Making knives, what to buy.

Do you make knives to sell? Or is it at least a serious hobby? 'Cause it sounds like you are looking towards some overkill if not!

You will need a good buffer motor, wheels, and different grades of polishing compound.

Used a lot for final finishing on handles & guards, even if you don't plan to hand rub & polish the blades.

I agree you are going over-board if you are not going into the business of making knives.

You might browse here and get some ideas.
http://www.texasknife.com/vcom/index.php

And here to save a LOT of money until you figure out what you are doing, and how to do it.
http://www.texasknife.com/vcom/product_info.php?cPath=51_859&products_id=457

rc

A buffer would be the last piece of gear I would buy. Do yourself a favor and spend the most you can to get the best grinder you can. Do it right and you can add more tools as needed.

Look into building a no weld grinder. Search the diff forums for info on (knifedogs.com for one ).

a good grinder , Harbor Freight band saw with a lenox diemaster II blade , and a drill press of some sort will get you started.

1 started on a couple 1 x 42 grinders & a couple 4 x 36. They still get used , but I ended up getting the Bader anyways , as the others used up belts fast and were just slow. Indeed the Bader is pricey , at about $2100-$2800 with Variable speed and all the toys.

The Griz runs FAST. Maybe see if you can find some local makers , visit them , see what they are using.

The KMG is a much better option than the Griz , granted it it $750 without motor , but you can pick up a 1 - 1 /2 HP motor cheap and set it up with step pulleys.

take a look at this one.
http://blindhogg.com/eerfgrinder.html

The Grizzly is great grinder for the money. I would buy it again. Yes it is fast. But Fast removes metal. You make money when you remove metal. I did change the wheel to the 10 inch wheel. It will work for everything you heed to do. You will even learn how to do small radius on the corner of the wheel. It is excellent grinder for doing hollow grinds. The maker makes the tools. The tool does not make the maker.
I bought a 39.00 drill press from Harbor Freight. I bought the 4x6 Horizontal band saw for less than 200.00. I did add a 1/2 grinder and put a buffing wheel on one side, left a grinding wheel on one side. Oh do yourself a favor and buy a good Dremel tool. Add a respirator as a must have.

Add Clamps, few hand saws, Files, couple of vises. clamp or vise for your drill press couple of ball peens, and good tri wet stone.

Things you may want is good wood band saw.

These Integrals were done on grizzly, not bad for 400.00 Grinder.

personal opinion , but a Coote is a better option than the grizzly.
http://www.cootebeltgrinder.com/prices.html

add step pulleys and a motor and you are in business.

Some guys like to run their grinder wide open , and yes it does remove metal fast , IF you have the control to deal with it. Many I have seen don't , and they end up wrecking more steel in the learning phase.

2 friends both bought grizzly's , one weekend at my place and they were wishing for a slower machine. A few months later , they both bought Bader's.

The versatily of a KMG or a no weld grinder kit is heads and shoulders above the 2 wheel grinder setups. No small wheel option on the the grizz , the Coote does off a small wheel adapter.

Find some makers in your area , see if you can try the different machines before you buy. The best thing to do before you buy is ask around , you will find majority of the makers are willing to share info.

Educate us why is the Cootes, KMG and NWG better? Why is he getting a better value for his dollar. The man want to spend his money wisely. If he bought a KMG, Bader, NWG or Cootes would you buy it from him if he didn't like it for what he paid for it. I am so sure of Grizzly as First class machine. If he don't like it I will buy it from him for what he paid for it.

You are kidding right ? If you can't see how the KMG or No Weld Grinder is better value for his $$$ , then you must not have been paying attention to the folks on KnifeDogs much.

The Grizz is ok , but it is so limiting , why both with so many options. The Grizz runs too fast , when the motor burns out then what ? And I have used one before , it is an OK starter grinder , but it cost just a little bit more to get a much more versatile machine.

Why would I want to buy it from him ? I am already working on a 2nd machine ( a NWG) to put along side the Bader , why ? Cause the more the better.

Like I said , opinions vary , which is why I suggested he try BEFORE he buys anything. Heck he might not like either of our suggestions. The best way to make a decision , is to make an educated decision. I tried both the Grizz and the Bader before I purchased , to me the Bader was worth saving for , so I did , others may have a diff opinion.

