All About Pocket Knives

Wow Wayne, that shop is huge compared to mine!!
I wish I had so much floor space, that is awesome!
I also love your metal cabinets with the metal drawers, those are so handy! I just picked up a smaller one with 9 drawers that now sets at the back of me main work bench. I constructed my bench deeper than is really useable so I could put some storage behind it, that way I don't have to move around as much.
Great shop and nice use of the space !


Mike, a shop that is used is just controlled chaos! If you get organized from time to time It makes it easier to re-order the chaos when you finish some projects. I don't clean after every project but I do try to straighten things up at least weekly. When I start losing valuable time and energy looking for things in the chsos, I know it is time to clean.

orvet wrote:
Mike, a shop that is used is just controlled chaos! If you get organized from time to time It makes it easier to re-order the chaos when you finish some projects. I don't clean after every project but I do try to straighten things up at least weekly. When I start losing valuable time and energy looking for things in the chaos, I know it is time to clean.

Well..... that's a good philosophy. Too many times I walk away after the day is done.
I usually clean up during projects....... When the chaos is piled too high in my work area.....LOL.

After almost impaling myself a few times I have given up on mounting polishing wheel onto a grinder motor - it is just too fast! Then I found these polishing wheels at a local import store (not Harbor Freight, but a Mom-n-Pop store with similar stuff). I chuck this into the drill press, set it on a lower speed, and it does a great job of polishing without being dangerous!!
Plus they are only about $3 each, so I have separate wheels for different compounds, and separate wheels for metal as opposed to bone or wood.

I have found some similar on Amazon, only theirs are tapered and mine are cylindrical, if anyone is interested.
Swpeet 5 Pcs Cone-Shaped White Flannelette Polishing Wheel Grinding Head with 1/4" Handle for Metal Aluminum/Stainless Steel/Chrome/Jewelry/Wood/Plastic/Ceramic/Glass https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073DY41QV/re ... jEbAE862P2

Thanks for showing those Reverand!
I still like my polishing wheels but I can see a use for those too.

Meridian_Mike wrote: ↑Tue Jan 21, 2020 12:33 pm Thanks for showing those Reverand!
I still like my polishing wheels but I can see a use for those too.

I have used a friend's low-speed Baldor polisher, and it works great. I would far prefer one of those, but I just cannot afford one right now.

Here’s my small and humble basement workspace, everything’s down there except the grinders and sanders. The 4” x 36” and 2” x 72” grinder/sanders just throw off too much dust for the basement with my current ventilation.

Nice, neat shop Jeff!
It's a little too neat, I would probably not be able to find anything there, and it wouldn't be neat for long if I was working there!

LOL! Well I cleaned up the area a bit for the photo.
Like most of ya’ll I tend to have things laying everywhere when Im working. But it drives me crazy when I have to stop to look for something so Im trying to be neater.
One biggie for me is the gap under the lower shelf, when I drop something it ALWAYS goes under that dang shelf which means I have to get the flashlight out and get down on the floor to see if I can find it.
Jeff

Jeffinn wrote: ↑Wed Jan 29, 2020 1:02 am LOL! Well I cleaned up the area a bit for the photo.
Like most of ya’ll I tend to have things laying everywhere when Im working. But it drives me crazy when I have to stop to look for something so Im trying to be neater.
One biggie for me is the gap under the lower shelf, when I drop something it ALWAYS goes under that dang shelf which means I have to get the flashlight out and get down on the floor to see if I can find it.
Jeff

I know what you mean about dropping things. When I do it, the object falls and hits the toe of my shoe and goes all the way back to the wall under the bench. The next time I get in to see the orthopedic surgeon, I am going to ask him about having my feet reversed so this does not happen anymore. lol

I like the bucket trick for your polishing wheels..... I need to do that for mine.
Right now, I just throw dust and particles all over the place.....LOL

I just started working on knives ,mainly just replacing handles on old fixed blade knives.I stopped at an estate sale today but they had no knives, the garage was packed with stuff,I was looking through some drawers and they were filled with bronze,brass,copper and nickle silver sheets and other metals,hope to put some to knife use. I filled up a box that weighed at least 50 lbs. for $25.

