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aschmidt

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Sep 8, 2012
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Hey everyone. I'm looking to get into knifemaking, so I started adding up equipment that I'd need (or thought so at least) and came up with the list below. If any of you have any suggestions or tweaks regarding the equipment I have picked out I'd greatly appreciate it. Thank you in advance for your help! :D

SKIL 120-Volt 10-Inch Drill Press - $111.19

DELTA 4-Inch Drill Press Vise - $17.91

DEWALT 16-Piece Twist Drill Bit Assortment - $17.57

Horizontal/Vertical Band Saw (Harbor Freight) - $199.98 (w/ 20% off coupon)

29” Heavy Duty Tool Stand (Harbor Freight) - $29.99

4 Piece 12” File Set (Harbor Freight) - $9.99

Lenox Bimetal Band Saw Blade, 18 TPI - $27.51

Lenox Bimetal Band Saw Blade, 14 TPI - $29.44

Wilton 4-1/2-Inch Workshop Vise - $82.27

Lisle Vice Jaw Pad - $12.72

Neiko 6-Inch Digital Caliper - $15.69

Craftsman 1/3 hp 2X42" Belt/Disc Sander - $144.49

8" DMT Bench Stone w/ Base
DMT Knife Sharpening Guide - $101.97

TEKTON 8-oz. Fiberglass Ball Pein Hammer - $7.96

Dykem CL-BLUE Layout Fluid 4oz - $10.00

PORTER-CABLE 6" White Polishing Wheel (Lowes)
PORTER-CABLE Light Polishing Compound (Lowes) - $89.95
PORTER-CABLE 6" Variable Speed Bench Grinder (Lowes)

TOTAL: $908.63
 
I didn't go the low-cost route myself, so I won't comment on the bulk of those items. I will suggest you look into 2 changes:
1. Try craftsman files instead of HF files. I found the HF files to be poor where the craftsman ones are actually pretty decent.
2. Look into a different vise. I think you could get some more use from a versa-vise or a rotating vise like this

Make the vise jaw protection out of micarta, g10 or whatever - or just use a piece of leather.

Make sure you look through the FAQ's and the vendor/supplier lists for more ideas of what you may need. Did you get a copy of the $50 knife shop?

You should also add in abrasives (paper and belts).
 
Skip the band saw and accessories, and get a good high tension hacksaw frame and a pack of 24TPI lenox Bi-metal blades for it. That should cost about $40-50 for the set.

Don't even think about the HF files, even if they were $5. Get two good 12" Nicholson or Simmonds files - one bastard cut and one second cut. A #0 cut 1/2" rat tail file and a half round bastard cut are also nice to have.

Get a set of drill bits that comes with multiples and more sizes. This set is almost always on sale:
http://www.woodcraft.com/product/20...twist-drill-bit-set-with-drill-bit-gauge.aspx

Before reading the next lines,it must be said that you can make excellent knives in the beginning with just the basic tools on your list and no grinder at all.

That said, with the money you saved on the band saw, stand, and blades, upgrade the underpowered 2X42 to an entry level knife grinder. The Kalamazoo and Coote are popular starter grinders. Money spent here is well spent. Get the basic no-motor unit and add a 1HP motor and 2/3/4 pulley.
http://www.cootebeltgrinder.com/prices.html
http://www.kalamazooind.com/products/belt-grinders/2fs72-belt-grinder/

I can't express the importance of getting a knife making grinder over a hobby sander. If you buy one at all, buy a grinder that will do the work for you.
A used 3/4-1HP motor will run it well to start.
Later on you can upgrade it to VS with a VFD and a 3Ph motor for an around $300. The old 3/4-1HP motor can then be made into a great disc sander for the $100 it takes to get a good steel disc.
 
Just curious but have ya made a knife yet? I just started out recently and my biggest word of advice is save your money and shop around and try and get quality stuff a piece at a time. Like the drill press which you want quality new or old and stable, I make do with my craftsman press but keep my eye out all the time for deals on a better one.

Make sure you scour craigslist and garage sales if you can. Things like drill presses, bandsaws, vises ...... are always on there much cheaper then you would pay new.

Dont skimp on files either.

Oh if you do get a good drill press and a metal bandsaw then I would highly recommend building your own grinder. Just my opinion though.

