Dremel Tool

[wolfmann601]

Being a NEWBIE and trying my hand at "customizing" a knife, is a Dremel tool a valuable asset to have on hand?. I know this might sound silly, but I have got a newbie idea and with all the attachments available, are dremels good to cut, grind and polish Steel and G-10??????(also do I need 35,000RPMS)...Thanks.....wolf

 

[medusaoblongata]

Being a newbie customizing a knife, a Dremel is probably the most valuable single asset to have on hand. I've used mine to reprofile blades, and cut, polish, grind, create, and destroy, just about everything I've been able to get my hands on. My "Dremel" is actually a Black & Decker Wizard, but it's basically the same thing, totally compatible, etc. Make sure to get one with variable speeds, mine has numbers but not RPM indicator, so I have no idea what speeds it goes.

A few tips I've picked up - always wear eye protection, because dust & sh!t do go flying. Get some kind of dust mask so you're not breathing it all in. Whatever you want to do to one of your good knives, try it first on a POS knife; if you don't have a POS knife, it will be well worth what it costs; you will learn enough on your practice knife not to screw up a good one. You can do a lot of damage really fast with a Dremel. eBay & www.widgetsupply.com are a great source for bits & attatchments, much cheaper and larger selection than Home Depot.

If you do a search on "Dremel," including the archives, you'll pull up dozens of threads with lots of ideas and stories of what other forumites have done.

 

[Dexter Ewing]

Dremels are great power tools I have used mine to cut some traction notches into my Camillus ArcLite using a chainsaw sharpening stone and a steady hand. With the wire wheel brush, I've taken heavy stains and some rust off of blades and bolsters of old pocket knives. I've even buffed bolsters after applying polishing compound. Not to mention, all the other uses you'll get outside of customizing knives! Might as well get the variable speed one, since you can tailor the speed of the tool to the task at hand. You'll be glad you did.

One thing that cannot be stressed too much is the use of eye protection. Anytime you run your Dremel, wear safety glasses. A good habit to get into.

 

[MaxTheKnife]

I have a total of 4 dremel tools in my shop. Two of them are variable speed up to 30,000 and have flexible shafts on them. I use those for all kinds of stuff. The other two are the simple hi/low models. I have an angle drive attachment on one for hogging out handles for hidden tang knives using a spiral bit. The other one has a spiral guide attachment that I use for cleaning up the tang slot in my guards and for inlaying nameplates and stuff. It's like a tiny router and is just amazing.

The really nice thing about dremel tools and their attachments is that they do so much and take up so little space. The dremels with the flexible shaft don't even take up any bench space. They come with a hanger bracket that swings from side to side and stays out of the way. I don't have any idea how anyone in the knife business can do without one. Get you some!!!

 

[knifenerd]

Oh, YES! Get the variable speed model. It will come in handy a million times.

Ditto on the eye protection. Also the dust respirator. Grinding G-10 can be hazardous to the lungs.