Mini Griptilian Blade Modification (tip chop/grind)

amngwlvs · Feb 16, 2022

Hi all,

Hoping this is the right forum for this topic since it's more alteration than any sort of of making but if not, please feel free to point me in the right direction.

I've had a 556 Mini Griptilian for years now but after upgrading to a Ritter Mini Grip, a Bugout and then a Sebenza the original never gets carried. Inspired by seeing some of Transparent Knives Bugout reblades I'm wondering if it would be possible/what the best approach would be to remove a bit of the tip to make the standard drop point into more of a reverse tanto like the 940. Blade steel is 154CM. I don't have any specialty knife making tools or supplies but do have access to a bench grinder, disc/belt sander and a bunch of files etc at work. Photo below for reference to show how much/little I actually want to remove. Any advice would be much appreciated!

115Italian · Feb 17, 2022

Best advice I can give is to go slow. Mark what you want to remove. Take your time and make sure it’s evenly marked. Slowly remove metal. Gentle pressure. Constantly cool the blade. You don’t want to ruin the heat treat.

I’ve modified blade shapes with an angle grinder with a 120 grit flap disc and a dremmel with sanding drum. If you’ve never done something like this before practice on something first. A piece of scrap metal or something just to get the feel for whatever your grinding with.

amngwlvs · Feb 17, 2022

115Italian said:
Best advice I can give is to go slow. Mark what you want to remove. Take your time and make sure it’s evenly marked. Slowly remove metal. Gentle pressure. Constantly cool the blade. You don’t want to ruin the heat treat.

I’ve modified blade shapes with an angle grinder with a 120 grit flap disc and a dremmel with sanding drum. If you’ve never done something like this before practice on something first. A piece of scrap metal or something just to get the feel for whatever your grinding with.

Excellent advice, thanks for your input! I work at a sign shop so we've got plenty of scrap metal I could practice on. The heat treat was one of my main concerns so the plan would be frequent water dips to ensure the blade never got hotter than I was willing to hold in a bare hand.

The belt/disc sander we have here is similar to the below... would you recommend the disc portion as the easiest method - laying the blade flat on the platform should ensure that the spine stay perpendicular to the edge I would think? I was thinking that something like a 120 grit would be a good compromise of material removal and smooth finishing to start? Thanks again!

fishface5 · Feb 17, 2022

you want to prevent overheating the tip. My steps have been:
- dremel or bigger cut-off wheel, dipping blade very frequently in water, then
- belt sander, with frequent water dip, then
- finish manually with sandpaper

amngwlvs · Feb 18, 2022

fishface5 said:
you want to prevent overheating the tip. My steps have been:
- dremel or bigger cut-off wheel, dipping blade very frequently in water, then
- belt sander, with frequent water dip, then
- finish manually with sandpaper

Excellent, thanks for the advice! We've got a dremel here at work with cutting wheels so I'll probably use that to take off the majority of the material as suggested and finish up with the belt sander and sandpaper. Thanks again for the help!

fishface5 · Feb 18, 2022

Sure thing! I should add that the tip gets a lot hotter a lot quicker then the rest of the blade, so be careful!

amngwlvs · Feb 18, 2022

fishface5 said:
Sure thing! I should add that the tip gets a lot hotter a lot quicker then the rest of the blade, so be careful!

That makes sense so I'll make a mental note to be check it frequently during the process. Thanks again!

amngwlvs · Feb 22, 2022

Big thanks to

115Italian and

fishface5 for their advice! I opted to use a spare junk blade from a $9 Walmart knife that I had previously used for acid etch experiments to test cut and was pleased with the results! The mini Grip waits in the background for its impending circumcision.

Mr.Wizard · Feb 22, 2022

Is there a purpose in this?

amngwlvs · Feb 22, 2022

Mr.Wizard said:
Is there a purpose in this?

Beyond trying to have a little fun modifying a knife and rekindling the love I once had for it, no sir. I haven’t carried it in years after buying a Ritter Grip, Bugout and Sebenza I thought I’d do some tinkering.

115Italian · Feb 23, 2022

Can’t wait to see it finish. I love adding my own personal touch.

c7m2p3 · Feb 23, 2022

Very cool. Almost like turning a standard grip into one of the sheepsfoot models though this would have a much more useful tip. Looking forward to seeing the results.

sickpuppy1 · Feb 23, 2022

It’s similar to the reverse tanto they use on the 940 series, but like someone said, kinda sheeps foot also. The more I look at it the more I like it

sickpuppy1 · Feb 23, 2022

How did it go with tip heat? Wish I knew someone with a water jet…..

amngwlvs · Feb 23, 2022

Thanks again to everyone for the advice! I almost second guessed this one today but decided to give it a go after work and am very please with the results overall!

c7m2p3 said:
Very cool. Almost like turning a standard grip into one of the sheepsfoot models though this would have a much more useful tip. Looking forward to seeing the results.

sickpuppy1 said:
It’s similar to the reverse tanto they use on the 940 series, but like someone said, kinda sheeps foot also. The more I look at it the more I like it

The goal was sort of a combo between the sheepsfoot and 940 blades. I like the sheepsfoot models but not the thumb hole and the looks of the 940 have really grown on me lately but the mini felt just a touch too small for me when I checked it out in store. How useful the tip will be compared to the sheepsfoot, I don't know, since I've never handled one but can confirm the tip it certainly sharp to the touch!

sickpuppy1 said:
How did it go with tip heat? Wish I knew someone with a water jet…..

Tip heat seemed to be a non-issue really. If this is all you want to do, I don't think a water jet is needed. I used a $30 dremel, cut lightly for 5 seconds and sprayed with water with a squirt bottle. I'd check with a bare finger to confirm it hardly got warm let alone hot and repeated 10 or so times until it cut through and just used a belt sander with some intermittent water squirts to make sure all was smooth.

sickpuppy1 · Feb 23, 2022

I might try this with my edc mini grip. Use it for work everyday and this tip just makes sense to me. I have a couple of 550 style Griptilian's so this tip wouldn't be as easily damaged

amngwlvs · Feb 24, 2022

sickpuppy1 said:
I might try this with my edc mini grip. Use it for work everyday and this tip just makes sense to me. I have a couple of 550 style Griptilian's so this tip wouldn't be as easily damaged

It was definitely a fun project and something I think most people with a desire to tinker could pull off pretty easily. Sounds like you'd even have a back up or two if things go awry! If you do attempt it please post pics, I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to see them.