All About Pocket Knives

ronjeez,
to AAPK!
The friendliest knife site on the web.

Here is a link to the Grizzly grinder. (I think that is what you are looking for).
I really like mine! It sure cuts production time

http://grizzly.com/products/Knife-Belt- ... ffer/G1015

Welcome aboard,
Dale

Time to bump this topic:

Here's my latest shop tool, a 50lb. Little Giant. After a complete re-build shes ready to rumble......................

Looks good Gary!
Did you have to pour an extra thick concrete slab to put it on?

I would love to see that thing when you get 'er fired up!

Dale

I'm a little concerned about the slab...................I'll just have to keep an eye on it!

Hopefully within a year (or two) we'll be out of here and I'll have a real shop!

Gary she's a beut! I'd love to have one of them. Or a press. Now show us some knives made on that baby!

I'm on it here shortly Craig! Hopefully I'll have some handles mounted up by Sunday....................



Got this other CRAP to get out of the way first.

I got a great Stiddy from Dale, but I found another one made on the specs found in Ben Kelly's book. I paid $185.00 plus shipping for it ($205.00 total) Here's the guy that had a machinist make a batch of 20. There's a feature article on this anvil, with pictures, in Knife World mag. about 3 or 4 issues back. I'm sure Mike would email pictures of this Stiddy to anyone that needs one. He is making his second batch of 20 now. Hope this helps

Mike Spors
18934 Isben Rd
Sparta, WI 54656
608-366-1160
[email protected]

You guys inspire me! I don't have much space ( basically a converted utility room) but I stack a lot of equipment in it. I have most of my machines mounted on blocks so I can move them to my main workbench as needed. I also am posting a couple of pictures os some of the tools I use, a couple of Stiddys, and for the guys that like to do it themselves, a homemade 1X42 belt grinder that I picked up for $10.00. Most of my equipment is from garage sales and pawn shops. I have a good 2X48 Kalamazoo grinder, 3 1X42 belt grinders, a 1X42 grinder for sharpening, and a variety of large and small buffers and grinders, drill presses, and etc. There's barely room for the knives and me! I'm going to attempt to put some pictures here for the first time. Wish me luck

Here's a few more pics.

Knives4Sale,

That's got to be one of the most organized looking shops I've seen.

Maybe I'll post some pics of mine, for a good laugh for everybody

Glenn

Hey K4S.........................

You inspire me, look at that shop! You certainly have all the tools.

Thanks. I have the tools, but developing the skills, while working full time selling heavy equipment, is the problem. I've got enough project knives to keep me well into retirement, if that ever happens in this economy. I learn a lot from the tutorials on AAPK and reading everyone's shop tips. I look at some of Kaleb and Dale's work and wonder if I'll ever get to that level of skill. One day at a time. Right now I've got about 60 knives ready to sell at a gun show or on ebay. Mostly just cleaned up and sharpened USA Schrade, Buck, and etc. Post pictures and tips from your shops, it really helps!

K4S,
Your shop looks well organized........and clean! How long does it last when you start working in there?
Mine only looks that way when I clean it up & take some pics to remind me what it looks like under all the sanding belts, rags, knife parts, shipping boxes etc., that always seem to get scattered all over every flat surface (and some that are not so flat).

I think my dogs are really the ones who mess up the shop as punishment for leaving them out there when I am in the house.
I just have not figured out how they can reach the stuff on the benches and the stuff hanging on the peg board!

Dale

orvet wrote:K4S,
Your shop looks well organized........and clean! How long does it last when you start working in there?
Mine only looks that way when I clean it up & take some pics to remind me what it looks like under all the sanding belts, rags, knife parts, shipping boxes etc., that always seem to get scattered all over every flat surface (and some that are not so flat).

Glad i'm not the only one. I'm a werkin on it tho

What amazes me is how many creative ways there are to hang belt sander belts!

Dale

Not in it's best form; a day or twos worth of dust but fairly clean . Kinda cramped for space, need to get some more tubes for my pinstock. Oh well it works! Any questions just ask. No heat ducts running out there so a little radiator heater keeps things nice and toasty out there. Always warmer in there than the rest of the house!

Lookin good...................you seem to get a lot of work done in your cramped space!

I have an anvil/stedy made from track just like that!

I'm kind of a nut about organization. I mess up the shop while I'm working in it, but before I leave, it's cleaned and everything is put back in it's place. I don't have much time to work in the shop, so everything has to be in it's place so I don't waste time looking for what I need in the short time I have. Yesterday was spent cleaning up and sharpening about 40 USA Schrade and other old ebay knives so I can get ready for the Copper State Cutlery Association knife show on May 1st. I've given up on ebay for selling. Now it's gun shows, local knife shows, and word of mouth for all of my sales. Next Saturday, I finally get to work on re-handleing a couple of old Buck 110's. Thanks for all of your help and info.

