Looking to get back into making need a little advice.

Fletch Helical

Fletch Helical

Joined
Sep 29, 2009
Messages
1,614
So I've been out of the making game for years. I'm having a nagging urge to start grinding again. I've made some knives with a combination of a 2x42 and files, sandpaper, and a lot of elbow grease. Time has become a bit more of a premium and I'm looking to dive right back in and pick up a 2x72 to make my life easier and accomplish a bit more in the allotted time I have. I'm pretty convinced I'm going to go with the Pheer and getting the small wheel attachment as well. What I'm curious on is getting the round wheel attachment. I've never hollow ground before and honestly don't see myself attempting it all that much in the near future. Plus I prefer flat grinds on most knives. I'm a hobbyist and don't see myself taking orders for specific style knives anytime in the foreseeable future.

That said, getting it as a package on my initial order offers me more bang for my buck. It's basically cheaper to order everything in one shot, plus I'm not having to pay for double shipping if I got it later. Having never used a round wheel would I have much use for one outside of hollow grinding blades?
 
I would say to get it for a few reasons
-cost effective up front with shipping and packaged cost
-if you can get your tool rest to sit at the middle of the round wheel, it seems to be a faster way of hogging profiles with a low grit belt. I have a 10" wheel but my tool rest sits lower than the center of the wheel, so don't use it much for profiling
-if you have a radius in your handle that matches the wheel it is helpful for doing the spine
-if your handle is tall enough you can hog out material from the middle to lighten it or to prepare it for tapered tang
-there is a technique for flat grinding where you remove bulk material with the round wheel first. There are some Nick Wheeler videos that show this approach.
-you may want to try hollow grinding
 
I’ll second the above comments and add another benefit is for shaping Coke bottle style handles or any handle that has a radius really. I don’t do hollow grinds other than a few for fun but use a wheel (10” and 6”) a lot for handle shaping. Also for shaping knife profiles that have a gentle curve like clips or trailing points the wheel gives a better result.
 
what kind of hollow grinds will you be wanting to do? for hunting knives i would go with a 10". for double edged fighters i would suggest a 4". if i could only have one i would take the flat platen over a wheel.
 
I thought he said he was not planning on doing hallow grinds? Either way I would go with a 10” wheel for hogging profiles. My first grinder was an 8” wheel and I love it but I was doing deep hallow grinds. Now I’m using a 12” for plasma cut blade clean up and a 18” wheel is just around the corner for being built. I also loved using rubber contact wheels for shaping handle material. I used the wheel for everything except flat grinding. It’s a much nicer grinding experience to grind with the a hard platten.
 
john april said:
what kind of hollow grinds will you be wanting to do? for hunting knives i would go with a 10". for double edged fighters i would suggest a 4". if i could only have one i would take the flat platen over a wheel.
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At the moment and the near future I'm really not planning on doing any hollow grinds but getting an 8 or 10 inch wheel now saves me some money both on shipping and it's cheaper to buy the flat platen/wheel combo up front versus add a wheel down the road. The grinder regardless will come with a flat platen and a work rest. I'm also planning on getting a small wheel attachment and set of wheels for doing finger grooves, handles, and most other things I might otherwise need to grab a file for.

My option(s) basically are (remember small wheel attachment and small wheels I'm getting regardless):

1. Grinder with flat platen
2. Grinder with platen and 8" wheel
3. Grinder with platen and 10" wheel.

So upfront the least expensive option is just the flat platen option. Likely all I'll need for quite a while as I'm likely not pumping out a lot of knives monthly. The difference of adding am 8 or 10" wheel bumps my initial cost up by a few hundred. But is cheaper to get now, than later. The rub is really the wheel (and the size I've read the preferences vary some say they use almost exclusively an 8 others only a 10.

So for at least a while do I need an 8 or 10" wheel? Absolutely not. But it's cheaper to buy it now as a package and lump it in with the shipping of the grinder and the cost of the wheel is a bit cheaper to buy it with the grinder than to do it down the road. If i really never use it, it's basically a waste of money. If I decide I need it down the road I pay a little more of a premium to get it then.
 
Welcome back! I remember your bowie WIP back when I was first lurking around Shop Talk. At least I think it was you.
Anyway I use both a flat platen and 10" contact wheel on pretty much every knife I make. You won't regret having both in my opinion.
 
I’ve got a 454 and use both the flat platen and wheel. The guys above are correct, it will make life much easier in the long run and you’ll end up buying it later anyway.
 
I have never hollow ground a knife, but I use a 8" wheel on every knife I make. If I had the choice between an 8 or 10 inch, I'd probably grab the 10. They are worth their weight in gold even if you just use it for profile clean up.
 
Robert Erickson said:
Welcome back! I remember your bowie WIP back when I was first lurking around Shop Talk. At least I think it was you.
Anyway I use both a flat platen and 10" contact wheel on pretty much every knife I make. You won't regret having both in my opinion.
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Hi Robert, yeah that was me. I apparently can't stay away from this hobby. I recently went through all the handle material I've had from when i was active in the game. It's safe to say even making 2 knives a month i won't need to buy any more for at least the next 2-3 years lol.
 
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