Newbie Tool Question

F

FetusEater

Joined
Jun 6, 2011
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Hello, Im new to posting here, but a evil lurker for some time. To make a long story short, Ill have some money for sears around christmas time, I have been wanting to make knives for some time. Ive used a wheel grinder before just messing around, but it seems that the tool of choice is the belt grinder. So, what say ye to using one like this http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00922500000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1? I know its not the fancy custom shop versions, but would it work for a few years till I can show the Wife some progress and continued interest? And if not, Im open to suggestion. Any help is great, thank you.
FE
 
Usually, people start with the craftsman 2x42. the belts are cheap, and the width is good becuase, when you upgrade to the 2x72, which is the usual grinder for knifemakers. however, the 2x42 has kept a lot of people moving metal even if they can't afford a 2x72. the 6 inch would be hard to control and is meant for wood working.
good luck, and have a great time.
 
I use a 6 x 48 grinder as the last step on my blades to true them up. Also very handy for tapered tang truing. Two features are needed for one of these to be really beneficial. Power, as in at least a 1 horse motor, and a cast iron machined deck. Not a sheet steel deck as pictured. IMHO, such a sander as I described, can be very useful later on for flattening grip slabs and flattening tangs. I would not be without one. Early on, I ground blades on mine. They work well enough for small blades, but they are not aggresive enough for large work. Mine is an ancient Sears that I had to supply the 1 horse motor for. All in all, I find mine indespensable, but if you buy one, buy a good one. Not the one you are looking at.
 
Thank you for the replies. How much can be done on the 2x42? When I toyed with knife making before I used a wheel grinder and it can cut a shape into the steel with ease. Can the same be done to get the basic shape on a belt grinder? How about shaping handle scales? And how much do you use a hand file?
 
If you have a 2x42, then you can make a knife very easily. it is usually recommended as the stepping stone between files and a 2x72 if the person does not have a lot of money. I assume you are talking about an angle grinder, and, if so, then you have the best (cheap) tool for making the basic shape, or profiling. after you get the rough outline with the angle grinder, you go to the belt grinder and clean it up. belt grinders are very good at shaping handle scales, and, if i don't miss my guess, even started out as woodworking tools. you can get away without using a hand file, period. you may end up using one for a bit of draw filing to clean up your bevels, but, other than that, they are pretty much relegated to handle duty for detail work.
 
The Sears 2X42 runs very fast and it is easy to burn handle material. I use my 2X42 to grind the bevels with 60 or 80 grit belts. Because I'm not all that coordinated I find that when I try to go to finer belts to clean up after the 80 grit belt I can't do it. I have no doubt there are others who do not have the same problems as I do. Most of the handle shaping I do is by hand for fear of burning the material on the grinder.

A good belt grinder can help you do a lot of things but it can't grind out the inside of a finger notch, or do some file-work decoration on the spine of the blade. I can conceive of knife designs made for a particular grinder to minimize hand work, but they would have quite simple lines.

- Paul Meske
 
I started with the Craftsman 2x42 because 2" wide belts are the standard for knife grinding, and because the grinder was very inexpensive and I wanted to make sure I would stick with knife making before investing real money. It has lots of limitations and is not ideal, but it beats filing bevels by hand and will definitely get you started. I still use mine for some tasks, although it seems to be on its last leg after just a couple of years of moderate use...
 
I started with the HF 1 x 30 because I'm short on space and wasn't willing to invest a lot in a tool that I wasn't sure I'd use much. As it turns out, I use it a lot. Ironically, if I'd gotten a bigger, heavier belt grinder I wouldn't be able to use it as much. One reason I use the 1 x 30 so much is I can take it outside and not fill the garage with dust that collects on EVERYTHING. That dust has a nasty side effect... turns my wife into a nagging banshee.

But by taking the sander outside I avoid that. I couldn't take the 2 x 72 outside.

I can take the 4 x 36 outside, but I find it is less useful than the 1 x 30 for most knife making projects.

You need to think about things like this if you plan to make knifes in your garage. The dust can be a REAL problem.

Think you could haul that 6 x 36 outside every time you wanted to sand a pile of wood? Better stock up on back pain pills.
 
tryippey,

I don't see a need to haul grinders outside. That certainly is not one of the requirements that I place on my grinders. I use sensible ventilation, vacuuming, and breathing devices to keep it reasonable.

Mike L.
 
Yes, the sears 2 x 42 is definitely better than trying to hand file a piece of raw stock 01 steel. Look at trugrit.com for available belts. I encourage you to purchase that belt sander. Even if you don't end up pursuing knife making, that belt grinder will be useful to you.

Mike >.
 
Everything on my site and many more was made with a 2x42. I'm am currently in the process of rebuilding it to accept 2x72 belts because there are way more high quality belts available in that size, and they can actually come out cheaper than 2x42 belts.

You will want to add a surface to the platen that is actually flat, smooth and hard (fireplace glass, hardened tool steel, ceramic tile, there are several ways to skin that cat.) Do NOT even bother with the belts at Sears, order some belts from Tru-Grit or Supergrit. They are the about the same price and will last much longer.
 
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