Info on inexpensive belt grinders

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hh

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Gentlemen,
I love to hear you guys talk about knives. I think I've caught this disease. I been practicing with some scrap aluminum, cooper, brass, wood, etc. and I think I want to take a deeper plunge, but I would like to pick your brains on an inexpensive belt grinder. (Finances are tight)The material I have been practicing with didn't require much more than the wood working tools I have on hand. I've seen the Grizzly for $300. Are there other? I thank you in advance.

Larry O
 
Hello Larry,

Depending on your resources and skills, you can easily build your own belt grinder. Keep your eyes open for old motors at garage sales, flea markets, etc. Also look around for angle iron, steel plates, tubing..etc to build a frame with. Maybe even build it out from plywood. The sky and your imagination are the limit. Check local motor rewinders for deals on used motors also. For plans on a very simple home built belt sander, visit, <a href="http://www.geocities.com/beaumontmetal/sander.html"> Beaumont Metal Works</a>. They also sell rollers and misc belt grinder items with an enphasis on the do-it-yourselfer to build your own grinder.

I hope this helps,
Good luck and have fun.

-Rob
 
harbor freight has some sanders, 1x30 and larger for decent prices. Better than hand files, but a 1x30 takes a while! There are also Kalamazo brand and Sears has some ones that you can start on. good luck!
 
I've heard that the kalamazoo machines are pretty good, but you have to supply a motor. For about the same price you can get the Grizzly (with a motor). The quality on the Grizzly is variable. The guy I got mine from had to send the wheel back twice and ended up having to rebuild the motor himself (rather than send it in and wait forever).
However, if (like me) you have a hard time scraping up a grand to drop on a grinder, the Grizzley is a nice place to start out. I have used mine for a year and it has performed well. Got me through my first thirty knives before i blew my tax return on a Wilton. I still use the grizzley. It's nice because you can do flat grinding and hollow grinding with no changeover at all.
Good Luck,
Ed
 
Larry,
welcome to the forums. I have been making knives for 7 years and used the kalamazoo for the first four years. It was the one you see in alot of catalages for about $319. It was a good machine to learn on. 2x42 belts aren't quite as expensive as the 2x72 belts on the big machines, either. It is good for flat grinding, but not hollow(round wheel) grinding. You could always buy a few good files....
smile.gif

If I can help, let me know

Bob Bizzell
2000 MKA SHOW
"BEST DAMASCUS" WINNER!!
biggrin.gif
 
Hi Larry
Welcome to the forums!
I am a new maker and learned a LOT of stuff about equipment and making knives with and without it
smile.gif

I started with Sears 4x36. I can bring it to a dead stop with only moderate pressure and a piece of wood.
I added a 1x30 Delta for about a hundred dollars and really liked it until around the third knife. I was WAY better than the Sears but still really slow, plus the belts heat up if you try to take much material off.
Then a couple months ago I bought the Grizzly. THAT was a nightmare, but it is now complete with a tuned wheel. I cannot begin to tell you the difference. It is like crawling blindfolded and then riding in a fighter jet
smile.gif
MAN, what a difference! I actually enjoy profiling and sanding and all the pieces of making my simple knives.
The Grizzly ended up being frustrating until Grizzly got their act together. Now it is a DREAM to use. I had to replace the dust collector in my woodshop- If you put on a 60 grit belt and lean on it a little the sky clouds up [well, alright, but almost!]. I did have to replace the old dust collector due to the sheer volume increase.
Do yourself a favor and spend the money for the Grizzly or better. It allows me to enjoy every step, and concentrate on the piece being worked instead of what the dang motor/belt/wheels are doing!

My newbie opinion for whatever it is worth for you.

Good Luck and happy grinding!

