The Basic Set of Tools Needed For Knife Making

[gixxer1237]

I honestly don't care what you use to make knives. It doesn't have any thing to do with me. I use files because my 4x36 SUCKS at removing metal. I've tried angle grinders, big bench grinders, dmt, files, what ever. I'm not saying that you can't make one on any of that stuff. You can do what you want. So I'll be out of the norm. Have fun and I'll just go ahead and show my self the door.

 

[PT Doc]

You are really considering grinding in your apartments bathtub with a shower curtain?

Please post photos of this set up. It might be useful to others in apartments.

 

[dzlvs8]

You are really considering grinding in your apartments bathtub with a shower curtain?

Please post photos of this set up. It might be useful to others in apartments.

Hmmm, I'm not going to post pictures of what will be my ridiculous setup.

To answer your question....Not exactly. I mentioned a shower curtain because I am thinking of setting up a shower rod rack with a curtain around my grinder and the window in my bedroom so I can grind and minimize dust. The 3rd option is just to wear a pear of ear plugs and grind in the bathtub. I'm a classy guy. ...and when there's a will, there's a way. Any nay sayers, just aren't smart enough or are too lazy to figure it out how to make this stuff work.

I am going to look for a European style shower rod rack and curtain that is designed to go around an old school bath tub. Supposably I can modify it to just be at a right angle and curtain off the corner of my room. I also plan to add some sort of matting down on the carpet to protect it from having metal dust melt into the carpet. I am thinking of a dirt cheap plastic mat for office chairs at office depot. IDK though. The dust may just be too unbearable. If so, I will just put the grinder on my covered patio and put a grill cover over it. The shelf on the grinder stand should block out enough moister and rain doesn't get near that cement that it would sit on.

Trust me. I'm a professional at this type of stuff. I used to do major wood working in my apartments years ago. Dust was everywhere and I was loud as heck. If you don't know what kind of chaos a router on a router table or circular saw can cause in a bathroom, just know that it is far less terrible than a knife grinder.

 

[12345678910]

Yes, take it outside

Have a look at your grinder for a dust collection port and shop vac it up right at the source.

 

[Willie71]

I have to ask why you asked for advice? You have discounted every suggestion so far, then suggested the more experienced makers are too lazy, or not smart enough to figure out what you have. Maybe you should do a tutorial on how to make a knife without taking any suggestions from knife makers.

 

[NickWheeler]

I have to ask why you asked for advice? You have discounted every suggestion so far, then suggested the more experienced makers are too lazy, or not smart enough to figure out what you have. Maybe you should do a tutorial on how to make a knife without taking any suggestions from knife makers.

This is what I was wondering.

Someone who simply, flat-out dismisses advice from people who know how to do something they want to do are ignorant. We rarely use ALL the advice we get, but to simply dismiss it without even considering it is rude. Those who go even further to puff their chest out and make snarky comments about how foolish the advice they've been given, are arrogant and ignorant.

I made my first knife 23 years ago, and it was done with ONLY hand tools, as were the first dozen. I have slowly built up a dream shop of tools and equipment. How silly of me to think that I might just know a few things about making a knife that some guy who's never made one doesn't!!!!!!! :foot:




The icing on the cake here--- is that anyone who has an idea or opinion that differs from the op is stupid and lazy. CLASSIC!!!!

Someone that wasn't such an arrogant jerk might listen long enough to find out that what comes off a grinder is 1,000 times worse than any wood working tools... you know, since grinder sparks are hot steel, so they burn into what they land on. And if that was a plastic bathtub shell, those sparks would then rust, and ruin the bathtub.

But I wouldn't want to point that out, because that just shows how stupid and lazy I am.

If a guy like this showed up at my shop wanting help--- the door couldn't hit them in the ass on the way out fast enough.