Nice score KG!
Looks like a bargain price too!

knifegnome wrote: ↑Sun Mar 22, 2020 1:48 am I just started working on knives ,mainly just replacing handles on old fixed blade knives.I stopped at an estate sale today but they had no knives, the garage was packed with stuff,I was looking through some drawers and they were filled with bronze,brass,copper and nickle silver sheets and other metals,hope to put some to knife use. I filled up a box that weighed at least 50 lbs. for $25.

That is a treasure trove!

Nice score on the metal!
I agree.... that is a treasure trove of goodies!

Well, I got my roof fixed. So, I figured I needed to put a good layer of Kilz on the areas that had suffered a little water damage. SO... before I knew it, I had built in a new set of shelves, put up new LED lights and reorganized my bench.
Please excuse the poor pictue, my wife was snapping pics with her phone..
Here I am standing there as proof I made it through the ordeal....
. .
And here is main working area. I still have the old florescent light over that area.
. .
And a shot of the new shelves where my heater once stood.
. .
Now, I am in a bad need to get back to work on some knives!!

Nice setup, Mike! Wish I could reclaim enough area, in my garage, to set up a "shop". Usually do most of my stuff out on the porch, when weather cooperates

Doc B wrote: ↑Mon Mar 23, 2020 1:15 pm Nice setup, Mike! Wish I could reclaim enough area, in my garage, to set up a "shop". Usually do most of my stuff out on the porch, when weather cooperates

I guess I am blessed to have an enclosed shop. I hope I have it in shape for a while after my latest efforts.

Nice shop setup Mike! You look well organized.

Byrd wrote: ↑Mon Mar 23, 2020 3:52 pm Nice shop setup Mike! You look well organized.

LOL..... until it turns into a mess.... then it is organized chaos!

You have quite a bit of shop space, Mike. I'm jealous!

glennbad wrote: ↑Wed Mar 25, 2020 5:32 pm You have quite a bit of shop space, Mike. I'm jealous!

LOL.... having more shop space just means you can pile more STUFF in it....

As I have indicated in some of my recent posts under other topics, I have started to do some knife repair on a few knives of mine and a couple of my son's knives. I do not plan to get into this in a big way, just repair the few knives I have. Also, I do not want to bear the cost of setting up a shop as some of you have done. I have a good selection of hand tools and some power tools, but one thing I do not have is a belt sander.
I came across a Central Machinery 1 in. X 30 in. belt sander. It works up to 3260fpm. It has a tilting table that adjusts from 0 degrees to 45 degrees. I would plan to use it to shape scales (handles) and possibly some other light duty tasks. The cost is under $50, which isn't bad since I'm sure I could use it for other things as well.
Does anyone have any thoughts or input on this item? Would it be a waste of money? Are there other belt sanders out there in a similar price range that are better?
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Jerry Johnson

A 1” x 30” belt sander is great for shaping knife handles etc. Get yourself a good selection of belts in various grits and you’ll be good to go.
Jeff

If I'm not mistaken for a few dollars more Harbor Freight also offers a 1" X 42" belt sander.
The extra 12" in the length makes the belt last considerably longer and run cooler.
You will also have a better choice of types of abrasive material on the belts in the longer belt, although that is beginning to change as TruGrit.com has a much better selection than they used to have for the 1" X 30" belts. Other companies are beginning to carry more variety of abrasives in the smaller belts.

Here is their selection of 1 X 30 belts:
https://trugrit.com/product-category/ab ... -size/1x30 belts.

Check out what they have in 30" belts and compare them against the 2 X 42 and then you can make a decision based on what you think will serve your needs the best.

Congratulations on getting into knife repair, THE MOST ADDICTIVE aspect of knife collecting!

orvet wrote: ↑Wed Jun 17, 2020 12:36 am If I'm not mistaken for a few dollars more Harbor Freight also offers a 1" X 42" belt sander.
The extra 12" in the length makes the belt last considerably longer and run cooler.

I agree with Dale.
I have a 1"x30" and the belts just don't last very long.
The 1"x42" belts will last longer. (I now have one of those on my bench also)