Ron Benson

Hey Josh - I just remembered that they had us hand sanding as soon as the blades were cool enough to handle directly from the kiln. I guess it's all they could do in a one day course...

Thanx Joshua.

Thanx and good luck. You don't need to take a class, but is sure boosts confidence. Thanx - it's on the second round of tempering now... Thanx for the clarification. Thanx - I would like to eventually start forging, but I'm not sure my shoulder or elbow will allow.

As some here know, I have been mostly lurking here since last summer as I get my wood shop reassembled and prepare to venture into making knives. I attended a one day stock removal for beginners class yesterday in Richmond VA. The lead instructor, (of three), was Brent Stubblefield of Join or Die Knives. Some of you may recognize his name because he competed in Forged in Fire. The class started with introductions followed by a brief technical and safety talk. Then down to business as each of the eight students was handed a piece of 1084, (1.5" x 8" x 1/8"). One of the instructors made a knife along with us to demonstrate technique. Everyone here knows the drill, but here is a brief synopsis - draw a pattern, cut it out on a bandsaw, grind to shape, mark the center of the edge, grind the sides flat, grind the bevel, heat treat, and sand. aaaand temper. We didn't have time to temper, so most decided to cord wrap after tempering at home. I still have to move my table saw and wood lathe to the shop, and I will have to either replace or repair the feed rollers on the planer, so it will be a while before I put a handle on the blade I made. Was it worthwhile? For me, the answer is yes. I learned making a stock removal knife ain't hard, but doing it right will take a while to master. Thanks to the info I have gathered here, (mostly), and elsewhere, there were no surprises, and I now have the confidence to move forward in this new adventure. And finally, a big thank you to all here who so freely share their knowledge. Lots of the info is still beyond me, but by reading topics - even long ones - that are beyond me currently, I may pick up one nugget that I understand and can use. (After looking at my blade in good light, I see that I still have more sanding to do...)

I see!

my first post in this topic as I get closer to attempting my first stock removal knife. I've been working on getting the shop ready to move woodworking equipment in, and I have made a stand for the 2 x 72 grinder. I have also been moving wood into the shop, (all the tools and the wood have been in a cousin's barn for 25+ years , and I didn't remember what I had). Here are two photos of most of the wood. There are lots of varieties of domestic and imported hardwoods. I don't think I will need to buy any wood for handles for a while...

I wish I could "like" more than once.

Thanx again all. I finished the stand today except I'm going to put some polyurethane on the top and the shelf just to make cleaning easier. It's a bit on the heavy side, so I won't mount the grinder until I have gotten all the woodworking tools from my cousin. That way I will be able to put the stand where it will, (hopefully), stay. Ron

Congrats on her interest. Please make sure you contact the school for permission before she shows up with a "weapon".

If voting really made a difference It would be illegal...

Thanx a bunch Adam. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Gerhard - I have thought about doing that. It wouldn't be hard to do with a hinge on the mounting plate, you could easily turn the grinder and motor 90*. I do wonder about stability of the hinge though. And since I have zero experience using a 2 X 72 grinder, I don't know what the advantage would be. I do know the crappy little 2 X 42 grinder I have had for some time is a pain to use. For now, I'm just going to bolt the grinder and motor to a 3/4" plywood base and mount that on some legs. I sure do wish I had my tablesaw available. That would make construction much easier and probably more accurate.

Thanx all for the comments - keep 'em coming. Alan - that's what I assumed the height should be, and that's about 43" for me. I'm planning on a wood frame with 4" X 4" legs and 2" X 4" horizontals. I will make one shelf that extends under the platen at the proper height for a bucket. It will probably have one additional shelf to gather junk and sanding dust. Cody - I like those casters, and I have a $50 gift cert. from Rockler's.

My OBM grinder arrived yesterday, so I can build a stand for it now. However, I'm looking for advice on what makes a good stand. I assume the tool rest should be at a comfortable working height? Should I include a shelf for a water bucket, and if so, should it be to the side or under the belt? Would being over sized be helpful? I could set blades in progress or tools on it. Maybe on one end of a larger bench would be better? Anything else I should be aware of? I have a fairly complete set of woodworking equipment, but it's in a relative's barn, and I am waiting for him to have time to bring the equipment to me, so I only have a chop saw and a circular saw at the moment. Thanx ~ Ron

Is your wood kiln dried or something else? It sounds like excessive moisture in the wood to me.