And ofcourse Stacy has a much more thought out post. Good advice.
 
i would change a few things, personally try looking for a second hand drill press, you want something half decent so the better option is find a good second hand one rather then a cheap new one.

secondly i wouldnt worry about the bandsaw just yet, an angle grinder is a cheaper option and does the job, worry about a bandsaw later, that opens up $200 already.

now i would also not worry about the $101 sharpening system, thats another $101, well get back to this point in a second

we now have $450-$500 to spend on a proper grinding system, great,

look at the no weld system, you can purchase all the steel cheap, easy to find second hand motor, and pulleys, (ebay is great for this), i myself just bought a 3hp motor here in australia for only $20, was barely used!, so steel, motor, pulleys and belt, if your patient that will easily come in at $150, $300 should buy you a drive wheel, 2 small contact wheels (4-5 inch one on the bottom and say a 2inch one ontop), a idler wheel, 2 pillow blocks and the shaft to go with it (this is all part of the stuff needed for the no weld grinder) and there we have it, a proper knife grinder. Now you can use this do grind, stock removal, put an edge on a blade and sharpen a blade without being bogged down with an underpowered 1/3hp craftman and you also have the added bonus for future upgrades such as a 10inch contact wheel for hollow grinds.

people think building a knife grinder is expensive, it is if you want everything brand new, if your happy with some second hand parts it can be pretty darn affordable and the no weld grinder is so easy to build, the book plus all the parts you need can be bought from http://usaknifemaker.com/

the vice, well a $80 vice is nice, mine cost me $30, to me, it does the same as the $80 one, can save some money there or go to some car boot sales (places where people sell a heap of stuff from there car we call them car boot sales) and you might be able to find a second hand one, or again, ebay.

portable bench grinder, hmm i think its a little useless, you can easily polish and buff by hand and save the money there

really your main focus should be decent knife grinder, drill press, vice, some files, couple other little things that you mentioned above, i think your veering away from there more important stuff and woring about the accessories so to speak which can be useful but can easily be done without
 
Have you researched these items much at all? That bandsaw is known to be a POS. I own the 8" model of that bench grinder and can tell you they are very good quality, I do most of my profiling with it, but buy new wheels from the start. You usually have to get some sort of spacer to run a buffing wheel on a grinder or else get a tapered spindle. If you get a good belt grinder, or even a cheap one at that it can be used to sharpen and you could eliminate the stones.
 
I use the hf portaband with great success so far. I have the skill drill press and it's very nice. I'm still on the hf 1x30, and I highly recommend it as a starter, to see if you even like knife making. I'm waiting for Christmas to get a gib. Also you are going to need some sandpaper, and some belts!
 
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Don't forget the sandpaper and lots of it. I use the rhynowet. It is great.

I second the HF portable band saw over the big guy.

I have 3 drill presses and all were found on Craig's list for way below a normal cost.

It may be a bit overkill but I use solid cobalt drill bits. I have 2 each of the 4 common sizes I use.

I would pass on the vise jaw pad. Similar results can be had with cardboard, leather, or a variety of other materials already on hand.

Also don't skimp on the steel you use. Get some from Aldo Bruno. 1084.
 
if i had 900$ to spend i try and get the best grinder i could afford. then belts and sandpaper. i would also recomend an angle grinder, some people dont like using angle grinders but i use mine almost exclusively for profiling. no sense in burning up belts.

all that said i made my first few knives with a nicholson file and a pile of sandpaper. did i mention you will need sandpaper?:D
 
oh and as far as vices go i still use my 12$ harbor freight drill press vice. i laos bought an 8inch c clamp so i can clamp my vice where ever i want pluse i use the clamp for holding the blades flat when sanding. shoot, you may spend your grand and then decide making knives sucks haha:barf:
 
http://www.harborfreight.com/9-inch-drill-press-locking-clamp-36221.html
http://www.harborfreight.com/12-speed-bench-top-drill-press-44836.html

I may be off base here due to lack of experience, but I hate using the type of drill press vise you have on your list, I really like the one in the link above. Also I have the harbor freight bench top 12 speed drill press. It has low speeds for larger drill bits. The Skil you listed only goes down to 570 rpm, the harbor freight will go down to 250 if you needed. I doubt that the skil is significantly better quality at the price point.

I have that band saw. Sure its typical harbor freight, meaning pretty absent fit and finish, but it works and sure beats a hack saw.

Also Craigs list!!
 
bladsmth said:
Skip the band saw and accessories, and get a good high tension hacksaw frame and a pack of 24TPI lenox Bi-metal blades for it. That should cost about $40-50 for the set.

