Shop Tools? Yes it's another "How do I start making knives thread!?!?" Yay!

Chris Pierce

Chris Pierce

Joined
Nov 15, 2006
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Hey everybody.

I was just wondering a few things about making knives, small hunting knives that is. My brother and I were considering trying it this winter. He's got a pretty well stocked shop, but I think that we will need a few more things, like a belt sander and maybe a vertical metal cutting band saw.

Which tools do you consider to be indispensable in making knives? And which tools do you use the most often?

Does anyone use a flat sanding wheel to do the main grinds? (my brother thinks that he can do it, but I suggested a belt sander)

The design I was thinking about trying first would be a thin flat or convex ground blade with maybe a 2.5-3" blade with Russian Olive handles.
Also, I'm planning to do the heat treat myself, so I'm reading up on that.

Thanks for the help.

-Chris
 
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If you are only going to make a couple knives you can do it with just hand tools. Look up Trollsky on youtube,he has a good video using basic tools. If you plan on making more than a couple I would def. get a belt grinder,and a drill press. A band saw would be nice but IMHO not a necessity.
 
Chris Pierce said:
Hey everybody.

I was just wondering a few things about making knives, small hunting knives that is. My brother and I were considering trying it this winter. He's got a pretty well stocked shop, but I think that we will need a few more things, like a belt sander and maybe a vertical metal cutting band saw.

Which tools do you consider to be indispensable in making knives? And which tools do you use the most often?

Does anyone use a flat sanding wheel to do the main grinds? (my brother thinks that he can do it, but I suggested a belt sander)

The design I was thinking about trying first would be a thin flat or convex ground blade with maybe a 2.5-3" blade with Russian Olive handles.
Also, I'm planning to do the heat treat myself, so I'm reading up on that.

Thanks for the help.

-Chris
Click to expand...

You've seen this ?

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...he-knife-making-world?p=12703071#post12703071

A bandsaw is nice, you can use a hacksaw, but a HF portaband, or a good brand - or a 64.5" bandsaw from Grizzly or HF will work.
They beat hand sawing buy a mile.


There is someone here who did use a disc for many many years before he got a belt grinder

Chuck Richards

You can search for his comments.
 
We're hoping to go into business making knives. Any reason I shouldn't use cut off wheels or angle grinders to shape knives? Before heat treat of course.

He's got a couple of drill presses, a bench grinder, a shop smith, a metal lathe, a horizontal metal cutting band saw, a few welders, a plasma cutter, cutting torch and we built a forge/foundry for melting aluminum last winter. We routinely turn wrenches and build things. I'm a journeyman ship fitter and he is a heavy machinery operator with his own equipment and the tools and skills to rebuild it. Things just slow down for him around here in the winter, and I'm semi-retired to home school my kids.
 
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Chris Pierce said:
We're hoping to go into business making knives. Any reason I shouldn't use cut off wheels or angle grinders to shape knives? Before heat treat of course.

He's got a couple of drill presses, a bench grinder, a shop smith, a metal lathe, a horizontal metal cutting band saw, a few welders, a plasma cutter, cutting torch and we built a forge/foundry for melting aluminum last winter. We routinely turn wrenches and build things. I'm a journeyman ship fitter and he is a heavy machinery operator with his own equipment and the tools and skills to rebuild it. Things just slow down for him around here in the winter, and I'm semi-retired to home school my kids.
Click to expand...

Hey Chris, it sounds like you're off to a good start equipment wise. It won't take much hacksawing before you pickup a metal bandsaw/portiband for cutting out your blanks, thats for sure. Doing your own heat treat then 1084 is the ticket. Tons of great info to be found here in the stickies. Any interest in forging or are you thinking mostly stock removal?
 
Yes, I'm planning on using 1084. If I don't like it I'll just have the heat treat done professionally and use whatever super fancy steel is popular.
For now were planning on stock removal. Maybe forging in the distant future, I think it'd be a lot of fun, but big bro wants to make money before he goes crazy (or lets me go crazy in 'our' (his) shop.)

About the band saw. Is there any reason I shouldn't just use grinders and cut off wheels to shape the knives? Is annealed 1084 as soft as your basic structural steel? If so I don't see why I couldn't just use what I already have. I'd still need a belt sander for grinding the bevel and sharpening of course.
 
You have a " horizontal metal cutting band saw"

what do you mean by that.?
A large horizontal cut off only ?

The small ones, can just be bolted in the upright position and used that way.

51f-6vZTKkL.jpg
 
I use an angle grinder to cut out the profile roughly. I can't hit tight corners, and I stay about 1/4" away from the outline. Then I clean it up on the 2x72. Doing it this way, it only takes about 2 mins with the angle grinder, and maybe 3-5 mins with the belt grinder.
 
The band saw is from the 80's I think. It's just a cut off/chop saw that happens to be a band saw. I may be able to modify it though.

Thanks Egally. That's exactly what I was wondering.
 
One more question,

How do you know when your knife is hot enough when heat treating 1084? I've been doing a little reading it seems that a lot of guys will heat to "non-magnetic" and then heat for a "little bit longer" to bring it above 1425 (which is non-magnetic right?) They use a magnet to check.

I was wondering if any one uses a thermometer? If so, what type?
 
Almost everybody uses some sort of thermometer. whether it's a pyrometer, type k thermocouple or some fancy automatically controlled Forge-o-matic 520000 good temperature control is fairly critical for good consistent heat treats. There are some out there that do it all by color, but that's way beyond me!
 
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