K4S,
I see you have a couple Baldor Motors, one on a buffer and one on a grinder.
Those Baldors are the best! Smoothest motors I have used!
I wish I had one. I have a Jet Buffer and a Jet grinder (I bought it at a garage sale for $25).
Jet buffer is pretty smooth, but Baldor is much better, much smoother, but also 3 to 4 times the price!

Dale

I bought the buffer Baldor new on ebay a couple of years ago, after saving for a year. The next week, I found the other one, on a stand, with 3 new burnishing wheelsand 2 buffing wheels, for $20.00 at a garage sale! You're right, they are the best tools in the shop. I also bought the Kalamazoo 2X48 grinder new when I had a knife sharpening business in Utah. Other than that, the other machines are all second hand garage sale, Craigs List, or pawn shop finds.

I thought I'd snap a few shots of the shop while I was waiting for the heater to warm up this morning as it has taken on a few changes. My shop is a constant work in progress, I'm always adding to and even sometimes taking away from it to mold it to better suit my needs. I have plans for a bigger exhaust system, new flooring (the old stuff is particle board and it feels like you'll fall through the floor if you walk too hard LOL, I've got a couple vices that need mounting yet and I'd like to swap the sanders out for a 1x42" for restoration and a 2x72" for knife making.

This is the inside shop, where all the hand work, shipping prep, and leatherwork is done. This is the view from the doorway.

My main desk, as you can see most tools and materials are close at hand, hammers, files, punches, dremel and accesories, pin stock, liner stock ect.

To the right in the shipping desk, I keep my laptop set up in here on a wireless network so I can respond to messages all day long while I'm in the shop, it's also good to have it handy in case I need reference, all shipping labels and such are nearby, to the left of the shipping desk in a screwdriver rack, I almost never use a screwdriver when working on a knife but it's sure nice to have them handy when working on a gun! The small wooden shelf is not yet full but soon will be, reference material on top, molds, bench blocks and vice jaws. the rack to the left holds forms, customers notes and reciepts.

The shelf just above holds a wide array of chemicals, everything from glue to liquid latex for mold making.

The leather working bench is not very exciting.

Drawers in the desk hold sandpaper, stamps and boxes containing shields, dremel accesories, rivits, screws ect.


Go through the next door and you have the grinding area where all the messiest work is done. Belt sanders, disk sanders, bandsaw, buffer, drill presses ect. The houses heating ducts do not run into this room so I keep it about 70 degrees with a little radiator heater. Having trouble keeping it warm this year so I'm going to work on insulation in the spring. I'll get it sealed up real good, nothing between me and the elements except for 1/4" white fiber board, a 1" layer of tongue and groove and a bit of aluminum siding! No insulation at all.

Close the door behind you, turn around and I have spare bandsaw blades, mallets, hammers and stick with numbers.

And to your left is built in shelving holding thousands of knives and parts.

The file cabinet in the left corner of the previous picture contains handle materials.
micarta and acrylics

raw antler

raw bone

I also have another smaller plastic cabinet that holds:
finished bone and stag rounds

a little wood

a lotta stag

Fixed blade patterns hanging to the right of the disk sanders

Accessory shelf by the drill press, the blue cummins drill press is set up especially for pin spinning


Simple lean to dust catch for the buffer also keeps spare compounds handy and out of the way

a basket of wood

A repairman needs plenty of parts on hand!



Any questions? just ask!

Happy to see someone post in here again. Thanks for the tour Kaleb. I seen some really good ideas. Thanks!

WOW - Just read this thread and your shops are great!! I need to go clean up a little and then
I will post some pics of where I intend to get started with my knife kit. I had alot of questions about tools
and equipment and most of them were answered just by seeing what is in your work spaces. Thanks.

I do have a question, I see people taliknig about 'stabilizing' an old knife or knife parts. Anyone care to
elaborate on this? Do you soak the knife? In what? For how long? What handles can be soaked? Etc, etc.

Thank you,
Trevor

Wood, bone, ivory, etc., are stabilized by drawing a certain type of resin through them in a vacuum.
Softer woods like maple, pine or even balsa can be stabilized and hardened to where it makes a suitable knife handle. I have not heard of stabilizing knife parts.

Thanks Dale, I appreciate that. I read on this site that someone was recommending
using an old spice jar to 'soak' a knife. What liquid would you soak a knife in and for
what purpose. Anyway, I will look around and I am sure I can google it too.

Thanks again Dale,
Trevor