some one emailed me looking for a "grinding service"

T

tmickley

Joined
Apr 4, 2001
Messages
1,803
Some one emailed me to hollow grind some knife blanks for them. I've never had that before. I'm not interested but maybe some one here is. No google hits on the email sender, which I thought was odd. The contact info is below in this cut-n-paste from the emails:


I have a few laser cut knive blanks. I'm looking for someone to hollow ground it...

Tracy Mickley <tracy@midwestknifemakers.com> wrote:
Hi Shari,
I’m not sure what you mean by blade grinding service. If you can help me understand that, I think I can point you in the right direction.
Tracy

-----Original Message-----
From: Shai Kohn [mailto:shaikohn@yahoo.com]
Sent: Saturday, September 15, 2007 2:21 AM
To: tracy@midwestkms.com
Subject:

Hello,



Do you provide a blade grinding service?

If you don't, do you know of someone who does?


​
 
Thats a new one, why have laser cut blanks if you can't grind them? wasn't the person's name Shai and not Sherri?
 
Keith_H said:
Thats a new one, why have laser cut blanks if you can't grind them? wasn't the person's name Shai and not Sherri?
Click to expand...

oops, good catch, the name is Shai and not Shari. I'm guessing they bought some surplus blanks some where thinking they were going to make a bunch of knives.
 
And IMO all the trouble of getting other people to do the grinding then HTing then putting a handle on it makes more sense just to buy a knife from a maker like yourself in one shot. Just my 2 cents. But a hollow grind is tricky and needs a machine, i can see it.
 
Please forgive my cynicism. This gives me an instant impression of "offshore con-job fishing for a 'gullible American'".:thumbdn:
 
fitzo said:
This gives me an instant impression of "offshore con-job looking for a 'gullible American'".:thumbdn:
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I kinda got that vibe initially myself a little. I guess I kind of hoping it was some one that was just in a bit over their head and needed a little help. Like Mike suggests, I'd advise caution.
 
I thought of doing that at one point, basically what it would be is a kit knife of your own design. Kind of a poor mans custom.
 
He contacted me as well. The wording was slightly different but the question was the same... and no - we don't.

The address that submitted to yahoo was a SW Bell address, so it's probably not an offshore scam. Probably just just someone who hoped to turn a buck by buying some 'almost finished' knife blades cheap.

Rob!
 
Tracy
he emailed me the other day also. and I just replyed to him this morning
he told me two blades.
I told him to come here to see if he could find someone that wasn't so far behind in work..

I don't see a problem if he sends the blanks with the money making sure what he sends for money clears, what ever it has to, first.. could be a good little job for some one that could use the work?
 
do not think its a scam. he stands more to lose by sending the blanks to you. Its like a simple job to a knife maker but its next to impossible to a layman like me. HTing a blade to its optimum is a skill not many people knows.
 
A major part of my business has become blade blanks. Aside from my own blanks, I get requests for custom grinding, which can be interesting. This doesn't sound like a scam, but if you are uncomfortable with it, ask all the right questions first and makes sure you have all the right answers.

I really don't like to hollow grind, but it requires no more in the way of tooling than flat grinding. All you need is a grinder, you don't need special jigs.

Communication with the prospective customer is your best tool. If they have the right answers, go for it. If it feels funny, treat it like a knife deal that feels funny and stay away.

Gene
 
Why are some people making such a big deal out of this? Is there some insidious secret agenda that I am missing? Did he ask for your credit card numbers, bank account info and social security numbers? Seriously, it's just some person asking to get some blades sharpened. Sheesh, lighten up, guys.
 
rem said:
..... Sheesh, lighten up, guys.
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Pardon me all to hell, rem.

Maybe it's just the numerous attempted scams I've seen reported around here the six years I've been a member that makes me leery. The English in this sentence didn't smack of English as a first language, and thus my response:
tmickley said:
...I have a few laser cut knive blanks. I'm looking for someone to hollow ground it...
Click to expand...

You can be as lightened up as you wish. Me, I'll be content with wary.

To each their own.
 
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