Granite surface Plate.. to ledge or not to ledge?

C

coldsteelburns

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Aug 2, 2010
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Hey guys, I'm about to purchase a granite surface plate from Grizzly since they will ship up to a 12x9x3" size slab for no extra shipping. Anyway I was wondering what the benefits of having one with a ledge on it would provide? They sell two in the same size (12x9x3) , one without ledges, and one with two ledges on opposite ends, for pretty much the same price. I'm sure they are meant for being able to use clamps, but I'm curious if anybody here can name some differrent ways the ledge of the place can be used in knifemaking.. I was thinking if you needed to clamp the blade down, or if you wanted to clamp a sheet of sandpaper for flat sanding without wanting to use any adhesives they would be nice, but is there any reason it would be better to get the one without the ledges, other than it weighs more?.. (although only by 2 lbs)

Here is a link to each one:

No ledge: http://www.grizzly.com/products/9-x-12-x-3-Granite-Surface-Plate-No-Ledge/G9648 This one weighs 40 lbs

2 Ledges: http://www.grizzly.com/products/9-x-12-x-3-Granite-Surface-Plate-2-Ledges/G9650 This one weighs 38 lbs


Thanks! :)

~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
 
Interesting. I'm glad you posted this. A surface plate is my next purchase . . . I need something better than the piece of marble I bought from the local stone supplier. At $40 and no extra shipping, this looks like a great purchase if within 0.0001" flatness.

I can't think of where I'd need to clamp something to a surface plate for knife making. Yet, if you plan to use this for sanding and other fabrication, then I'd think the ledges would be very useful.

Mike L.
 
I purchased 2 of the 12x9x3 with ledges from Grizzly. I use spring clamps on the ledges to hold paper in place. Works great. As mentioned, it also helps having the ledges if you need to move them around. Couldn't get by without them.
 
logem said:
Interesting. I'm glad you posted this. A surface plate is my next purchase . . . I need something better than the piece of marble I bought from the local stone supplier. At $40 and no extra shipping, this looks like a great purchase if within 0.0001" flatness.

I can't think of where I'd need to clamp something to a surface plate for knife making. Yet, if you plan to use this for sanding and other fabrication, then I'd think the ledges would be very useful.

Mike L.
Click to expand...



Where did you see no extra shipping?
 
i4Marc said:
Where did you see no extra shipping?
Click to expand...

I just ordered the one with the ledges. The 12x9x3" sizes and below don't charge "extra" shipping. The shipping is normal though, which was about $11, but I also got a 6" height gauge along with it so to me it was basically free shipping ;) .. The larger sizes show on the side by the description that the shipping cost like $70..



~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
 
That's why I was curious. I saw the freight charges but the $40 ones (like I'm considering getting) get the extra freight charges. Funny, I was going to pick up a height gauge too. I have the 9x12 but a larger one would be nice for my longer blades.
 
If you skip to 7:20, you can see how I clamp paper down to my small gp. You could easily do this with a pair of C clamp vise grips on a gp with a ledge. :)

[video=youtube;oSjuKpPFCeA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSjuKpPFCeA[/video]
 
I think the 18 x 24 size is the best bang for the buck



I was going to suggest Enco and the coupons plus free shipping

but

Those Grizzly links are selling them at the price I paid 20 years ago.
Hard to go wrong with that.
 
Yeah, I'd like to eventually get one of the 18x24 Count. When I purchased mine from Grizzly, I actually meant to order only 1 but ended up with 2 in my cart somehow. I'm kind of glad I did though, cause I use them both. One plate stays set up just for paper and the other I use a lot to check for flat, scribing, stamping leather, etc. Bench space is a premium in my little shop, so I just keep them stored under my bench when not in use. As I mentioned, the ledges are really nice for clamps, but are also handy if you do need to pick them up and move them around frequently like I do.

DSC_0026.jpg
 
For anyone who might be interested, here is something I learned from my dad who was an old school tool and die maker. Surface plates should be mounted on a three point mounting system. This keeps the plate from rocking and provides as level a surface as possible. Below is a mil spec diagram that shows the best location for these supports. The example is for a 18"x24" plate, but the diagram give proportional dimensions to be used for any size plate. I used hard rubber bumpers for the tripod points on mine.


Surface%20Plate%20Supports.png
 
i keep eyeing an 18x24 i dont thing a smaller one will do all i want and i thing a larger one will not fit into my pricing range. it will be part of a rolling mill/lathe tooling table
 
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