 

[gredpe3]

WOW,One thing is for sure.It takes all kinds.The very best idea I see in this post is taking the stuff outside and working there.Yes thats a darn good idea.
Eddie

 

[dzlvs8]

What I have dismissed:
1. buying anything over $100 because that was specifically out of my price range at the moment.
2. Using files.
That's all. I'm sorry that your feelings were hurt if I didn't like your suggestion. Especially since it was specifically noted as not what I was looking to do (file or spend moree $$). Not everything is going to go your way in life (and in forums) and you will have to learn to deal with that. Also, after testing out the 1x42 some more, I can't imagine trying to grind twice as much surface area with this motor. I think I like my 1x42 way more than I would like a 2x42. There's probably a reason people pay more for the 1x42 than the 2x42. <--- In case you need to put something in your pipe to smoke

In regards to doing this in my apartment:

I realized that metal dust is a lot heavier than wood dust and is A LOT easier to contain. I decided to practice freehanding my bevel with some junk stock today and the results (dust levels) were great). First I tarped everything off in the room expecting dust to carry and go everywhere. I also rigged up a tupperware with water in in directly under the grinder (saw it on youtube). I threw an old shirt on the ground and went to town grinding.

The results were than I had a very very small amount of dust fly about a foot on each side of the machine but it wasn't bad at all. I still will want to protect my tool box and work bench in order to not get the corners of them both dusted with metal shavings. There really wasn't much dust on the shirt on the floor either. I know that over time, the corner of the room where I have the grinder would get a little dirty if I don't keep up with a vacuum. But it's not bad.

Below is a picture of the high tech dust collector that I rigged up and the amount of shavings it collected. About 5% more shavings were not caught in the pan and spread on all the stuff noted above. I didn't think to use the dust collection port on the machine because I don't expect much out of those and it looked like it was more for the disc than the belt.

My apartment is usually pretty clean, but I think my positive outlook on this is somewhat impacted by how back in the day I used to have an entire apartment full of saw dust periodically throughout the year. This ain't nothing. Sanding my workbench was a disaster of a mess compared to grinding this knife.

I'm not sure about how the die grinding is going to go though. I may have to do that stuff at work or something.

 

[PT Doc]

The suggestion to work by hand is a good one since you live in an apartment. If you lived near me and make lots of noise regularly, I think someone would call management. So, using a grinder outside won't work, indoors will make a mess. So, don't use power tools. And we are back to that.

 

[Matthew Gregory]

Looks like you've got it all nailed down. Carry on...

 

[NStricker]

With that being said, are there any other primary tools needed for knife making that i may be forgetting? Please list what you think are the basic tools needed.

Thanks!

Your brain. . . It's the most important tool any knifemaker uses.

Humility--the understanding that you don't know what you don't know.

A little respect--for the people that learned the hard way before YouTube was even an idea, and offer their wisdom here.

Why don't you learn to use those tools first?

 

[Leethal Cutlery]

Disrespecting members that have done so much for this forum is bad form. You have a bad attitude, and are missing the point. Don't start threads and ask questions if you don't plan on taking the advice. People have better things to do with their time. You should be humbled guys like Nick are willing to answer repetitive threads like this in the first place.

 

[dzlvs8]

I'm not using files. Deal with it. Stop whining.

Some people said the 1x42 would be ok. Some people told me to forge. Some people told me to use files. I can't appease all of you.

Like I said, with my apartment I can make very loud noises in it. So again, power tools are ok.
Next, I proved that the dust can be kept at a minimum...so please, stop telling me to use files or grind outdoors.

At no point did I ask for anyones opinion on whether to grind out doors or use files. I don't want to do that. So I can "disrespect you" by saying no to those suggestions a thousands times while you drive the discussion into the ground with the same suggestion over and over. THANKS. This should have ended with my last post.


Just because I ask for suggestions on one thing doesn't mean that I get to be your puppet to do what ever you want me to do. Not everyone takes the best path. Your path is obviously not the best because I don't own any of your knives. Maybe someday, with your suggestions and my own research and decision making skills I will be making knives that you want to own. ...probably not, but hopefully you can understand why you should respect peoples decisions to go their own way without feeling disrespected in the process.

