Recent posts

#1

General Tormek Questions / Re: Jig collar bumps leg of su...

Last post by Ken S - Yesterday at 10:56:38 PM

As for the US-430 not being part of the standard T8 delivery, I think that's a bit cheap.

I was involved in both the reintroduction of the US-400 and the US-430 and would like to  share what I learned from these processes:

The US-400 was originally part of the T-400, a specialized machine specifically designed for sharpening kitchen knives. The frame was longer than the standard Tormek. The longer  frame and the longer US-400 accommodated longer knives. Wootz (Vadim of Knife Grinders) was the first member to post about the US-400. He located and purchased one in Italy, quite a feat as Wootz lived in Australia. A small group of us, represented by forum member and Tormek dealer, Steve Bottorff, asked Tormek CEO, Håkan Persson to consider reintroduce it. Håkan agreed to produce a limited run. As I recall, it was for fifty units. These sold out quickly.

I emailed Håkan, suggesting that the US-400 would be amore useful tool if the legs were longer to accommodate taller cleavers. Håkan liked the idea and the US-430 was born and gifted me one of the first ones. I do not know whether I was the only one to make the suggestion.

The US-400 was never intended to be used with the regular Tormek models, even though it is compatable with them. The longer support is really only used in sharpening longer knives. Just as those who sharpen  knives exclusively occasionally complain about having  to pay for including the SE-77 with the T8, woodworkers might complain about paying to include a US-430.

I would classify the US-430, along with the rotating base and rubber work mat, as useful accessories where there is a need.

Ken

#2

Knife Sharpening / Re: Knife modification - Vinta...

Last post by kwakster - Yesterday at 10:16:21 PM

The knife has already proven to be a very effective short chopper during 2019 and 2020, with it's heavy convex blade in low alloy carbon steel combined with a stick tang covered in shock dampening rubber.

Still working on thinning the convex blade shape a hair more every now and then, slowly approaching that sweet spot where the edge bites at maximum depth while at the same time the blade doesn't get stuck during chopping, and the saw on the back works best.
I think i'm almost there.
Pics were taken in the woods surrounding my home town.

#3

Knife Sharpening / Knife modification - Vintage K...

Last post by kwakster - Yesterday at 10:15:07 PM

Vintage XL sawback scout knife manufactured by the no longer existing Solingen based firm of Kronenkrebs.
The stag handle was way too thick for my hands, and the low sabergrind geometry was far from ideal for it's intended use as a large allround camp knife / chopper.
The quality of the drop-forged steel in the blade however makes it worthwile for me to put in some elbow grease.
This is how the knife looked when i bought it:





First i ground the old "edge" flat on the Tormek SB-250 stone, then ground down the blade's center ridges on both sides with a Chinese 120 grit diamond file, then reshaped the blade from a low sabergrind into a full convex one with the help of a somewhat modified cheap Parkside linisher that can now also be used as a slack belt grinder.

This is the machine i have:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHvbVhnNuAU

Refining the blade surfaces as well as the actual forming & refining of the apex area was done by hand on grits 240 and 400 wet & dry paper using WD40 as a lubricant, while the burr was removed on the Tormek leather wheel.
The new apex can whittle a chest hair from hair root to hair tip @ about 30 degrees inclusive.
The grinding & sanding of the blade also automatically resharpened the sawback's teeth, and the full convex blade shape makes that the sawback is now the blade's thickest part, which reduces the chances of jamming when using it for sawing or notching.

The slack belt linisher also proved very useful for shaping a new handle made from 12 thick rubber washers, each one cut from an old piece of very wear resistant & triple fiber weave reinforced industrial conveyor belt.
The ground & shaped rubber has a very nice tactile feel to it and i suspect that it will also dampen shock quite effectively, which will aid it's use in it's intended role.
Also made a thick aluminium guard as a replacement for the factory installed useless piece of flimsy brass.
Guard & pommel are now permanently installed using 2-ton epoxy, while each rubber washer is glued to the next with a good rubber glue which stays flexible.

The knife is now ready for some field testing, and if that turns out satisfactory some more refining steps will follow.
This is how it currently looks (sheath has been waxed but still needs to be restitched):

























Specs:

Overall length: 33,5 cm (13.9 inch)
Blade length: 21,0 cm (8.27 inch)
Max blade thickness: 5,7 mm
Steel type: drop-forged low alloy carbon steel
Handle materials: Aluminium guard & pommel with rubber washers
Weight: 388 grams
Sheath: leather

#4

General Tormek Questions / Re: Knife Steel Nerds

Last post by BeSharp - Yesterday at 06:57:23 PM

Does anyone know of Magnacut chef knives ? Ideally a japanese yo-gyutou or the like... I couldn't find any, only pocket knives...

