Help me - Buy a Belt grinder

John T Wylie Jr said:
When your time is limited , that is where the better machine really comes into play. Grinding steel with the 1x42 is slow , so your progression will take much more time.

I was at the point you were about 4 years ago , I bought a 1 x 42 , already burned up a 1 x 30 at that point , also bought a 4 x 36 ... soon after I came to my senses and bought the BIII with variable speed.

If you are going to do primarily flat grinds , go with the KMG , the platen on the Bader ( in my opinion ) sucks , the KMG is better. Or you could get the Bader and get the platen setup that Rob sells ( Beaumont Metals who sells the KMG ) for the Bader. A friend went that route , and that platen setup is far more useful.

KMG with step pulleys would be the way to go for starters if you can swing it.

Another budget option is the Coote.
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Coote = +1 :thumbup:
 
My 10c worth. The best grinder period is the KMG. The best grinder for the person starting out with a budget that's too small for a KMG is a Coote (if you an afford a grizzley you can afford a coote)

They're both excelent machines that will last you a lifetime. And in fact... i have one of each.
 
Justin and Nathan are both right if you are only gonna make 20 knives a year then why spend 2 g on a high end grinder. A COOTE or GRIZZLEY will work just fine. They are around 500 bucks .
 
So much good advice. I could swing the $600 and have a grizzly or a coote. The Coote looks pretty desirable. I Have an 8 inch wheel grinder, a 4x36 with a 8 inch disc. I am almost thinking about just buying a Craftsman - It is $100 at Sears. For now, and taking the remaining $500 and buying a LowBoy forge from Jantz. This way I can sell or give the Craftsman away when I have the desire for a KMG/Bader and I will have a forge in the meantime. I know, I am asking should I buy apples or potatoes?
 
Well I can't tell you exactly how it will work out because I'm still in the process but... I have the 2x42 Craftsman and there are people who have started with it here (I asked a similar question a little while back) and one or two that still use it. The biggest concern I seemed to be was it's fast and eats up metal quick and it's fairly easy to screw up a blade with it. What I'm going to do it get Fred's bubble jig http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=681265 I just got off the phone with him as a matter of fact. That should speed the learning curve up quite a bit for me and once I get a feel for the jig be able not have to sweat ruining blades while trying to grind.

You seem to be leaning towards the Craftsman, so that plus the jig is less than $200, and if you save up a bit more get the forge too. I would love to tell you how the 2x42 with the jig works but I haven't gotten to that stage yet. But at the moment and unless someone can explain otherwise I don't see how it can't work out alright.
 
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=671841

It's all about what you want more. The craftsman is limited, but I've learned to live and work with the limitations. My next purchase will likely be a KMG or Coote. If you want the forge more than the grinder, that's OK too.

As far as the Craftsman goes, get good belts, use light pressure, and practice. It's pretty easy to screw one up, sure, but it's also pretty easy to make a good one if you've learned how to use the machine. Mod the platen for sure, and throw away all the guards, etc.
 
I have been looking at getting a KMG if I can scrape enough together. I know a guy that has two used chassis + tooling arms. They do not have any contact wheels with them. How much should I offer him?
And it would be a long drive.

-Zech
 
Darksky said:
So much good advice. I could swing the $600 and have a grizzly or a coote. The Coote looks pretty desirable. I Have an 8 inch wheel grinder, a 4x36 with a 8 inch disc. I am almost thinking about just buying a Craftsman - It is $100 at Sears. For now, and taking the remaining $500 and buying a LowBoy forge from Jantz. This way I can sell or give the Craftsman away when I have the desire for a KMG/Bader and I will have a forge in the meantime. I know, I am asking should I buy apples or potatoes?
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I see you mention the forge , but not hammers & an anvil , so are you going to be just using the forge to HT with ? If that is the case , why not go for the better grinder and send the blades out for HT. Once you are making $$$ on selling your knives , you can invest in an oven that will allow you to work with a wider range of steels ( unless you are not planning to work with any of the stainless steels , then disregard ).
 
Spend more money than you're comfortable spending, buy once, and never feel the sting of regret because you've worked up to the ability of the machine, rather than worked to your own ability. If I could do it over again, I'd get a variable speed Bader, or a KMG. What seems expensive up front ends up being cheaper in the not-so-long run.
 
Darksky said:
For now, and taking the remaining $500 and buying a LowBoy forge from Jantz.
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Spend the money on the better grinder - you can build a for for next to no money, that'll work just as well or better. I was nervous about making one initially, but now I'm embarrassed at how easy it was - and cheap! There's tutorials all over the place, try them!
 
The other thing to consider is that there is grinding to do on every knife you make, and you can make knives with only a grinder and no forge. A forge is much easier to build than a quality grinder. I've built 6 forges of various types over the last 3+ years. I dont regret a penny i've spent on my grinders though.
 
I was in your shoes when I started, 5 kids, 1 hour 15 min drive to work and a strong desire and no money. I made my own grinder based on the KMG I copied it from the pictures out of a Kovals knife making catalog I had at work. Get the wheels from Rob at KMG I would also spring for the whole platen with the wheels. Go with the 3 step pulleys and a 1hp motor but a 3/4 will work, if you shop around you can get one fairly cheap, I whent with a chinese to save maoney and upgraded later.
You can get plans for one on the various forums ( Don Foggs has a good tutorial on building one)or order the no weld plans from USA knife makers.

I would also recomend building your forge, you would have to spend $1000s on a forge to get the same qaulity of forge that you could make yourself for under a $100 get the lining for the forge directly from the distributer by the roll and save money.

http://www.hwr.com/

When I started I scored on 50 Norton 60 grit ceramic belts on ebay but now buy my belts from Tru Grit, And get the best belts that you can afford.

By building your grinder and forge you will save money, and after a few sales the you can spring for a new grinder. You can also afford to buy all the other materials and supplies that you will need.

Tony
 
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