Don't even think about the HF files, even if they were $5. Get two good 12" Nicholson or Simmonds files - one bastard cut and one second cut. A #0 cut 1/2" rat tail file and a half round bastard cut are also nice to have.

Get a set of drill bits that comes with multiples and more sizes. This set is almost always on sale:
http://www.woodcraft.com/product/208...bit-gauge.aspx

Before reading the next lines,it must be said that you can make excellent knives in the beginning with just the basic tools on your list and no grinder at all.

That said, with the money you saved on the band saw, stand, and blades, upgrade the underpowered 2X42 to an entry level knife grinder. The Kalamazoo and Coote are popular starter grinders. Money spent here is well spent. Get the basic no-motor unit and add a 1HP motor and 2/3/4 pulley.
http://www.cootebeltgrinder.com/prices.html
http://www.kalamazooind.com/products...-belt-grinder/

I can't express the importance of getting a knife making grinder over a hobby sander. If you buy one at all, buy a grinder that will do the work for you.
A used 3/4-1HP motor will run it well to start.
Later on you can upgrade it to VS with a VFD and a 3Ph motor for an around $300. The old 3/4-1HP motor can then be made into a great disc sander for the $100 it takes to get a good steel disc.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the advice! I switched out the band saw setup for a nice high tension hack saw and the 10 pack of 24TPI blades. I also replaced the HF files with 12" Bastard/Second cut Nicholson files. With the money that freed up I decided to give the Kalamazoo 2x72 a try. As far as motors go, is there a particular RPM that I should be aiming for? I saw a Grizzly 1hp motor that was decently priced. Regarding pulley setups, I added a 2/3/4 setup to the list. Do I need anything in addition to the pulley attachment to pull everything together?

knifemaking01 said:
i would change a few things, personally try looking for a second hand drill press, you want something half decent so the better option is find a good second hand one rather then a cheap new one.

secondly i wouldnt worry about the bandsaw just yet, an angle grinder is a cheaper option and does the job, worry about a bandsaw later, that opens up $200 already.

now i would also not worry about the $101 sharpening system, thats another $101, well get back to this point in a second

we now have $450-$500 to spend on a proper grinding system, great,

look at the no weld system, you can purchase all the steel cheap, easy to find second hand motor, and pulleys, (ebay is great for this), i myself just bought a 3hp motor here in australia for only $20, was barely used!, so steel, motor, pulleys and belt, if your patient that will easily come in at $150, $300 should buy you a drive wheel, 2 small contact wheels (4-5 inch one on the bottom and say a 2inch one ontop), a idler wheel, 2 pillow blocks and the shaft to go with it (this is all part of the stuff needed for the no weld grinder) and there we have it, a proper knife grinder. Now you can use this do grind, stock removal, put an edge on a blade and sharpen a blade without being bogged down with an underpowered 1/3hp craftman and you also have the added bonus for future upgrades such as a 10inch contact wheel for hollow grinds.

people think building a knife grinder is expensive, it is if you want everything brand new, if your happy with some second hand parts it can be pretty darn affordable and the no weld grinder is so easy to build, the book plus all the parts you need can be bought from http://usaknifemaker.com/

the vice, well a $80 vice is nice, mine cost me $30, to me, it does the same as the $80 one, can save some money there or go to some car boot sales (places where people sell a heap of stuff from there car we call them car boot sales) and you might be able to find a second hand one, or again, ebay.

portable bench grinder, hmm i think its a little useless, you can easily polish and buff by hand and save the money there

really your main focus should be decent knife grinder, drill press, vice, some files, couple other little things that you mentioned above, i think your veering away from there more important stuff and woring about the accessories so to speak which can be useful but can easily be done without
Click to expand...

Thank you for the advice. I removed the sharpening system and bench grinder to free up money for my 2x72 grinder.

TILLER said:
http://www.harborfreight.com/9-inch-...amp-36221.html
http://www.harborfreight.com/12-spee...ess-44836.html

I may be off base here due to lack of experience, but I hate using the type of drill press vise you have on your list, I really like the one in the link above. Also I have the harbor freight bench top 12 speed drill press. It has low speeds for larger drill bits. The Skil you listed only goes down to 570 rpm, the harbor freight will go down to 250 if you needed. I doubt that the skil is significantly better quality at the price point.

I have that band saw. Sure its typical harbor freight, meaning pretty absent fit and finish, but it works and sure beats a hack saw.

Also Craigs list!!
Click to expand...

