Messages

Thanks Van and Ken for getting tormek to start production of the new US-430. Is there a way to "pre-order" one? I would hate to miss the boat on it if it's a limited time production!

Antz

So I finally got around to completing my pivot collar. Welded some 316 stainless steel rod to a 12mm 316 stainless clamping collar. It wasn't to hard for my first try. Here's some pics. I tried it out on several knives it works great. Much easier to get even bevels all the way to the tip. Thank you all for your advice and for paving the way for people like me.

Thanks,
Antz

Rich, Elden,

It was a semi aggressive true. I'm guessing a little over half a millimeter. What I normally do is lower the usb until the tooth touches the wheel, then slide it off to the side and lower the bar a little over one number on the micro adjust then true. I've done it before without that happening. Next time I'll practice a little more patience and see if it has a better result. Good to know though Rich that it's most likely cosmetic and won't affect function. I was thinking the chipped areas might catch a knife blade and nick it. Heres a photo of the chips.

Thanks,
Antz

Ps: still figuring out the photo attachment function. Sorry for the giant picture.

Has this happened to anyone before? I was trueing my SG wheel and it was going perfectly until I reached the far edge of the stone, right when the trueing tooth was leaving the wheel it blew out the edge leaving some pretty massive chips. I'm pretty upset about it because I can't use that edge of the stone for small curves now unless I true off a lot more material. Did I do something wrong?? Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks,
Antz

Alf,

My table is 22" high and 27"x27" width. It also has heavy duty locking casters. I sit on a 24" high stool to work. If I were to build another one I would make the table about 20" inches high instead of 22". I also would make it about 14"x14" width so when I'm sitting up close I can easily have my knees on each side of the table (more like a custom pedestal than a table). Hope that helps.

Antz

Very nice Mat! I too am using Wootz methods. Pretty much exactly what you're doing. You made that extended jig rests yourself? Very nice.

Antz

Dusmif,

I will mostly use my t4 for knives and when I have to take it somewhere. At first I was apprehensive about getting the t4 for the same reason as you (the 30 min duty time) but I used it already for over an hour straight with no issues or over heating. I think Ken has been pointing out that the 30 min duty time is a leftover from the t3 days when they had plastic housings. I think going an hour or so on the t4 is no issue. My t8 will stay on one spot, I built a special table for it that's about knee high so I can use it while sitting. I just did a bunch of chisels today that had to be completely resurrected so I used my t8. It took almost one and a half hours for two chisels! I wish I could most some before and after photos but I haven't figured that part of the forum out yet.

Antz

Also I sounds like you do a lot of woodworking tools so I think you made a wise choice with the t8. My opinion is for mobile knife sharpening the t4 is plenty enough and a lot easier to lug around.

Ken,

Very interesting about possibly using a 10 inch paper or felt wheel on the t4. Did you mean "without" the water trough? I will most definitely file that under my future projects list as well (it'll probably be a while as my wife is on my case for purchasing the tormeks...). But I've been doing pretty well business wise considering it's just a part time venture. I've almost made half my money back towards the cost of the equipment. About the 15 knives a day, I'm sure the t4 is more than capable of exceeding that number by a lot. I can't really describe how satisfied I am with it, it's such a great portable machine.

Antz

So I decided to get a t-4 in addition to my t8. I wanted a more portable option for going mobile as the t8 is deceptively heavy, especially with the wheel saturated with water.

I received it yesterday and set it up. I ordered it from amazon and when I opened the box I realized they had packed the tormek t4 UPSIDE DOWN the whole time during shipping (Tormek Box was upside down in amazon box and shipped). I was worried something would be wrong but after setting it up it ran just fine to my relief. Only issue was the SG200 wheel was severely out of round. I had to true off about 3mm to get it flat and true.

First thing I noticed was the considerable weight difference, it's so much lighter than a t8 and I love  the compact size. Also with the smaller wheel I don't end up wetting my shirt leaning over the machine. It had plenty of power to do knives (primarily what I do) doesn't bog down at all. I sharpened 3 knives on it, one being a super thick SOG survival knife that needed to be completely rebeveled. It worked like a champ. I had no problems on the skinnier t4 grinding wheel. It performed and did the job just as fast as my t8 would have.

