Making a bushcraft knife

many, many people have started with the HF sander. It will work if you know its limitations. You might get a better response in the makers forum. Good luck and have fun!
 
A better sander to start out with would be the Sears 2 x 42 model. The reason for this is it is 2 inches wide, and you can order belts that are made for metal working at supergrit.com. The biggest problem with htese type of sanders is you get what you pay for... they are high speed and you will have minimal control. Watch out knife making can be addictive. I use a KMG now and 69.00 won't even buy a tooling arm for it!
 
Like valcas said, a lot of people have gotten started on one of those. I did, and I still have mine, and I'm not easy on it either. You will have to buy your belts online though if you want different grits, I can only ever find 80 grit and HF.

Of course, if your really get into knife making, a good belt grinder will be a worthwhile investment, but for something that will get your feet wet without pissing off the boss, that one would be great!
 
+1 on a 2x42 from Sears or even a 1x42 over the HF 4x36.
more belt choices, and less contact area = less heat.
 
It's not my main grinder but I still use one of those Harbor Freight 1x30 grinders. You're better off getting a Sears 2x42
 
I have a Delta 1x42 and it's working fine for me. Hopefully going to build a KMG clone this summer but we'll see what the boss says (actually, she'll probably say it depends on my grades!)... Anyway, I picked one up on craigslist new for $50 and it's been nice to have. A lot of people have started with the HF 1x30 and its done them well. +1 for supergrit, good group of guys! One thing about the HF - if you do get addicted and move up to a nicer grinder you will sure appreciate it even more!
 
Hows the tracking and power on the Sears 2 x 42? Can you get to the edge of the platen or are you stuck with the belt in the middle like on the website?
 
Search Craigslist! Lots of good tools can be found if you look. I just picked up a grinder/sander myself on there.
 
Not that i am a maker, but i have made a few knifes and i found that the best way to start would be with hand files and something homemade to keep your angle. it is a lot cheaper so if you get bored of knife making your not out 200 bucks.
 
I'm putting the finishing touches on the handle of a bushcraft type blade using the HF 1x30 and the 80 grit belt it came with. I also did final profiling and ground the edge with the HF. Rough profiling was done with cut off wheels on a Dremel to score the steel, then snapping along the score in a vice. The steel is M2 and already hardened, so scoring and snapping worked faster than cutting all the way through. This is the third handle I've put on that particular blade, all with a couple hand saws and the HF 1x30. This ones a little crooked and has a tiny crack in the wood, but I'm not starting over now. When/if it completely fails, I'll worry about it then.
 
I 3d or 4th the recommendation to start with the Sears 2x42. It's a solid grinder, and you can get both 1" and 2" belts to run on it for a bit of flexibility.

I don't use the platen on mine, I go slack belt all the way, but then my knives have a very "primitive" look! ;-)

Andy
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top