More life out of higher grit belts?

Chiro75

Chiro75

Joined
Feb 4, 1999
Messages
5,786
When I grind I currently go like this:
Profile with 36 grit 3M AO
Plunge & main blade grind with 80 grit AO (3M)
120 grit AO (3M)
220 grit AO (Klingspor and I really work on the plunge area because of the flexible belt)
400 AO (Klingspor)

I don't get much life out of my 220 or 400 belts. Should I jump to something like a Trizact at 220, or maybe at 400? Also, I think I want to get some even finer belts so I reduce even more hand sanding work. If I blow through 600 and 800 as fast as I do 400, I won't get much at all out of them. Again, should I upgrade to Trizact or something like that, or go the alternate route and get the cheapest AO's I can get and just use them for 30 seconds a pop then trash them? Or is there another better belt that would do a good job?
 
Chiro, I quit using Trizact when the Norax came out. I got a few from Tru-Grit to experiment with and became an immediate convert. The life of the Norax belts is quite phenomenal, IMHO, especially 220 grit and higher. They are soft enough to do your plunges, but not as soft as the "J" flex belts you are using. I would be hard pressed to consider going back to something else unless it was clearly superior. They are expensive, but worth every penny. I still keep a few 320/400 grit "J" flex Klingspor and Hermes belts around for certain types of work, but do not use them often.
 
I've always equated Norax with "hoggers" for low grit use. Are they ceramic, or what's the deal? I can probably do about a dozen more knives (well, my sized knievs), but when I start needing new belts I'd just as soon have my research done so I can order straight away. You like Tru-Grit better than Pop's for pricing and stuff?
 
The Norax are what Norton calls "engineered" belts. The grit is aligned on the belt in a diagonal pattern where the rows are clearly discernible. For a long time the Norax belts only went as large as 150 grit, but I think I recently saw a 100 or 80 grit version on the Tru-Grit site. Most of the Norax belts are in the medium to fine category, e.g. - 150, 220, 320, 400, 800 and 1200.

I like Pop's, but Jim does not carry Norton. I use 3M and Norton almost exclusively now so I get them from Tru-Grit, who carries both, just for the sake of one-stop shopping.
 
I'm just beginning, but I find that the 60 grit 3M 977 (Regaloy Ceramic) stuff works really great for my first grinding grit.
Then I use a 100 grit Al. Zirc. that came w/ the grinder to just even it out a little. Actually works and lasts really well.
Then 220 and 400. Might look into 6 or 800 grit next, also.
My 220 wears out pretty quick too. A couple of knives and it's fairly noticably smoother. I believe the 220 is also ceramic stuff, and works well, very flexible.
All from TruGrit. I got the 60 grit in a 6" wide by 48" belt, and just cut it into thirds, works fine. For plunge cuts I just use a factory edge on one side.
I also have Norax in 36 grit. A little too chunky for me. Takes a bit of "breaking in" where a lot of blue stuff flies off the belt, but then it really bites. I re-edged my old Kukri today with it in no time. Really rough stuff though. Hacks up an edge pretty good.

_z
 
Chiro, try some of the trizact "gator" belts from tru grit. They last an incredibly long time and give smooth even performance. Currently I'm going from 36 grit 967 to 120 977 to 280 gator to 400 gator. Seems to work pretty good.
Can't say enough good things about the gator belts.
Ed
 
Now here is a good tip, now matter what fine-grit belt you are using: Slow it down. Let those fine grits do their job.
 
On my 220 and especially the 400 grit Klingspors if I slow the belt down I get a huge jump when the butt splice runs under the blade. Clunk! Clunk! Clunk! Clunk! When I go with my highest speed it's barely noticeable. Also on the slow speeds the belt seems to want to grab the steel and it really shakes and shimmies all over the place, where it doesn't do that at higher speeds. What do you think is up with that?
 
That is another advantage of the Norax belts - no bump from the butt splice! They are much thicker and run smooth and even.
 
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