Re-grinds: I don't get it.

hank_rearden

hank_rearden

Joined
Jun 7, 2002
Messages
3,411
first, i don't want the spider to disappear. second, i don't want to throw away the most valuable part of the knife (the steel.) now i don't think i'm that dumb. of course there are advantages to regrinds, mainly in push-cutting performance. as they say, only the first 0.1mm of blade does the cutting. the rest is just friction. but one can make a piece of paper cut itself by pushing it against a stationary blade without the need for regrinding. i notice a lot of regrinds by blade-with-a-hole guys, mainly involving paras and millies. granted both these knives are kinda thick right at the edge, i don't think it's a disadvantage. i think it's a sound design. if you hate that thick edge, then convex it. or give it two micro-bevels. i put in an 8 degree and then a 15 degree on each side of my millie, and it can push cut paper without a touch-up even after more than a month of EDC.
 
Reducing friction makes for more efficient slicing. A thinner, reground blade gives you less friction. I'm not sure you would actually notice as much of a difference in push cutting as you would in slicing tougher media. I don't do so much of that that I feel a tremendous need for regrinds, but it is nice to have a thin blade that can glide through cutting media rather than an overly thick one that makes you power through it.
 
Guys love their toys, and love to play with them, carry them, use them, show them to strangers on the internet, and do all kinds of mods like stonewashing, regrinds, new scales and so forth. Regrinding is just part of the fun of being a knife freak. We make up all manner of excuses why we do this stuff and why the mod makes the knife "better", but it all boils down to fun.
 
I tend to agree about the regrinds. Not to hijack your thread, but I'm guessing since your handle is hank_rearden you've read "Atlas Shrugged". I read the book not too long ago and it was one of the more frightening things I've come across, mostly because I see so much of it happening right now. I teach high school literature and I have some of my students reading it. Hopefully some of them will get something out of it!
 
(mechanical advantage of wedge) = (length of wedge)/(width of wedge) and people aren't regrinding knives to cut paper better :)
 
I have reground a couple of knives, but mostly I regrind my machetes. Basically, I give them a primary grind and keep the original edge. Cutting ability goes up some, in the case of my barong it nearly doubled in terms of single chop penetration. However, the biggest advantage for me is decreased sharpening time. I can sharpen it by hand now in a couple of minutes where it used to take 5 minutes or even longer with a belt sander. I have noticed no loss of durability.

I am getting ready to regrind my Delica, and reground a Buck Scoutlite years ago. Both had/have reached the point that they just won't cut binding material anymore. The Delica is over 0.04" thick behind the edge. I've made knives that aren't that thick at the spine. It's really about sharpening time for me, but when they get that thick behind the edge, some metal has to go. I will say the look pretty fugly when I do it.
 
some guys just like to have fun and try new stuff. its about the journey brother. not everything is a math chart.
 
powernoodle said:
Guys love their toys, and love to play with them, carry them, use them, show them to strangers on the internet, and do all kinds of mods like stonewashing, regrinds, new scales and so forth. Regrinding is just part of the fun of being a knife freak. We make up all manner of excuses why we do this stuff and why the mod makes the knife "better", but it all boils down to fun.
Click to expand...

Totally agree with you, and I'd regrind all my hollow grind to flat grind
 
kreole said:
(mechanical advantage of wedge) = (length of wedge)/(width of wedge) and people aren't regrinding knives to cut paper better :)
Click to expand...

Agreed. I had one of Tom Krein's knives and that sucker was ground thin. It performed every cutting task like a laser. I mean you think a Para military glides through material, Tom's was even easier. I can't even imagine how nicely Phil Wilson's blades would cut. I like thinly ground knives for really good performance. You do however decrease lateral strength ( if I am correct ) because there isn't as much metal there now.
 
Yeah, the spyder is gone. However, this delica undoubtledly slices and cuts much better that the original hollow sabre grind. And since it's ZDP-189, in holds its zero convex wonderfully. Simple stropping keeps it incredibly sharp. This was purchased directly from Ban, an excellent BF maker, who did the grind. I have enjoyed this blade for some time now, and after owning a 3rd gen delica with a hollow sabre grind, and a 4th gen with FFG, there is no comparison to which is the best knife. I couldn't say I would have sent it off to have it done, but the chance was there, the work was done, so it was an excellent opportunity to answer for myself, the same question you have asked here.

1F25C3BB-3FF8-4DEE-9E82-E29A9388A918-5676-0000018D361A79A3.jpg
 
jstn said:
I tend to agree about the regrinds. Not to hijack your thread, but I'm guessing since your handle is hank_rearden you've read "Atlas Shrugged". I read the book not too long ago and it was one of the more frightening things I've come across, mostly because I see so much of it happening right now. I teach high school literature and I have some of my students reading it. Hopefully some of them will get something out of it!
Click to expand...
had a short love affair with ayn rand books roundabout the year i joined BF. just gives one a refreshing perspective. and no, i don't think our macro- and social outlook is approaching what have there. true, we're getting less freedom as time passes but markets are still free, choices still wide. one can still vote using one's feet.
 
kreole said:
(mechanical advantage of wedge) = (length of wedge)/(width of wedge) and people aren't regrinding knives to cut paper better :)
Click to expand...

As a man wiser than myself says: It doesn't need to be big, just sharp. Why deal with extra friction?
 
KrisOK said:
How does a regrind like that effect resale value?
Click to expand...

Depends on who does it. I would suspect Tom Krein's regrinds generally can add some value. If you were to have a Chris Reeves knife reground by Tom they could be worth a decent amount more depending on if someone really wants one. That is because Chris Reeve asked Tom now to regrind his blades. And because Tom is a stand up guy, he said he wouldn't.
 
powernoodle said:
Guys love their toys, and love to play with them, carry them, use them, show them to strangers on the internet, and do all kinds of mods like stonewashing, regrinds, new scales and so forth. Regrinding is just part of the fun of being a knife freak. We make up all manner of excuses why we do this stuff and why the mod makes the knife "better", but it all boils down to fun.
Click to expand...

Well said
 
powernoodle said:
Guys love their toys, and love to play with them, carry them, use them, show them to strangers on the internet, and do all kinds of mods like stonewashing, regrinds, new scales and so forth. Regrinding is just part of the fun of being a knife freak. We make up all manner of excuses why we do this stuff and why the mod makes the knife "better", but it all boils down to fun.
Click to expand...

Agreed. 90% of all the mods I've done on my blades are purely for the fun and expeirience.
 
It's not just about friction reduction--the amount of "work" (in the physics sense) that must be done to displace the blade volume as it passes through the cutting medium is reduced as well. That means more of your energy is actually going into passing the blade through the medium rather than being diverted into having to push that material away from the blade as it makes that journey from point A to point B. Think fluid dynamics.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top