 

[PT Doc]

Oh boy.

 

[dzlvs8]

Your brain. . . It's the most important tool any knifemaker uses.

Humility--the understanding that you don't know what you don't know.

A little respect--for the people that learned the hard way before YouTube was even an idea, and offer their wisdom here.

Why don't you learn to use those tools first?

You don't make any sense. I know there's a lot that I don't know, but someone telling me that I NEED a 2x42 or I might as well just use files is ummm...incorrect.

I know how to use my tools. Heres my first knife that I ever did about a week ago. It was a test that I was just playing around for practice. Did it on a grinder with a crappy rounded platen.

Have a little respect for those YOU don't know.

 

[Leethal Cutlery]

I'm not using files. Deal with it. Stop whining.

Some people said the 1x42 would be ok. Some people told me to forge. Some people told me to use files. I can't appease all of you.

Like I said, with my apartment I can make very loud noises in it. So again, power tools are ok.
Next, I proved that the dust can be kept at a minimum...so please, stop telling me to use files or grind outdoors.

At no point did I ask for anyones opinion on whether to grind out doors or use files. I don't want to do that. So I can "disrespect you" by saying no to those suggestions a thousands times while you drive the discussion into the ground with the same suggestion over and over. THANKS. This should have ended with my last post.


Just because I ask for suggestions on one thing doesn't mean that I get to be your puppet to do what ever you want me to do. Not everyone takes the best path. Your path is obviously not the best because I don't own any of your knives. Maybe someday, with your suggestions and my own research and decision making skills I will be making knives that you want to own. ...probably not, but hopefully you can understand why you should respect peoples decisions to go their own way without feeling disrespected in the process.

No u don't have to take advice, but you don't have to be rude or disrespectful either. People were just tossing out ideas and trying to help you and your replies were rude and arrogant. This is a tight community of great people... Acting like you have won't get you very far. Good luck with your work

 

[NickWheeler]

YThere's a lot that I don't know, but someone telling me that I NEED a 2x42 or I might as well just use files is ummm...incorrect.

OMG- I am humbled by your awesomeness!!!!! I'm ashamed I ever doubted your total bad-ass-ed-ness.

Now someone with a touch of humility would be able to open their mind/ears and shut their mouth long enough to learn that the only reason someone would say files, ESPECIALLY IN AN APARTMENT, are the incorrect choice over a small, under-powered grinder--- is because they don't know enough to know better.

I guess at this point I'm just feeding a troll. A frigg'n awesome bad ass knife maker troll... Yea! Rock on with your bad self!!!

 

[Jeremy Barnard]

OMG- I am humbled by your awesomeness!!!!! I'm ashamed I ever doubted your total bad-ass-ed-ness.

Now someone with a touch of humility would be able to open their mind/ears and shut their mouth long enough to learn that the only reason someone would say files, ESPECIALLY IN AN APARTMENT, are the incorrect choice over a small, under-powered grinder--- is because they don't know enough to know better.

I guess at this point I'm just feeding a troll. A frigg'n awesome bad ass knife maker troll... Yea! Rock on with your bad self!!!

Nick, while I agree with what you've been saying, I think your time could be better spend making another wip for me to follow

 

[dzlvs8]

Wow this section of the forums is pretty embarrassing. I'm not going to use files. I don't know how many times I need to say that. My machine is not under powered by MY standards. It works fine for ME.

I can respect an opinion and also disagree with it. For some reason your knife making experience level somehow makes a lot of you feel a false sense of entitlement that would allow you to dictate what others do and not respect other peoples opinions. The general forum is great. I hope others in the knife making area are a little more sensible.

 

[rwn2000]

Nick, while I agree with what you've been saying, I think your time could be better spend making another wip for me to follow

Yea, Nick, post something useful for those of us who actually pay attention and try to learn from those more experienced than ourselves.

And to teh OP, Nick Wheeler has more knifemaking knowledge in his big toe than you will ever pick up on YouTube, IMHO.

randy