Dave Evans
Tenino, WA
 
Larry
I built my first grinder cost me about $400 and 3 months of work.
I now have a grizzly. I have had it about 6 months and have had no problems.I like being able to use the 72 inch belts as the variety is much greater than 30 42 48 or what have you.A good wheel 8 or 10 inch is going to cost you 150 to 200 dollars alone.funny thing is I had learned to do a fairly good convex grind on my homebuilt and then had to learn the grizzly all over again.The best thing is practice practice practice.
If I can help with anything email me
Take Care
TJ Smith

[This message has been edited by TJ Smith (edited 08-02-2000).]
 
Hey Larry - if you're a cheap newbie like me, your options are limited. I have a delta that I got at home depot (I bought the floor model for $100) with a 4x36 belt. The platen isn't that flat, it's a bit wide (very hard to get a clean, straight plunge cut), you can't hollow-grind with it, and you constantly have to adjust it so the belt doesn't go flying off... BUT, it's been a great way to get started making knives, and will serve you well in your shop even after you upgrade to a better model. There's no need to spend $1000 on your first grinder unless you really expect to make a big commitment to knife-making or you simply have lots of disposable income.

[This message has been edited by Wulf (edited 08-02-2000).]
 
I started out with files, then went to the Craftsman 4x36. I still use that one, with a few modifications, for many applications. The disk grinder on the side cannot be underestimated. It's useful for a million things, from profiling to truing up flats.
I got the Grizzly, and I love that machine to death. It's my first piece of professional equipment, and it acts like it. I had to do just a little bit of adjusting here and there to get it running a bit smoother, but it worked well right out of the box. I still need to replace the platen on it, though. Those things are NEVER flat, but that's not a tough operation. I didn't have any of the quality control issues I hear so much about, so I guess I lucked out. They seem to be a good company, though, and respond well to feedback. I found that most of the modifications that were suggested to me had already been done on the newer model that I have.
Hope this helps.

------------------
Oz

"Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken!"
http://www.freespeech.org/oz/
 
Howdy There Larry......!
Just thought I would throw my two cents worth in. I started making knives with files and then went to a 4x36 sears, as one of the other fellows said you can stop it if you lean on it. I now use it for flat grinding handle slabs. My suggestion is to spend a little more bucks and get yourself a good 2x72 grinder to begin with. There is so much difference in using a good grinder over the use of a weaker one. You can build your own of you are mechancially so, but purchasing one is alot easier. I have two 2x72 that were built by a local machinist that has been a knifemaker for thirty years and they are great. There is a world of difference in them than the cheaper models. I paid $600 each for them, which I think is very reasonable, they are balanced and have no vibrations in them at all. So my advice is to spend the extra bucks and get someting that will give you results to begin with and not waste your money and time on something cheaper that you will reget later. Also, good luck and be careful, this is a dangerous hobby. Welcome to the knife making world.

"Possum"
 
Hi
I have a higher dollar grinder
and a grizzly i can hollow grind
and flat grind just as well on
the grizzly as i can any other grinder
it all comes down to the person doing the grinding,I have had the grizzly about 6 months and have had no trouble,I had
no trouble when i ordered it everyting was there.
I one thing on the grizzly grinder that I like is you can run your tracking arm up to 80 inches,,it comes with a 8 inch contact wheel
tht leaves room for larger or smaller contact wheel for special work,for the money
you can't beat the grizzly
allen blade has a videos where he does all his hollow grinding and flat grinding
on the grizzly.and he hollow grounds a katana
sword on the grizzly,now that is some grinding.
 
Originally posted by hh:
Gentlemen,
I love to hear you guys talk about knives. I think I've caught this disease. I been practicing with some scrap aluminum, cooper, brass, wood, etc. and I think I want to take a deeper plunge, but I would like to pick your brains on an inexpensive belt grinder. (Finances are tight)The material I have been practicing with didn't require much more than the wood working tools I have on hand. I've seen the Grizzly for $300. Are there other? I thank you in advance.

Larry O
Click to expand...

 
Bob Bizzell, congratulations on the MKA award. Got any pictures????

------------------
Sola Fide
 
I'm really suprised that no one mentioned the Coote grinder. It comes sans motor and pullys but it is a pro grinder for little bucks. Love mine, worked great out of the box.
Later, Lynn
 
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