What good is a contact wheel!

D

Don Powell

Joined
Sep 21, 2001
Messages
265
I bought my KMG without a contact wheel. Since I have only done flat grinding, I didn't think I needed one, now I'm not so sure. While tapering tangs, I have watched as the sharp 90 degree edge of the handle scraped off the abrasive particles from the belt while using the platen. Belt life has not been good, What do you use the 3", 8". 10" or larger contact wheels for? Am I missing something? I'm preparing to order some things from Rob, and I wanted to buy what I need now.
 
Hollow grinding is done on the contact wheel.The diameter determines the hight and depth of the hollow.
Stacy
 
I just bought a KMG-1 (bolted it to the bench yesterday, hope to get the wiring done tomorrow). I am not currently interested in hollow grinding and don't expect to do any for quite a while (several years). Never the less, I got a 10" contact wheel with it because both J.D. Smith and Chuck Gedraitis convinced me by example that it was VERY useful for hogging and vertical grinding even if I never did a hollow grind. Tapering tangs was one example of this.

Dan Pierson
 
I've only done two hollow grinds that I can remember, but even so I'd not want to be without my contact wheels. I use every wheel on my Coote. I use the small wheels for shaping the "bird's head" of a gaurd, the normal aluminum idler wheel and 8" contact wheel for handle shapping, I use the contact wheel for profiling, hogging steel. On larger knives I often do a shallow hollow grind before convex grinding, I also grind a hollow on a full tange I'm going to tapper.

I would love to have a KMG and have it set up for flat grinding without a contact wheel, but then I'd still keep the Coote and use it's contact wheels.
 
All good advice above, but maybe not necessary for your tang tapering. I do tapering holding the blade with a strong magnet - tip up and tiled out a bit - butt down. I grind fairly steep to the thickness I want at the butt and then just chase the grind line up the handle the same as I chase it up the blade on a flat grind -by moving the point of pressure. The grains never face a 90 degree corner. Come to think or if, that sounds almost dangerous:eek:

Rob!
 
Thank you all for your input. Thanks Khukuri for the threads. When I tried to do a search on contact wheel sizes, I failed to get these and they were very helpful. It looks like I'm going to have to buy at least one contact wheel. I do have the small wheel attachment and three wheels. They are great! One bad thing about having these great tools, though, I'm running out of excuses.
 
Rob,

No, a contact wheel is not necessary to taper a tang---but it sure speeds up the process.
If you hollow grind the tang before tapering it only takes a few minutes to do the job. It is so much faster and easier (for me) to do it this way. I'd be lost if I had to go back to tapering tangs only on the platten. IMHO

Mike
 
Hi Mike


Hope we aren't hijacking this thread - more like evolving it. :)

I have tried grinding a hollow down the tang to remove (hogg off) as much steel as possible for the taper - but I usually wind up with at least part of that groove down the middle remaining after I get the taper right. I don't really beleive that weakens the tang any, but, much like skeletonizing, I worry about relatively thick 'pockets' of epoxy weakening the handle / tang bond. I tried using a shallower groove, but didn't feel I was accomplising much. Maybe I need to practice more - Bob Loveless does it your way.:o

Rob!
 
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