
closer examination of the circular saw blades in particular, it is
evident that these are not simply stamped sheet metal but rather
precision machined and ground tools. The teeth are sharp and the
grinding marks are clearly visible, giving the flat sides a sun-ray
effect. The fiber disks are fiberglass reinforced and are clearly
marked with the type of disk and the maximum allowable RPM on each. Click here to purchase the 7-piece Accessory ProPak.

Testing
and Use

To
test our the GyrosGuard Rotary Tool Safety Shield, we used a
Milwaukee M12 Rotary Tool. Since most rotary tools are equipped with
a threaded cap just behind the spindle, installation is essentially
the same for any brand of compatible rotary tool. Start by unscrewing
and removing the cap, then thread on the safety shield on the end of
the rotary tool. When the safety shield is fully installed, the
spindle lock button should be on the top and the thumb lever should
be on the right side of the tool. Next insert your accessory or the
mandrel into the chuck and tighten it up. Thanks to the opening in
the top center of the guard, using a screwdriver to tighten the
mandrel screw is a cinch if you are using a circular saw blade or a
fiber disk.

Cutting
a piece of heavy chain

One
of the first things that immediately stood out to us is that this guard seemed to fit and work on our tool as if it came
from the factory pre-installed. We proceeded to try out one of the HT
fiber disk cutting wheels on a piece of heavy 3/16″ steel chain.
The reason that we chose the HT fiber disk was because this material
is best suited for cutting hardened and alloy steels. Right away, we
noticed that the guard not only contained the sparks and debris from
the cutting, but it also allowed us to have a clear view of the
progress of the cut. We appreciated the functionally of the spring
loaded guard since it allowed us to open it initially to start the
cut and then let the spring action close up against the metal as we
made the cut. This better contained the debris and protected us from
any red hot shrapnel. As far as the other accessories, cutting disks
and saw blades – well, we tried them as well on a few different
applications. With the saw blades we had great success cutting, PVC
pipe, oak trim and pine. Of course we used these blades in
conjunction with the new-found convenience of the safety shield.

Great
fit on our rotary tool and very easy to use

Conclusion

With
the every increasing popularity of of rotary tools, it is critical
that there are quality made safety accessories available. Gyros
Precision Tools offers a great product with their GyrosGuard Rotary
Tool Safety Shield. This should be among the first accessories that
anyone purchases for their rotary tool. Along with the safety shield,
the 7-piece Accessory ProPak offers an excellent selection of bits
and blades that can transform your rotatory tool into a top
performer. The reality is that you can have the best power tool on
the market, but if you don’t have quality accessories, you will
forever be disappointed with it. For this reason we gave the
GyrosGuard products a nearly perfect Performance rating of 9/10 since
they really stepped up the level of performance of our tool. For our
Value rating we gave these tools a 7/10 since they offer made in the
USA quality, great features, and fair prices that any serious
hobbyist or pro will look for.

Specs

• 0″ to 1-1/2″ diameter capacity
• 2-3/4″ length
• Spring-loaded
• Self-closing
• Shatter resistant