grinder heat

[manassas dragon]

just got my new craftsman grinder working. am wondering if the heat generated by grinding to approaching discomfort level is bad for the blade. if so, can you dip in cold water to cool it off or would that be bad for blade or belt?

 

[Robert Dark]

Unless you are grinding a blade that has already been heat treated, the heat generated by the grinder will not harm the steel.

You can cool in water, just wipe the excess water off prior to going back to the belt.

Robert

 

[richard j]

is the blade one you are making and not heat treated yet? when i'm grinding a knife i'm making, i dont worry too much about the heat since i'm sort of used to holding a hot blade. if it is one that is already heat treated then you want to keep it cool. water wont hurt the blade but you might not want to get water on the belt since it could get on other parts of the sander and cause rust like on the bearings.

 

[Salem Straub]

If you are roughing an un-heat treated piece of steel, you can wear gloves and hog in there as hard as you want. After H.T., don't wear gloves, and when the blade gets too hot, dip it in water for sure. Watch areas that heat up and potentially get ruined carefully, such as the point of the blade which having a small cross section, may turn blue very quickly. You don't want to see heat colors anywhere from grinding after H.T.

 

[silver_pilate]

The threshold for pain due to heat for the average population is about 115F. Or course that can go up significantly when you add accomodation and work hardening (callouses and cutaneous nerve damage). However, there aren't many people who can hold on to a blade over 200F, much less approaching any temp that can harm the blade.

If it is a heat treated blade, you want to definitely keep the heat down, and remember that heat will build very quickly in the thinner tips and edges if a blade while the rest of the blade stays relatively cool. Dunk in water after every other pass or so and you'll be fine.

--nathan