Is it me or the steel?

Sando

Sando

Knife Maker
Joined
Jul 4, 2002
Messages
1,148
Do any of you find one steel more difficult to grind clean bevels than another?

This is now the second longish knife I've struggled with recently. Both were about 8" bowies with plain flat grinds. Using grits up to 120, everything was fine, but as I went to the finer belts I started loosing the grind lines, creating divots. ... generally making a mess of things.

This morning I realized these were both AEB-L blades. I've done blades this size in 1075, ATS-34, and even S30V with great results.

So is it me or is this steel more challenging?

OK, we know I'm the problem. I'm just attempting to blame-shift. But maybe some of you have had a similar issue?
 
Higher alloy steels or steels with more carbide can be harder to finish, for example, z max is awful. so yes it could be the steel, however, I don't consider AEB-L hard to finish
 
Thanks Skiller1nc, however ...

I wasn't referring to how hard it is to finish. Rather how hard it is to keep the grind lines pure.
 
Definitely could be the steel, but personally I don't have those problems with AEB-L. It's actually by far my favorite steel to work. I just finished up a 7" chef in AEB-L and it went perfectly, but now I'm working on a 9" damasteel chef that has fought and continues to fight me through the entire process. I think everyone is going to have their own preferences of steels that work best with their particular skillset.
 
I had an awful time with divots until I switched to structured abrasives for higher grits. It was belt bump...
 
Yeah, I found aebl to grind different than the higher alloy steels. Not like it was harder or easier, just felt different, almost grabby.
 
a divot or facet (like on a diamond) means you are not using the same angle as last time, making a new flat surface in a different plane. try a bubble jig, it will teach you to lock your wrist at the same angle. there are tutorials on youtube showing how its used. i dont think its the steel.
 
If you are getting divots, check to make sure your platen is clean and has not build ups or is worn.

If that is not the cause, chances are it is your technique.
 
Just a thought but are you grinding pre HT or post HT? AEB-L has a reputation of and is bendy prior to HT. It might be your divoting it without realizing it by trying to keep it straight. I've gone to grinding all AEB-L blades post HT.
 
Michael Black said:
Definitely could be the steel, but personally I don't have those problems with AEB-L. It's actually by far my favorite steel to work. I just finished up a 7" chef in AEB-L and it went perfectly, but now I'm working on a 9" damasteel chef that has fought and continues to fight me through the entire process. I think everyone is going to have their own preferences of steels that work best with their particular skillset.
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Glad to know I'm not the only one that fights the odd blade!

john april said:
a divot or facet (like on a diamond) means you are not using the same angle as last time, making a new flat surface in a different plane. try a bubble jig, it will teach you to lock your wrist at the same angle. there are tutorials on youtube showing how its used. i dont think its the steel.
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John, actually I do use the famous bubble jig. Love the thing. It's those darned finer grits.

TILLER said:
Yeah, I found aebl to grind different than the higher alloy steels. Not like it was harder or easier, just felt different, almost grabby.
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Hmmm, grabby? Maybe that's it. I've reset the grinds at 120 (it's a smaller knife now) and I'll try running the fine grit much slower and watch for that grabby thing.


AVigil said:
If you are getting divots, check to make sure your platen is clean and has not build ups or is worn.

If that is not the cause, chances are it is your technique.
Click to expand...
! Now that you mentioned it, I used my glass platen to start. For no particular reason, I had the old metal platen on for the finishing.


Dang guys. Thanks for all the clues!!
 
Slow your belt speed way down and stick a piece of leather or felt to the platen to soften things up a bit.

Hoss
 
Thanks Hoss and Gene.

A fresh belt, really slow and some graphite backing did the trick! Happy days.
 
I grind a bit of AEB-L, and it REALLY likes to curve away from the side I'm grinding. I've taken to inching my way up, swapping sides as I go vs. getting a FFG on one side before swapping to the other, which was my old practice. It took quite awhile before I was confident breaking my stance back and forth repeatedly, but then it was ok. Also yeah, belt bump. :-P
 
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