Re-shaping blade?

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skippyW

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Jul 1, 2013
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I got the notion that I want to radically re-shape the blade on one of my knives. The blade is S30V. I know next to nothing about tempering, hardening, heat treating etc. I know overheating the blade should be avoided. How slow do I have to go? What is the maximum allowable temp to avoid damage? Should I let it air cool or dunk in water between grinds? Any advice appreciated.
 
bladsmth said:
From your comments, I would recommend you NOT do this.
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Still deciding. Don't want to trash a very nice knife. While I have always been a "jack of all trades, master of none" I usually land on my feet. Feel free to elaborate on your reasons.
 
You're opening up a can of worms. There are a bunch of reasons but foremost, if you have never ground a blade before then trying to learn as you go on a blade that's already ground leaves you no room for a learning curve. Also, that's going to be some tough steel to work with. But if you are set in doing it then do it with bare hands and dunk often. Go slow with fresh belts. Be careful around the thin parts of the blade because it can burn in a heartbeat.

I would recommend buying some 1084 from Aldo and getting your skills up first. What kind of grinder do you have?
 
S-30v is a great knife steel. It is terrible to work with. It will eat your belts. It will get hot which will ruin its heat treating, so after you have reground it, your taking the handle off, and sending it out again to get reheat treated. Ask if the do an anealing cycle first, this brings the whole blade to a steady rockwell of about 42 ish. (off top of my head). Then the real heat treat begins. You end up with a knife with 58 to 60 rockwell.
Then you replace the handle if you can, or replace handle.

don't wreak a good knife. Build the one you want.

Frank
 
I would grab a butter knife or steak knife and grind on that for a sec. Much softer I know, but it will give you some idea of what happens when the belt hits steel
 
Frank Barron said:
S-30v is a great knife steel. It is terrible to work with. It will eat your belts. It will get hot which will ruin its heat treating, so after you have reground it, your taking the handle off, and sending it out again to get reheat treated. Ask if the do an anealing cycle first, this brings the whole blade to a steady rockwell of about 42 ish. (off top of my head). Then the real heat treat begins. You end up with a knife with 58 to 60 rockwell.
Then you replace the handle if you can, or replace handle.

don't wreak a good knife. Build the one you want.

Frank
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Handle is no problem as it is a folder. What I think you are saying is that regardless of how I do it I will have to send it out for heat treating when I am done.
 
You could always send it to an experienced maker to do it. Something as small as a folder blade wouldn't cost much at all. It would then be up to the maker if he wanted to reheat treat it or not. It can usually be done without, and definitely be done if your not grinding on the edge much.

You also have to remember if you are re heat treating it, it will have to be finished again(satin, hand sanded, stonewashed ect)
 
I have re shaped two knives, and both times I thought afterward: "I should have just started from scratch. It would have been easier and I would have had exactly what I wanted rather than what I now have."

It can be done, but it's easier to make a new blade. What dimensions are the blade? I have some S35VN and I will send you a chunk for a new blade if your knife is 3/32" thick.
 
I am going to shelve this idea. The original blade is thick and after re-shaping it would need a re-ground bevel before putting an edge on it plus complicated heat treatment. Making a new blade (even out of old fashioned carbon steel) would require machining tools and skills beyond me in order to properly mate up with the original frame. The ergonomics of the original frame is what I really like about the knife. Maybe I'll look around for a more realistic project.

Thanks to all for input and advice.
 
Not a bad idea skippy.

On the other hand, I've reground a few blades. Staying out of the pivot area isn't really that hard. Tape it off and concentrate. It depends on how radical the changes are. If you want something really complex probably best to skip it. Something like thinning a ffg blade (even significantly) can be done by hand not endangering the ht.

Tell us which knife and what you want to do with it. If you don't like the blade, but love the handle, and can accept a modest change, I wouldn't give up so quickly.

I'd stay away from a grinder for a first project. I ruined a brand new knife (that I didn't like anyway, a Kershaw Blur), but have been successful since then.
 
Strigamort said:
Not a bad idea skippy.

On the other hand, I've reground a few blades. Staying out of the pivot area isn't really that hard. Tape it off and concentrate. It depends on how radical the changes are. If you want something really complex probably best to skip it. Something like thinning a ffg blade (even significantly) can be done by hand not endangering the ht.

Tell us which knife and what you want to do with it. If you don't like the blade, but love the handle, and can accept a modest change, I wouldn't give up so quickly.

I'd stay away from a grinder for a first project. I ruined a brand new knife (that I didn't like anyway, a Kershaw Blur), but have been successful since then.
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It is definitetly not minor; lots of real estate to remove. What I want is a ZT0300 with a hawkbill blade. I love the fact that I can carry the 300 in my overcoat pocket in the winter and easily deploy it one handed with gloves on in a very secure grip.
 
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