Grinding a blank??

D

Dodge

Gold Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2008
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513
Ok so I don't know if this is the right forum to post this, but here goes:confused: I had some o1 blanks cut on a waterjet for a project I'm doing. I was wondering if there was anyone I could send two of the blanks to and have them grind them out to an edge? I know the goal is for me to be able to grind them myself. I just don't have the time or the space to set up shop to make them right now but I want two finished to use and test. Any help or links?

Thanks in advance!!!
 
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I'm sure there are folks here that could help you out, but now that you have some blanks, why not have a go at it yourself.

If things really mess up, its only some steel that you lost and a lesson learned from mistakes. Go for it!
 
Its really not hard to do yourself. its hard to do it well, but with a couple of files it can be done indoors even.
 
Dodge said:
I just don't have the time or the space to set up shop to make them right now but I want two finished to use and test.
Click to expand...

There will never be enough hours in the day if you keep telling yourself that. The good Lord gives us all 24 hours and we gotta make the best of it. If you want something bad enough, you'll make time. As for space...


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This is my workspace, a 2.5'x2' saw horse with a piece of pine clamped down on it. My brother's car is also in the garage so that leaves just just enough room for me to squeeze in and out of the shop. Again, with enough gumption, you can make anything happen, no matter the circumstances. Don't ever let someone or yourself say that you cant do something. Maybe thats just the runner in me speaking but I believe if you set your goals, you can make your wildest dreams come true. The question really is, are you willing to work?
 
You can send me the steel, and I'll eventually grind it, but if I do I'm keeping it!
 
Are you going to have someone else heat-treat them as well? You certainly may find a maker who'll grind and HT them for you. But the same maker could have cut the profiles for you and likely wouldn't charge much more. At that point you may as well have him/her build the handles, too.

You already have some money in the steel and waterjet profiling... You're going to end up with very expensive knives if you farm everything out. The shipping back-and-forth alone, will add up fast. It may take a week or six months depending on how busy the maker you chose is, that's something to consider as well.

I think you should spend $20 on a couple Nicholson files and a C-clamp and get to work. You can do it on the kitchen table if you don't have a shop/workbench etc. Google or search here for draw-filing techniques, you can actually work pretty quickly that way.
 
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Dodge,

Were do you live?? If you update your profile you might get an invite to a shop and get some assistance.
 
I updated my location. Thanks for all the replies. I know I need to do this my self (that's the goal) but I want one that's perfect for me to duplicate and I can't afford to mess these blanks up. Yes the heat treat will be farmed out. The handles are integral so all they need is a few dips in plasti-dip and they are GTG. Anyone willing to grind one?
 
A picture of the blank and drawing of the finished knife would be good to give us an idea of what you are looking for. If you would like you can email or pm me and I can give you an idea as to what I would charge.
 
The concept was to make one blank that I could grind x number of blades out of. Yes I know it looks like a cheap dive knife. It started life on a cad screen out of a need for an everyday pry bar. Then a friend of mine said he would buy one if it was a tanto (ish) blade. The Yellow handled one was done about a year ago as a non functional prototype (proof of concept). Anyway here are the pics of what I have and what I was looking to get done.Sorry for the crapy cell phone pics.

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if you are trying to get a perfect one to duplicate yourselfe it will be very discouraging to compare your first attempt to a pros, where as if you dont expect great you will really apreciate the work you did.
 
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Personally, I'm concerned by the giant holes you have in the handle area, and the associated weak spots, especially if there is any intent to use these for prying. I know you didn't ask for design critique.
 
You do bring up a valid point. One that will be addressed if there is another batch. Tha steel will be thicker overall as well as scaled up. The hole size will stay the same but the handle will get bigger. That being said I guess the 16 blanks I have now will have to be ground into knives not pry bars. I do have a small 1x XX" belt grinder from harbor freight right now. Any jigs you all know of that will help me with this grinder? If not I'll have to make one of those file holder tables (they look easy to use)
 
Dodge said:
You do bring up a valid point. One that will be addressed if there is another batch. Tha steel will be thicker overall as well as scaled up. The hole size will stay the same but the handle will get bigger. That being said I guess the 16 blanks I have now will have to be ground into knives not pry bars. I do have a small 1x XX" belt grinder from harbor freight right now. Any jigs you all know of that will help me with this grinder? If not I'll have to make one of those file holder tables (they look easy to use)
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If you have a 1" grinder, you have all you need to but a bevel on those blades. Don't be shy, just fire up the grinder and make some steel dust!
 
Dodge,

I had the first knife jitters before making my first one. I went to a knife show and all of the makers there were very supportive of me. Quite a few of them told me to call them if I had any questions or problems. I finally had to give myself the proverbial kick in the butt and just go for it. Yes is is kind of scary at first, but you have to start some where. There are alot of makers here on the forum who will help and encourage you. So I will pass along the proverbial kick in the butt that got me started. Go for it.

My first knives were all profiled and beveled by hand using files and lots of sand paper. I used 01 steel (and still do). Heat treated in a one brick forge, quenched in used motor oil (99 Windstar minivan, 5w-20w Pep Boys house brand) and tempered in my $0.97 garage sale special toaster oven.

Ric
 
One more comment, Dodge. I also have the HF 1x30 sander/grinder. I like it for light work, though the motor is a bit underpowered to do heavy work. I find it does a reasonable job of deburring and finishing, but not so strong in the area of grinding the bevel. You can do it with the HF 1x30, but it will be challenging.

A question... you never really said why it was so important to you to end up with "professional" quality on these blanks. The only comment I saw to that end was you didn't want to waste the blanks. Are you intending to pitch the design to a company? Why would these specific blanks be so precious that you feel the need to pay a lot extra for professional grinding?

- Greg
 
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