North Arm Knives here in Vancouver, BC, Canada makes kitchen knives out of Magnacut. Stumbled across them from sharpening some for a customer.

https://northarmknives.com/product/alder-8-inch-chefs-knife/#description

#5

Knife Sharpening / Re: Knife restoration - Kienel...

Last post by Rossy - Yesterday at 11:59:58 AM

Amazing job   

#6

Knife Sharpening / Knife restoration - Kienel & P...

Last post by kwakster - Yesterday at 11:31:48 AM

Vintage XXL Fahrtenmesser/Scout knife manufactured by Kienel & Piel in Solingen, Germany.
In Germany knives this size were often used by hunters for clearing shooting stands etc, but basically by anyone in need of a good quality heavy chopper with a classic design.

Once used in the jungles of Suriname by Dutch soldiers of Third Suriname Company in the early 1960's, this knife was recently found sheathed in an attic during a house clearing after the owner had passed away.
It's blade was corroded black, somewhere in time it had been "sharpened" on a bench grinder, and all handle parts were loosened and dried out.
But as the blade was still structurally sound and i have a soft spot for vintage German knives it became another project.

How i received the knife:






I chose to regrind the originally saber ground blade to convex by hand using a Chinese 300 grit diamond file, which removed most of the corrosion & edge damage, while at the same time giving the knife a much more effective blade geometry for chopping.
Also did a few refining steps using waterproof SiC paper on a semi-hard rubber backing with WD40 as a lubricant, but just enough so i can do a bit of test chopping when time permits.
The new edge measures somewhere between 25 and 30 degrees inclusive, and i still have to remove the burr.
The original stag handle was way too thick & lumpy for my hand, so after glueing all parts together i gave it a bit more ergonomic & functional shape.
Especially the thinning of the handle just behind the guard while leaving a thicker midsection makes for a very comfortable hold with much less hand fatigue.

Hand reground blade with handle disassembeld:



How it currently looks:











Specs:

Overall length: 17.4 inches (44,2 cm)
Blade length: 12.3 inches (31,3 cm)
Blade thickness: 4,0 mm
Steel: hot drop-forged carbon steel
Weight: 476 grams

#7

Knife Sharpening / Re: Sharpen workflow for ‘mid-...

Last post by tgbto - Yesterday at 08:29:40 AM

Stig is the master of pressure control, from heavy pressure for heavier grinding to finishing with very light strokes.

I thought I remembered an advanced sharpening video where Wolfgang explains that heavy pressure does not lead to faster grinding because it kinds of glazes the SG. Or am I mistaken ?

#8

General Tormek Questions / Re: Jig collar bumps leg of su...

Last post by tgbto - Yesterday at 08:27:53 AM

I am curious though as to what configuration leads to bumping the jig collar into the support legs. It would mean that the top of USB is at or below top-of-wheel level, right ? If that's the case, the angle has to be small indeed...

As for the US-430 not being part of the standard T8 delivery, I think that's a bit cheap.

#9

Knife Sharpening / Re: Sharpen workflow for ‘mid-...

Last post by Ken S - Yesterday at 03:17:10 AM

Wim,

You ask a very practical question. In the real world, I suspect most of us sharpen mostly midrange knives.I had the good fortune to watch Tormek expert, Stig Reitan, for a couple days. Stig has sharpened countless medium grade knives when demonstrating for Tormek using a T8 with an SG-250 and a leather honing wheel with Tormek PA-70. At home, he keeps his wife's Japanese knives sharp and well honed with a T-4, SG-200, and leather honing wheel with PA-70.

Stig is the master of pressure control, from heavy pressure for heavier grinding to finishing with very light strokes. He uses the stone grader more often and more skillfully than anyone I have met.

Ken

#10

General Tormek Questions / Re: Jig collar bumps leg of su...

Last post by Ken S - Yesterday at 01:30:45 AM

As you say this issue is just with longer knives, I suggest that the standard universal support is not long enough. The extended range US-430 support should solve your problem. Having a second universal support will be useful many times. Here is a link:

https://tormek.com/en/products/accessories/us-430-extended-universal-support

Ken