Contact wheel advice

[jeness]

After some good advice here I got good ideas for purchasing a new grinder. A 10" contact wheel is included in the price of the grinder I am looking at, but I can get a bigger too up to 18" for some extra money. I already have 4,6,8" wheels from my home built grinder which I used for making straight razors, I will keep using those with my new grinder.

I would like to make some slipjoints and kitchen knives in the near future, but I am a bit lost on what size of a contact wheel I should get. Do I need a 10" if I already have a 8", or should I get something bigger from the get go, for example a 12" or 14" wheel or even bigger? If I get something in the 10"+ range, will I regret missing out on the 10"?

It looks like the wheels he carries are made in Italy and are of really nice quality, so I would like to get a size I will be using a lot in the future, and buy cheap Chinese wheels for the "would be nice to try" sizes I don't have currently.

Thanks a bunch for your opinions

 

[argel55]

I have a homemade 18 inch and love it. It is so easy to run the hollow all the way to the edge.

 

[Drew Riley]

I have an 8", and sometimes wish I had a 10 instead, but I'm not sure I'd use both if I had them. I'd probably go 14" or 18" if you already have the 8".

 

[jeness]

I have a homemade 18 inch and love it. It is so easy to run the hollow all the way to the edge.

Do you have any pics of hollows made on a 18" wheel? Not surprisingly, most don't write down what size contact wheel they used I always hear how they look almost like a flat grind, but I never see any good examples of it.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

A 10" wheel is very versatile. Most folks will need a smaller wheel before the need a larger one. Unless doing lots of hollow grinding, 10" is really all you need. I tell folks to get a 1",3",6",10" set and you will have most sizes needed. Those four together will probably cost less that a single 18" wheel.

 

[jll346]

I like 8" over 10" for handle contouring.

 

[LARRYZ10]

I have contact wheels in 3, 6, 8, 10, and 14 inches. I used to use the 8 inch the most but now use the 10 inch almost all the time. I thought that I would use the 14 inch wheel for all my hollow grinding but I much prefer the 10 inch. Just my experience. Larry

 

[jeness]

I am glad I asked! Now I am sure that I will go with the 10" option. The seller said that I can buy a separate big wheel from him in the future if I need it, so I guess its okay to start with the 10" for much cheaper. Thanks gentlemen for your kind advice!

 

[Black Fox Knife Works]

Very interesting results and feedback! We are in the process of sourcing a contact wheel for our grinder packages and this is the kind of stuff that will help us decide which wheels size to offer!

10" to 12" wheels seem to be the sweet spot...

 

[Mitchell Knives]

I own a variety of wheels: 4", 8", 10"x1, 12", 14", 14"x1 and a 36" radiused platen.

I use 12" and 14" the most.