How do you make sure you get a symmetrical ricasso?

G

glubse

Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
146
This might be a stupid question, but I'm not a craftsman at all (used to drive my dad crazy with my incompetence)...
How do you make sure the ricasso on your knives (forged or stock removal) is symmetrical?
I have a couple of custom made knives, on some the ricasso is fine, on some it's pretty messed up and somewhat shifted.
Is this an especially difficult part of the grinding?
 
I am not very experienced, but the way I try to get my grinds symmetrical is with a safe sided file, and sand paper. This may be 100% different than everyone else, but it seems to work just fine... for me anyways.
 
you could try a "file guide" made up of two pieces of hardened steel that clamp/screw onto either side of the blade, which are flat evenly on both sides and keep your filing/grinding even on each side. or as i've been doing for a number of years, just marking the line with a ruler and a black sharpie and checking it a lot as i file.
 
Two essential, in my opinion, hand tools, no matter how minimalist your approach, is a small machinist square, and a file guide. The carbide face file guides are one of the single best investments I ever made.

A decent yet inexpensive set of dial calipers will indicate your accuracy. Beyond that, a cheap b grade granite surface plate and a height gage can be a great boon.

If you're asking more about method, it's going to depend on the tools you've got to work with. If all you've got is a square, you can lap or grind the spine side of the ricasso flat and use that to index and scribe the bottom and opposite side to have lines to file to. If you don't have a grinder, and you're having a hard time filing perfectly flat, then switch to lapping.

If you've only got a pair of calipers, then you can do it differently.

As to the question of how hard getting a perfect ricasso is, it certainly is one of the tasks that delineates the skill levels of various makers. The ricasso is the foundation which the entire knife is built upon, and if you look at a knife you've got that has ricasso problems, I'm sure you'll notice numerous other issues if you start looking.
 
Excellent info Javand. I probably need to take some of you advice. I usually just measure it and use a ruler and scribe a straight line down the blade. A centering scribe from Sheffield supply comes in handy, to keep grinds even on your cutting edge and point of the blade. I just free hand hollow grind it after the lines have been scratched onto the blade. Works for me but Javand's advice would probably be best. Good luck
 
It's pretty simple. All I do is pay attention to the front of the ricasso. If both grinds curve inward the same then your plunge lines will match.
 
fumbler said:
It's pretty simple. All I do is pay attention to the front of the ricasso. If both grinds curve inward the same then your plunge lines will match.
Click to expand...

i'm not saying this isn't the case if you are experienced in the way you are doing it, however it isn't always true... if one plunge line is perfectly 90 deg, and the other is off even one degree, it's pretty easy to notice something's not quite right. the front of the ricasso is only half the equation, if nothing else, stop and check often as it's easy to over do it if not using the file guides
 
With a stock removal blade its depends on whether you start with stock that is of the correct thickness. If its a forged blade and the thickness of the blade in the area of the ricasso is not equal then to true this area I use this adjustable bubble reference to grind it to an even thickness. Grind one side of the ricasso flat on disc or belt free hand, turn to the opposite side; Set the bubble at 90 degrees to the platen and place it on the finished side that you just ground. Center the bubble and grind until this side evens out. I grind distal tapers in both directions in this same manner. Its fast, always correct and easy to do. If the ricasso of a blade is not even in all its dimensions the blade will not turn out even in all its other dimensions. This can be accomplished on a vert. disc or belt grinder.

bubble+jig+first+time+002.jpg
 
rustyrazor said:
i'm not saying this isn't the case if you are experienced in the way you are doing it, however it isn't always true... if one plunge line is perfectly 90 deg, and the other is off even one degree, it's pretty easy to notice something's not quite right. the front of the ricasso is only half the equation, if nothing else, stop and check often as it's easy to over do it if not using the file guides
Click to expand...
I always grind with the edge perpendicular to the platen so in my case the front of the ricasso always shows you what's going on with the plunge lines. It does take a lot of practice (and good eyesight) to read the small differences between plunge lines on the front of the ricasso though. Magnification helps on thinner stock.
 
and your platen is probably way more even than mine... I was just trying to warn the OP that if you are doing this by the file, or your machine isn't perfectly true, you may run into issues with things being off and harder to line up. i've been doing all my work with round files and it takes a considerable amount of practice to get it even (at least it does for me... nobody said i was any good at this)
 
That is true. If you're grinding and for some reason you can't get things to match the. You do need to check the condition of your tools. Someone should sell some hardened precision ground M2 platens.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top