Thank you for the references. I'll swap out the drill press and drill press vice.
 
After looking at the threads regarding belt grit progression, this is the lineup that I came up with:

2x72-36+ 984F Cubitron II Ceramic

2x72-60+ 984F Cubitron II Ceramic

2x72-120 A160 Trizact CF Gator Structured Abrasive

2x72-240 A65 Trizact CF Gator Structured Abrasive

272-0400-A45CF Trizact CF Gator Structured Abrasive

IB72VF Very Fine grit 2" x 72" 3M Scotch Brite Belt

Does that sound alright to you guys?
 
Sounds good.

You will need the most belts in the 120,240, and 400 grit sizes. I would get four 120, four 240, and ten 400 as a starter order. I suggest you just get three 50 grit Cubitron II belts instead of the 36 and 60 grit belts.
You only want one Scotchbrite belt.

1750RPM is the best motor speed and type. TEFC is important.
 
bladsmth said:
Sounds good.

You will need the most belts in the 120,240, and 400 grit sizes. I would get four 120, four 240, and ten 400 as a starter order. I suggest you just get three 50 grit Cubitron II belts instead of the 36 and 60 grit belts.
You only want one Scotchbrite belt.

1750RPM is the best motor speed and type. TEFC is important.
Click to expand...

Awesome, sounds good! Do I use the 50 grit for blade profiling and the rough grinding, or will I need the 36 for profiling?
 
50 will be fine for both. If you continue doing heavy stock removal long term you may decide you prefer 36g, but only if the 50s aren't working fast enough for you. I rarely keep 36g belts on hand, and only use them for general shop work myself. I buy mostly 60 or 80 grit Cubitron II's by the dozens. I like to have both on hand, but never use both on the same piece, it's either one or the other, then usually to a 120grit jflex.
 
I wish I got all this equipment when I started out. (Which was about a month ago :rolleyes:)

All I had was a file, a hacksaw, and papers. :D
 
Alright, I've tweaked my list from what a lot of you have suggested and this is what I have so far. I noticed that a decent angle grinder w/ cutting blades is only ~$10 more than a good high tension hack saw with blade refills, so I opted to go that route instead. Please feel free to let me know if that was a crappy decision, lol.

2 x 72 - Kalamazoo (2FS72) without motor - $600.35

1HP Grizzly Motor Single-Phase 1725 RPM TEFC 110V/220V - $156.90

Maska Cast Iron 4-3-2 Step 'A' Pulley 5/8 In. Bore - $35.04

12 Speed Bench Drill Press (HF) - $129.99

170 Piece TiN Coated HSS Twist Drill Bit Set - $61.93

9" Drill Press Locking Clamp (HF) - $8.99

Wilton 11126 674 4-1/2-Inch Workshop Vise - $82.27

DEWALT D28110 4-1/2-Inch Small Angle Grinder - $54.99

DEWALT Metal and Stainless Cutting Wheel, 5-Pack - $8.82

12" Mill Bastard Cut File without Handle (Carded)- $9.50

12" Flat Smooth Cut File - $14.00

Kant Twist Clamp (x2) - $31.90

Neiko 6-Inch Digital Caliper - $15.69

Dykem CL-BLUE Layout Fluid 4oz - $10.00

TEKTON 8-oz. Fiberglass Ball Pein Hammer - $7.96

Hobart Leather Welding Apron - $21.84

2x72-50+ 984F Cubitron II Ceramic (x3) $30.30

2x72-120 A160 Trizact CF Gator Structured Abrasive (x4) - $24.40

2x72-240 A65 Trizact CF Gator Structured Abrasive (x4) - $24.40

272-0400-A45CF Trizact CF Gator Structured Abrasive (x10) - $58.50

IB72VF Very Fine grit 2" x 72" 3M Scotch Brite Belt - $20.95

TOTAL: ~$1,400.00

Also, just out of curiosity would running the above motor w/ a 220V power source be the preferred option? I'm going to be roughing in the electrical in my shed so I have the opportunity to add some 220V outlets.

Thank you again everyone for all the help! I really appreciate it.
 
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Yes, it will be a better setup to wire it for 220VAC. That also allows you to hook up a larger motor later with no changes to the wiring.

You left one startup item off your list....and it is free - Fill out your profile. Location, age, occupation, interests and hobbies, etc.
Some of the things on your list might come to you cheaper, or even free from a nearby maker if they knew who you were and where you were located.
 
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