Reprofiling tool

R

Ravenn

Joined
Jan 19, 2001
Messages
295
I,m interested in everybodys take on what they feel has been the most successful method of reprofiling a blade.
Please keep in mind i'm referring to both carbon steel, and stainless ( ATS-34,154CM )knives.
Thanx in advance
Ravenn
 
The best method is to use power equipment, usually a belt sander of some kind. If you have to go manual the fastest hone is a x-coarse SiC waterstone with a sprinkle of lapping compound, as coarse as you can get. The fastest manual sharpening is with a pseudo-file made by gluing a very coarse sanding belt to a piece of wood. Using a 40 grit belt I can remove the edge bevel on a small folder in a few minutes. This is a full bleed of the edge into the primary grind. Use a lot of pressure, as hard as you can, and you can strip the metal off quickly. If the blade steel is soft enough, a large bastard file may be slightly faster.

-Cliff
 
As Cliff said, number one method is a bench model belt sander. This gives you speed plus the option of progressing from coarse to fine grit. A basic belt sander starts at around $70.00 at Home Depot. My next favorite is to use a long, coarse diamond hone. This is slower and actually more expensive. Diamond hones cost a lot and wear out more quickly if used with hard pressure.

My old cheap way to do it is to use a long coarse silicon carbide hone (a cheap non-water stone). I use the narrow side of the hone or the edge of the hone instead of the wide top surface. This allows higher surface pressure (more pounds per square inch). I put the hone in a padded vice and apply high pressure as I work. Alternately I hold the hone in my left hand and work under water flowing from the kitchen water tap. This keeps the hone from loading while I work and cuts fast with medium-hard pressure. This works with a $10.00 8" hone. I have seen garden tool hones that are 12" long with handles (sort of like fat silicon carbide files). These would work the same way.
 
Cliff and Jeff,
Thanks a million , Guys for the sage advice. I have a couple of older blades I'd like to thin the edges on, and eldest son has belt sander.
I take it this is a "MK-1 eyeball" job too, rather than a jig for angle?
Ravenn
 
Be very careful if you go the power rout. It is very easy to burn the temper out of some steels with power grinding, unless you know what you are doing. It doesn't take much to heat up a thin edge.
 
Overheating while possible isn't really a significant concern with modern alloy steels, you just make a pass, cool the blade and repeat. It is no more complicated that that. In fact with most of the modern alloys, temper temperatures are that high that is isn't really possible to overheat them if you work barehanded, except in the tip region and then you have to be intentionally not cooling the blade.

-Cliff
 
Clif as you are right with steel like ATS and M2 being hard to over heat he did say both carbon steels and ats. So, I am assumeing he could be trying to regrind simple steels as well witch cann't take alot of heat. Also I have found with a silicon carbide hone it is easier than one may think. It is also a pretty cheap way to do it also.
 
db :

Also I have found with a silicon carbide hone it is easier than one may think.
Click to expand...

Yes indeed, get a large one and really lean into it. You will be removing material many times faster than most v-rod or jig and clamp systems.

-Cliff
 
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