KOWS blade grinder attachment, platen mod

REK Knives

REK Knives

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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Just got mine in and noticed there is about 1/16" gap between the belt and the paten. While I can't get tempered glass this thin, I can make some hardened steel plates that can be attached. Anyone else done this or something similar? A convex grind is great, but a flat ground edge is needed sometimes and this would let me do it...

i-VG4BbnH-X2.jpg
 
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razor-edge-knives said:
Just got mine in and noticed there is about 1/16" gap between the belt and the paten. While I can't get tempered glass this thin, I can make some hardened steel plates that can be attached. Anyone else done this or something similar? A convex grind is great, but a flat ground edge is needed sometimes and this would let me do it...
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Personally haven't seen the need... but I use the platen mainly to reshape a blade, repair a tip, etc. It doesn't take much pressure for the belt to contact the platen (unlike what you may be used to on a regular belt system). Having the two top pulleys close together, and sharpening close to the lower one, creates a pretty flat grind IMO.

Be careful adding anything that might add "drag" if you plan on using a leather belt..., and keep the speed up a bit if you do. (Rumor is it's one reason WorkSharp discontinued the leather belt... at slow speed, it could burn out the motor).
 
cbwx34 said:
Personally haven't seen the need... but I use the platen mainly to reshape a blade, repair a tip, etc. It doesn't take much pressure for the belt to contact the platen (unlike what you may be used to on a regular belt system). Having the two top pulleys close together, and sharpening close to the lower one, creates a pretty flat grind IMO.

Be careful adding anything that might add "drag" if you plan on using a leather belt..., and keep the speed up a bit if you do. (Rumor is it's one reason WorkSharp discontinued the leather belt... at slow speed, it could burn out the motor).
Click to expand...
Wow that's interesting man thank-you for the input, I always find your posts very valuable! Man I hope the leather belt works ok... I purchased one as that's how I generally remove the bur when machine sharpening. Although the other day I tested removing it with the edge pro ceramic honing rod and it worked perfect (basically like the sharpmaker would)
 
cbwx34 said:
Personally haven't seen the need... but I use the platen mainly to reshape a blade, repair a tip, etc. It doesn't take much pressure for the belt to contact the platen (unlike what you may be used to on a regular belt system). Having the two top pulleys close together, and sharpening close to the lower one, creates a pretty flat grind IMO.

Be careful adding anything that might add "drag" if you plan on using a leather belt..., and keep the speed up a bit if you do. (Rumor is it's one reason WorkSharp discontinued the leather belt... at slow speed, it could burn out the motor).
Click to expand...
I actually called Darex, the maker of the Work Sharp, yesterday, because I was having some trouble getting good results on an M4 Manix 2 while using the WSKO + blade grinder. In the course of our long conversation (their tech. support is superb), Kevin, who I usually speak to in their customer service department, advised me to keep the motor running on a (relatively?) high speed (or at least not on a low speed) while using the blade grinding attachment because the extra strain on the motor requires that the fan be working at full to keep the motor from burning up.
 
Sharperthansticks said:
I actually called Darex, the maker of the Work Sharp, yesterday, because I was having some trouble getting good results on an M4 Manix 2 while using the WSKO + blade grinder. In the course of our long conversation (their tech. support is superb), Kevin, who I usually speak to in their customer service department, advised me to keep the motor running on a (relatively?) high speed (or at least not on a low speed) while using the blade grinding attachment because the extra strain on the motor requires that the fan be working at full to keep the motor from burning up.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the input... Sounds like they need to redesign this thing .. The variable (slow) speed was one reason I bought it.
 
I've run the linen belt and fine belts on low speed for the final deburring passes and never had a problem... Continuosly on slow speed may overheat it, but I think you'll find that other than some deburring, you won't find much use for it running that slow... my .02 anyway. (Medium speed I've run quite a bit... never had a problem).
 
Sharperthansticks said:
I actually called Darex, the maker of the Work Sharp, yesterday, because I was having some trouble getting good results on an M4 Manix 2 while using the WSKO + blade grinder. In the course of our long conversation (their tech. support is superb), Kevin, who I usually speak to in their customer service department, advised me to keep the motor running on a (relatively?) high speed (or at least not on a low speed) while using the blade grinding attachment because the extra strain on the motor requires that the fan be working at full to keep the motor from burning up.
Click to expand...

Absolutely right on the low speed burnout - it happened to me. They replaced it no hassle but also made it clear that they only do so once per customer after they warned me that running it too long at too low a speed overheats it.
 
Some screen protectors for phones are glass i wonder if it could be worked to fit.
 
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