Pro-Cut/Craftsman Wet grinder build.

[Fred.Rowe]

There has been a lot of discussion about the advantages of grinding edges "Wet" as well as grinding bevels after heat treat. I've gotten into making some kitchen knives, that are on the thin side and therefor require grinding after heat treating.
I've had both of these grinders pictured in the video since I started making knives. The Pro-Cut VS was purchased in 98, the Craftsman 6 x 48 is a left over from my days as a cabinet maker.

The Craftsman base was stabilized with the addition of a support for the 5/8 inch shaft that used to carry the belt. The Craftsman is cast steel and the Pro-Cut was mounted by drilling and tapping this base. The 1 1/2 hp DC motor along with the control was mounted on the Craftsman base as well so everything moves in unison. The blue paint job was the result of left over cans from a previous project.

We just finished this project and have only had a short time to test it out. I sharpened all the W2 kitchen knives in the house and believe the effort was well worth while.

Happy grinding, Fred

[video]https://youtu.be/FCfVLwJCd-I[/video]

 

[Lu1967]

Thanks for sharing.Fred have you settled on which belts you'll use to sharpen wet? Lu.

 

[Fred.Rowe]

Thanks for sharing.Fred have you settled on which belts you'll use to sharpen wet? Lu.

I'll contact James at Pop's knife supply and get his input before I choose. Jim knows his belts. I figure if I get the right ones for this setup they will last a long time seeing as how they are in the higher grit range.
I'll post what I find out and anyone with personal information on this selection please post your recommendations..

Fred

 

[Brock Cutlery]

You have to love the innovation Fred. Very nice.
I've thought about a mod for my esteem grinder to this end. Two challenges I think are:
1. Figuring out an angle bracket system so you can keep a consistent angle, and also be able to adjust to different angles. Either a work rest or a bar and clamp system where the knife clamp allows you to swing side to side evenly.
2. The belt splice to me seems like it might cause some grief. I know some splices are better than others, but are any good enough that they won't cause any bump as they go around?

It sure would be nice for tooling if all grinders met the same specifications. They are mostly all the same general layout, but the arm and other variables make too much of the tooling unique to each grinder style.

 

[Lu1967]

Hey Fred the problem is finding higher grit belts for wet grinding. I know Trizact makes them. Maybe Pops could look into it, I'd be interested. Thanks Lu.

 

[Britt_Askew]

I hope to do something like this soon too, thanks for posting the video. I dont know much about misters.... it is 2 lines coming from it, one to the fluid but what does the other mister line go to ? do you recycle the fluid?

 

[Lu1967]

The second line to my mister goes to my air compressor. No recycle.I love mine I haven't burned an edge or tip since.Good Luck. Lu.

 

[jdm61]

Cool setup, Fred. Let us know what you find out about the belts because ones that are truly waterproof seem to a bit more scarce in the finer grits.