Grinding the spine of a manufactured knife

[A1BASE]

Morning guys,

I've just ordered my first belt grinder, primarily to maintain and reprofile my chef knives and woodworking tools, but I'm a complete novice at any metal working.

One of the things I've learnt is that as a beginner it's always a good idea to start small, and so rather than wading into making my own knife all I'm looking to do at first are some minor alterations to my existing (expensive) knives, so I'd rather not destroy them through my ignorance. I'll use the older ones in the pictures to practice on...

Some images might help here:
Some of the tasks in prep work involve gripping a knife not by its handle alone, but by the blade as well. This is a typical grip:

The index finger curls around the shoulder of the handle and grips the blade itself between thumb and index finger.

The problem with this grip is that some of what I call the 'shoulder spine area' (I'm sure you guys have a real name for it) where my index finder now sits generally has quite a sharp profile.
You can see it particularly well in these photos on the left hand knife - the right corner of the spine is a sharp 90 degree edge and after a little while of using a knife like this really ends up rubbing your finger raw. The right hand knife is much comfier because of the transition.

So that's the issue.
The simplest solution would be to round over that corner slightly, or even better would be to create a radius in the spine that matches my finger (kind of like a slanted cylindrical profile). I know not to overheat the blade, but is there anything obvious why this is a terrible idea or things I need to remember while doing it?

Any advice would be gratefully received.

BASE

 

[Bill DeShivs]

Do it to it!

 

[Hengelo_77]

or even better would be to create a radius in the spine that matches my finger

that's over thinking it. Just rounding will do what you want.
Like Bill says: just go for it.
Maybe practise on some cheap steel or wood first to get the feeling.

Afterwards handsand the spine with sandpaper around some rubber

 

[Nathan the Machinist]

I do this with a slack belt at 400 grit J flex belt at 45 degrees to the belt. Fairly high pressure to get the belt to conform and round.

Don't over do it.

Practice on something you don't care about first.

 

[bikerector]

I've done this by hand with a sanding block or loose sand paper. It does take longer. Rounding the spine is pretty easy to do, not sure I would go beyond that. You could round first and then look at customizing it further to your hand.

I've also used a rod sharpener, not a steel, for similar effects. I've also used a dremel but I'm not very good with the dremel since it likes to grab and throw me around on the blade if I get careless so practice first. I use the sanding drum attachment for the dremel. I've also used it to take out large nicks in axes and machetes. I have a fear of overheating steel so I've never ventured to a larger device.

 

[A1BASE]

Thanks guys. I appreciate the tips.

 

[scott kozub]

I've done this by hand with a sanding block or loose sand paper. It does take longer. Rounding the spine is pretty easy to do, not sure I would go beyond that. You could round first and then look at customizing it further to your hand.

I've also used a rod sharpener, not a steel, for similar effects. I've also used a dremel but I'm not very good with the dremel since it likes to grab and throw me around on the blade if I get careless so practice first. I use the sanding drum attachment for the dremel. I've also used it to take out large nicks in axes and machetes. I have a fear of overheating steel so I've never ventured to a larger device.

I agree with this.

It shouldn't take long with some sand paper and there's less chance digging into the handle. You can always grind away later if you want do more than round over the corners.

You shouldn't really need to worry to much about heat with a grinder. You won't be generating enough heat with a grinder to get to the edge. You may get some discoloration on the spine though so go slow and light and dip often. I'll uses a wet towel to moisten my belt if I'm concerned about heat.

Disclaimer, I'm a newb that's only made a dozen knives to date.