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The Newbies Arena Are you new to knife making? Here is all the help you will need. |
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#1
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I need some help. (I think)
I only have a propane forge so I couldn't heat treat this 440 c myself, I sent it to Texas knifemakers and had them treat it and cryo it.
I've only been working with 1084 to this point and the difference in the steel is frustrating. Either I'm doing it wrong or I need help. With the 440 I just got the plunges and bevels started before I sent it out for h/t, when I got it back I refined the grind with a fresh 120 belt, actually 2 belts, and then started hand sanding, I have spent about 2 hours on this knife with 220 paper. There has to be a better way! Or at least I hope there is. there has to be a faster way to get it to this point? |
#2
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Well, a belt grinder is easier. You're right though, properly heat treated stainless is much tougher to sand than most carbon steels.
So, what exactly is the problem? From the pictures it looks like you have a pretty good 220 grit finish so far. Do you have a belt grinder of some type? Where are you trying to go from where you are now? If it was me, I'd hand sand with 400 grit for a few minutes , then maybe some ScotchBrite pads and be done with it.... |
#3
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That's what I'm needing to know, I know it looks good at 220, but is there a faster way to get from 120 on the grinder to 220 hand sanding? It just seems I might be missing a step?
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#4
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I go from 120 to 220 to 400 on the sander. THEN I might do some more 400 by hand if I want that kind of look to the finish.
Whenever possible I avoid using plunge cuts, especially on flat grinds. Doing that allows me to grind the blade with 60 grit in the usual manner, then use 120 LENGTHWISE on the flat ground blade which has no plunge cuts. Follow that with 220 across the blade (same as the 60 grit) and finish with 400 lengthwise. This process does a much better job of erasing the scratches from one grit before moving to the next. You still get a 400 grit finish running lengthwise but the finish is cleaner looking than what you get when all the grinding is in one direction.... |
#5
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Thanks Ray, on this knife I started with a 120 belt and then started hand sanding, it seems when I grind finer than that I screw things up, do you use padding on your platten with the finer grit belts?
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#6
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Depends on the knife but I often do use a padded platen on the finer grits. I have two platens, one has a glass face and the other is covered with bull hide (leather boot sole) ....
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#7
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One thing you may want to try. Is that I start on hand sanding with the same grit as the finest belt sanding I have done. So if you 120 grit the knife on the belt sander then start with 120 on the hand sanding, same with higher grits. If you end with 220 on the belt, then start with 220 on the hand sander. Also if you find you are simply not making any progress at the grit you are using when hand sanding try dropping down one grit. I have found that given a choice between 2 hours at 220 and 1/2 an hour at 120 and half an hour at 220 I know which I prefer.
Hope that helps Steve __________________ Stephen Vanderkolff Please come on over and check out my website. http://www.vanderkolffknives.com/ Thanks |
#8
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I do all stainless, typically 154s. I work to 220 or so before heat treat. Once heat treated, I briefly go back to 120 to remove the oxidization, then back to 220 and so on. If I was "Steady Hands Dan" I could probably do the whole thing with the belt grinder like Ray, but that hasn't panned out for me yet. Something to shoot for and I am curious about the alternating directions method.
For hand sanding, I use a toggle clamp screwed on a piece of wood. Not pretty but works great. Then I have some different blocks of hardwood to wrap the sandpaper around. I cut a sheet into 6 pieces and basically work a piece for a few minutes before discarding. Don't be shy to grab another piece. Sandpaper becomes useless very quick-like when working hardened steel. I work lengthwise, and pretty much ignore the tang at this point. The tang will get roughed with 60 grit before the epoxy goes down. I also learned (I believe from CRex) that Windex works great as lubricant when sanding. I must say that I am a fan! Even the no-name brand window cleaner works well. Keeping the surfaces lubricated prevents galling, which can set you back and take a lot more work to sand out. To me, an hour a knife seems like a reasonable amount of time to spend cleaning things up. Hope some of this info is useful. Dan __________________ "Don't believe everything you know." -- bumper sticker |
Tags |
1084, back, bee, belt, blade, carbon, flat, forge, grind, grinder, grinding, hand, heat, heat treat, help., knife, leather, man, mobile, problem, sand, sander, stainless, steel |
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