My honest opinion now that I own both a t8 and a t4 is you can't go wrong with either one. I literally  LOVE my new t4. It's just such a more convenient size and perfect for knife sharpening. I ran it for about an hour continuously and it never felt any hotter than my t8 runs (so much for the 30min duty time). Honestly I can actually see myself using the t4 more often than the t8. I am VERY pleased with the t4. If anyone is just focused on sharpening knives of a reasonable volume (15 or so a day) I would definitely recommend saving some money and buying a t4. There is no way you will be disappointed. Now if you have higher volume of knives or lots of turning tools and planer blades I would definitely get the t8.

Hope this post will be helpful advice to anyone deciding between the two.

Antz

I'm resurrecting this thread because I found it all pretty funny and I've done almost all of those things except stab myself (sorry Rick). Here's a blooper for you guys. So I'm sharpening a small pairing knife for my friend as he waits in the shop. As he's waiting he's chasing around a mosquito that's driving him crazy. I just finish the knife and do one final light pass to get as much burr of as possible, as I'm lifting the knife of the stone he comes chasing the mosquito in my direction. He's so focused on the mosquito he dosnt realize what he's doing and shoots me right in the face with Raid bug spray. I fumble the knife still in the jig which falls tip first onto the top of the grinding wheel simultaneously gouging the wheel and chipping off the tip of his knife.So now I'm pissed, I got bug spray in my face and a nice big gouge on my grinding wheel.

I had to true off about 2mm of stone and there's still about another 1mm of gouge left. Needless to say I didn't fix the tip of his knife  .

Antz

Ps: I actually would have fixed the tip if he asked me but he felt pretty bad and said not to worry about it. He's an AC tech and just used the knife to cut insulation for pipes.

Dusmif,
I recently sharpened a Filipino bolo knife about the same thickness as your Bowie. The bevels will be way off as in several degrees. I don't have a modified jig so my solution was to use the angle finder every time I flipped the knife over and recalibrate the support bar to the same angle on each side. It was a pain but with patience it turned out pretty darn even and razor sharp. I'm not recommending what I did. Do as I say and not as I do. Also I wouldn't sharpen a sentimental family knife (if that is what is is) as your first knife. Took me about 15 or so knives before I started feeling confident on the machine. Just my .02¢.

Best of luck,
Antz

Ps: maybe I just have a longer learning curve than others. I'm not trying to discourage you in anyway. Best of luck

Ken,
Yes farmers market work should be a balance between quality and speed (bronze level). Higher end sharpening for particular people I would probably do on a weekend or at home. But thanks to Wootz work (and others) we can all have that premium level available at a premium price.

Rich,
I love the way you laid out the gold/silver/bronze service comparison. Now if I could only fit that all on a business card...

Thanks,
Antz

Hi everyone,

Question about leather wheel care. Where I store my t-8 is in an industrial steel warehouse. There's no ac and during the day it's probably a constant mid 90 degree dry heat if not hotter. Will this dry out my leather wheel fairly quickly? And if so should I be stripping the compound and oiling the leather more frequently than most users?

Thanks,
Antz

Dusmif,

When I first got mine there was no lubrication needed for the shaft. As John said just oil the leather wheel and apply a generous amount of compound and even it out with something flat like a chisel or side of a butter knife. On mine anyway I had to use more oil on the leather than the recommended 2/3 tube, I had to use almost the whole tube.

Antz

PS: don't throw away the shipping sleeve that came on the shaft! You'll need it if you want to run the machine without the stone and just the leather wheel. Just remove the stone and put the sleeve back on and tighten the eze lock. It'll keep the shaft from shifting. Trust me I learned the hard way.

Jeff,

Sorry I should have been more clear on my answer. The variable speed Veil is a custom machine that you would have to put together yourself as Ken stated. Steve's sight at sharpeningmadeeasy.com is the only place that sells the mounting plate and pulley for the modified Veil and you would have to order the motor and controller separately. But the cost is not extravagant. Ken just posted that the link on sharpening made easy sight was missing but lucky for me I bookmarked it https://sharpeningmadeeasy.com/belt.htm

The variable speed version is listed under "DIY sander specials"

You might want to send Steve Botoroff an e-mail to check if he has the parts in stock as that could be why he took the link down.

Antz