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Post by legacyofthesword on Jan 3, 2018 7:09:46 GMT
I need a belt grinder to make swords and knives (and other blades) by stock removal (or for finishing after forging). I want a cheap one (obviously) but I don't want something that falls apart on me, so I'm willing to pay a little extra if I have to to insure functionality. I've seen this grinder suggested a lot: www.harborfreight.com/1-in-x-30-in-belt-sander-60543.html Would it be a good grinder to make swords and whatnot with? Thanks.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Jan 3, 2018 8:15:14 GMT
Way to small.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jan 3, 2018 13:31:25 GMT
If you're making swords for mice, then yes, that would be an excellent grinder for the task. Anything under about 1.5 hp is going to be an exercise in frustration. A 2 x 72 belt grinder is probably the most commonly used for sword and knife makers and is very useful due to the interchangeability of the wheels and platens. Building one yourself will likely be several hundred dollars at least, and buying a good one will be easily over $1k. You can get one of the smaller vertical belt grinders for a few hundred dollars, though you will be sacrificing a lot of functionality.
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Aikidoka
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Monstrous monk in training...
Posts: 1,451
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Post by Aikidoka on Jan 3, 2018 17:59:50 GMT
If you get a good one, it will work well enough for sharpening swords. But at that price point, the quality control is not great and I know a couple of people who bought those 1x30 sanders where the pulleys were not properly positioned and the belts couldn't be tightened properly. The belts were so loose that control over the edge angle is next to impossible. I got lucky with mine in that the belts are super tight. With high quality 3M Trizact belts, I can create very sharp edges on my blades with very good control over the edge angle. But for large scale grinding when creating sword blades through stock removal, the belts are too small and the motor is under-powered, as fallen and brotherbanzai stated. Unless of course...
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Post by legacyofthesword on Jan 3, 2018 18:27:17 GMT
Haha, this is why I asked....
To be honest, I thought it seemed a little small. As I'm not planning on making mouse swords, could anyone suggest a good grinder for making human sized swords?
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Aikidoka
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Monstrous monk in training...
Posts: 1,451
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Post by Aikidoka on Jan 3, 2018 19:00:29 GMT
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jan 4, 2018 1:47:49 GMT
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Post by legacyofthesword on Jan 4, 2018 1:56:14 GMT
*whistles* Guess I'll have to start saving up then....
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jan 4, 2018 2:01:57 GMT
Yeah, they aren't cheap. But this is definitely one of those occasions where if you try a less expensive substitute, you'll just end up spending more later. You can do quite a lot with a regular old angle grinder and some mill files though. You could just do that until you have the funds for a decent grinder rather than dealing with the hassle of intermediary steps. If you did really want something cheaper, I would look at the vertical belt grinders, though in my mind they aren't enough cheaper to be worth the loss of utility. But that's me, you may have a different view.
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Post by legacyofthesword on Jan 4, 2018 2:09:56 GMT
Alright, I do have an angle grinder but I was having trouble with it. Guess I just need to practice more until I can afford a belt grinder.
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Post by Lukas MG (chenessfan) on Jan 4, 2018 16:59:55 GMT
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Aikidoka
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Monstrous monk in training...
Posts: 1,451
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Post by Aikidoka on Jan 4, 2018 22:38:57 GMT
Here is a very cool video by Adam Savage, formerly of MythBusters, where he creates an aluminum version of Excaliber using a belt grinder that he built for himself based off of Peter Lyon's linisher from Weta Workshop:
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Scott
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Post by Scott on Jan 4, 2018 22:48:43 GMT
From memory Brendan from fable blades started out using an angle grinder.
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Post by Jordan Williams on Jan 5, 2018 0:01:45 GMT
From memory Brendan from fable blades started out using an angle grinder. I've been using one as well. So far it's decent if you're careful, but easy to screw up. (Already ruined a butcher blade bayo inspired knife I was working on lol) I also have found that my 4x36 wen belt grinder is okay for making long passes to even out edges, but I've only used it for that twice so far. Good for smoothing out edge profiles I guess.
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Post by legacyofthesword on Jan 5, 2018 1:00:17 GMT
That's exactly what I was doing for a while and it worked great, but the belt grinder gave out right after I got this method figured out. Okay, so for now I think I'll grab one of those cheaper belt grinders and use that plus my angle grinder. Then if I get enough dough I can upgrade, but I'll have something to work with until then.
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