- Joined
- Jan 3, 2011
- Messages
- 71
Its official I now have my first real workshop and ive started my first blade.
My impression so far is a mix of depression and anxiety. I feel like my first attempt was rubbish and im anxious about my future in knife making. On the other hand I tend to feel this way when starting any major projects.
My shop is 8 foot by 8 foot. Its on an acreage and I have a second shop on the acreage but it has no power and is full of junk.
In my main shop I have room for 2-3 pieces of equipment and my Evenheat kiln.
The temperature outside today is minus 15 celcius and snowing. The small portable heater in my shop barely keeps it above freezing.
The equipment I have in there is a 1x30 belt sander and a bench grinder.
The equipment I dont use as much I keep in the other shop and I use an ATV to go back and forth.
At night its cold and pitch black and I try to keep an eye out for cougars wolves and bears which we have a lot of wandering around here.
I put small trays of water on the work bench under the bench grinder so it doesnt burn a hole in the bench but those are frozen solid. The water I use to cool my steel is also a block of ice... this is with the heater on.
While I was away last week my dad came over and decided to wire up the outlet for my kiln.
I told him it will get HOT and should be several feet from the wall at least. He said nonsense...
So I get a phone call from him saying hes wired it up... 6 inches from the wall on 2 sides and the outlet is also 6 inches away with the main cable touching the kiln. He was trying to fire it up to test the elements but couldnt figure out how it turns on.
Anyway back to making my first blade... its a large drop point skinner/utility knife. 1095 steel, shaped for my hand. its comfortable but so ugly imo. Its just a rough cutout so far. My 1x30 belt is way to under powered its like driving a car with the park brake on. Standard 80 grit hardware store belts were all I could find for it. Its so slow it hardly seems like its taking off any steel. Bench grinder good ! So far the only suitable masks I could find are dust masks designed for 'metal work'. They dont seal at all and my throat and nose burns. My safety glasses are pretty good but I think I want some that form a full seal to the face... I just dont trust those sparks. Over all im cold, sore, sinuses are on fire, and it all seems terribly inefficient. I guess it will get better. I just feel like im doing everything wrong despite years of reading and researching how to do this.
Im going to try and get a craftsman 2x42, osccilating spindle sander and steel cutting bandsaw.
Im going to move that outlet for the kiln and put a heat barrier between it and the walls and add a proper heater.
My impression so far is a mix of depression and anxiety. I feel like my first attempt was rubbish and im anxious about my future in knife making. On the other hand I tend to feel this way when starting any major projects.
My shop is 8 foot by 8 foot. Its on an acreage and I have a second shop on the acreage but it has no power and is full of junk.
In my main shop I have room for 2-3 pieces of equipment and my Evenheat kiln.
The temperature outside today is minus 15 celcius and snowing. The small portable heater in my shop barely keeps it above freezing.
The equipment I have in there is a 1x30 belt sander and a bench grinder.
The equipment I dont use as much I keep in the other shop and I use an ATV to go back and forth.
At night its cold and pitch black and I try to keep an eye out for cougars wolves and bears which we have a lot of wandering around here.
I put small trays of water on the work bench under the bench grinder so it doesnt burn a hole in the bench but those are frozen solid. The water I use to cool my steel is also a block of ice... this is with the heater on.
While I was away last week my dad came over and decided to wire up the outlet for my kiln.
I told him it will get HOT and should be several feet from the wall at least. He said nonsense...
So I get a phone call from him saying hes wired it up... 6 inches from the wall on 2 sides and the outlet is also 6 inches away with the main cable touching the kiln. He was trying to fire it up to test the elements but couldnt figure out how it turns on.
Anyway back to making my first blade... its a large drop point skinner/utility knife. 1095 steel, shaped for my hand. its comfortable but so ugly imo. Its just a rough cutout so far. My 1x30 belt is way to under powered its like driving a car with the park brake on. Standard 80 grit hardware store belts were all I could find for it. Its so slow it hardly seems like its taking off any steel. Bench grinder good ! So far the only suitable masks I could find are dust masks designed for 'metal work'. They dont seal at all and my throat and nose burns. My safety glasses are pretty good but I think I want some that form a full seal to the face... I just dont trust those sparks. Over all im cold, sore, sinuses are on fire, and it all seems terribly inefficient. I guess it will get better. I just feel like im doing everything wrong despite years of reading and researching how to do this.
Im going to try and get a craftsman 2x42, osccilating spindle sander and steel cutting bandsaw.
Im going to move that outlet for the kiln and put a heat barrier between it and the walls and add a proper heater.
