Belt Sanders

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rprocter

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I am not a knifemaker, so hope starting a thread here is o.k., because i think my question will be best answered here.
I want to sharpen a lot of knives. many have long blades such as vintage German Carving knives, but i also want to be able to do pocket knife blades.
nearly all will need edge re-profiling.
for 2 weeks i have been searching on line for belt sanders, and think that this Kalamazoo 1 x 42" belt sander will probably be fine for me:
http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?PMAKA=505-1371&PMPXNO=952569&PARTPG=INLMK3
before i spend the cash i'd like to know what those who use a belt sander to grind and finish knife blades, think about this choice.
any real short-comings ?
Kalamazoo reliability ?
availability of 1 x 42 belts in the grits i would need ?
thanks, all help will be much appreciated,
roland
 
Looks good to me Roland. Both Lee Valley and Supergrit carry a wide variety of belts in that size. Supergrit has Trizax belts in 280 & 1000 grit, alum oxide in 24-320 grit, and leather belts for power stropping.

I put my edge bevel on with a 220 grit - then go to hand sharpening on ceramic stones (800 & 8000 grit from Lee Valley). I haven't ever tried the leather power strop.

Bruce
 
Roland,

I have a couple reservations about using a belt sander to sharpen knives. Heat build up and changing the edge profile.

It is easy to overheat an edge on a grinder. You need to keep it wet and keep it moving. Use light pressure and don't try to do it all at once. The steel on most knives will not noticeably run colors to inform you that you messed up unless you way overdo it. Chromium retards the oxide layer and it takes a little while to form. The very thin edge of a knife will overheat and cool back off in a second.

A powered tool can change the edge profile very quickly. It is easy to remove too much material. Many professional knife sharpeners do not use powered equipment and use that fact as a selling feature to the kitchens and meat departments they serve.

I approach knife sharpening with a more conservative approach. I use a powered wet grinder with a water submerged stone for the initial roughing in of the edge followed by large oil stones.

People don't realize how fast good oil stones will do the job. In fact, for thin knives, I'll frequently go directly to the oil stones with a new unsharpened edge. Only takes a few minutes.

You might also consider a large extra coarse diamond stone, I'm told they cut very fast.

So, not to discourage you from doing this with a belt sander set up - many people do with good results - just throwing out some food for thought. I happen to know that you have a large collection of nice knives. A belt sander could create a lot of damage quickly if you don't exercise a great deal of caution.
 
Thanks guys for your help (and your knives !).
Jack, system looks excellent, better than EdgePro which i have.
but, basically i want to try belt sanding.
Nathan thanks for the pitfalls noted.
for me it will be fun and not crucial when i spoil a few knives as fortunately i am not a knifemaker and therefore have to please no one but myself.
so i'm going to go with Bruce's endorsement and order one as soon as cash available.
i did a lot of ebay and on-line store searching before posting here.
there are lots of cheapo ones at about $30. so many, i suspect they don't work well. then there are the Baldas and other fine machines, but all at over $1000, are more machine than i need, or deserve, as my skill level will never get the max. these units can offer.
there seem to be fewer at the mid price range, and the Kalamazoo is USA made, so that's where i'll go.
roland
 
The Kalamazoo is a good machine . Ask a lot of questions before you get started the guys will be glad to help .
 
For your application, you don't need the HP and rock solid steadiness of a professional grinder. The less expensive machine will be just fine for sharpening. However I wish there was a was to slow them down. I believe the Kalamazoo belt speed is around 4000 SFM or better. 1000 SFM would be better for your application.

Be sure to get good high quality belts. They have cut cooler. I like the highend 3M belts. I would think that 220, 400, and 800 grit belts would be useful. I'd sharpen "in reverse" (safer and easier on the belt) then remove the burr manually on a good stone for your finish. Then a few passes on a chromium oxide loaded strop will bring out the best in an already sharp edge.
 
Tracy's site states that , that machine with the 4" contact wheel is 1800 sfpm . I believe Nathan means by " reverse " away from the edge not into it . Am I correct Nathan ?
 
ONeill said:
Tracy's site states that , that machine with the 4" contact wheel is 1800 sfpm . I believe Nathan means by " reverse " away from the edge not into it . Am I correct Nathan ?
Click to expand...

yup :thumbup:

I don't speak English well. Shame it is the only language I know...
 
Quote: " I believe Nathan means by " reverse " away from the edge not into it . Am I correct Nathan ?"
right, i think. belt going downwards. knife edge faces downwards. or: direction of rotation is not going into knife edge.
I have a v. good friend, Kurt, who could be called "Kurt, the Machinist, Electrician, & Inventor".
when he's making or fixing something, he even sand-casts his own parts when possible.
i bet he can rig motor to turn slower if need be.
appreciate recommendations for belt grits.
oh boy, looking forward to getting this machine and setting it up.
tho. primarily a collector of knives, 'playing' with them like this adds a great deal to my enjoyment of my hobby, my passion.
and as an 'old guy' in a small community, being able to sharpen well, will be something else i can do for friends as neighbours as a contribution to our community. hence i want a sander so it doesn't take me too long.
kind regards to my on-line mentors, roland
 
The Kalamazoo 1x42 is a very good sander. It's what I started with making knives and when I switched to my Bader B3 I didn't think I'd use the Kalamazoo, but I still use it for sharpening, and sometimes for shaping handles. It's an excellent machine
 
Luke, thanks, posting your experience with this machine removes any slight doubt i may have had. appreciate it muchly !
roland
 
Lock your elbows into your sides (for stability), use very light pressure, and keep the blade moving. Also don't forget to wear a respirator - "Knifemaker's Orders". Blowing boogers with shiny specs is bad news.
Have fun with it.
Bruce
 
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