Knifemakers are never limited by their tools. They are only limited by their minds. Watch Tim Lively make a knife without a grinder, in his video Knifemaking Unplugged.

The KMG is the best bang for the buck. If you do your shopping you can find a 1HP motor for a decent price and pick up a VS controller along the way. Variable isn't a must but it sure grades out the learning curve.

Anymore you're going to need a decent 2x72 if you're even remotely serious about stock-removal knifemaking. Add a drill press, a bandsaw, a good vise and a variable Dremel tool and you got the basics. Harbor Freight sells a sub $200 bandsaw that should be peachy. Do not underestimate the Dremel!

A buffer is overrated. I handrub all my blades so from the grinder I go right to the vise. All I have for a buffer is a cheap Ryobi bench grinder I've outfitted with a buffer wheel on one side and a Scotchbrite on the other for breaking edges.

Edit: just read the last two posts. Sure, you could make knives with a file and a hot fire, but for a couple grand worth of equipment, you're a semi-pro. In addition, I've been away from the knifemaking game for the last few years and I use that big ol' grinder every week for home projects. But that may be saying something about my handyman skills...

P.S. JTW deserves a kick in the pants. On general principle.

One can use as primitive tools as one is comfortable with , will a KMG or Bader make you a knife maker right away ? Not hardly , you still need to develop the talent to utilize it.

Are there plenty of nice knives being made with a $140 Sears 2 x 42 ? You bet.

Making a knife is not just about what you use to remove metal or how fast or slow you can remove it. I have had friends come over to the shop who know a lot of stuff ABOUT knives , and have read so much and watch so many DVD's , they thought it would come easy to them. Only one has finished a knife , and he is now finishing his 50th or so knife.

I started with a couple 1x42's and a couple 4x36's , cause that was all I could afford at the time , I didnt make any knives with them , but I did mod enuff production knives to pay for the Bader pretty quickly.

The Bader is nice , the KMG is equally as nice , and many of the no weld grinders are just as nice and functional. There is a rumor over on Knifedogs about a grinder KIT , in the works , between Tracy Mickley and Great Lakes Waterjet. Certainly another option worth looking into.

Hit the various knife forums and search , Bladeforums shop talk area , Knifeforums , CKG , Knifedogs , etc. Plenty of info out there , you just have to be willing to put in the time , read and weigh what works for you.

ZERO KNIVES ? Ram ? Can't be....

One school of thought is to never let your tools hold you back.

It's all stock removal in the end

My Grizzly broke after using it for 3 months, then I sucked it up, sold a few custom knives I had in the case, bought my KMG and gear, and havent looked back in almost 7 years.

I dont like the Grizz cuz mine broke at the welds up top, but I still use it for the buffer. Hahahaah.

Buy what you like...F- the bozos

While a band saw is nice , I can profile a blank from bar stock way faster on the grinder , than I can cut it out on the bandsaw

True that JTW!! Me too.

Dunno if you have considered it, but for sheer fun I would recommend making yourself an anvil, forge, and try hammering out some knives in the forge from old mill files and rasps and such. They make excellent knives and this approach, in my opinion, is a much more satisfactory process (personally) than grinding metal into a knife shape from pre-bought steel

It seems like too industrial of a process for me... like im manufacturing something rather than making it.

Plus, great thing about hammering out your own knives is you can use railroad spikes, files and tons of other old hunks of worthless metal as opposed to having to shell out $$ for new stock every time.

And with this approach you can make longer blades, hawks, and other funky stuff without having to buy appropriate stock either. Just hammer it thinner/longer... and it's all quite cheap and easy.

I advise you to check out THIS site, best knifemaking site I know (among tons of other subforums, like archery and primitive weaponry and sucl)

http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/forums/28/t/Bladesmithing-Knifemaking.html

Think about it!

You may profie faster on the grinder, but that's because you have a lousy bandsaw. My big one profiles way better than the old HF one did. In fact you should buy it JTW!

The one that was so great it dam near took off your hand ? hehe....

You never said how much you wanted for it either.... but I am on the fence about adding either : horizontal grinder , HT oven or saying to hell with it and getting a new D-SLR

I buy steel that is sized just wide enuff to make the knife from , if I was using wider sheets , I could see where it would be beneficial to use a better bandsaw , but when I can profile a blank out of a bar of 1 1/2" wide steel in under a minute , that is close enuff for me