I need some belts

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Jul 28, 2016
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What is your belt progression pre and post heat treat? I was going to order the Norton Blaze in 35 grit not sure what the progression is up to heat treat and post heat treat. I would really like some brands names and grits. looking for 2" x 72"

Thank you,
 
Personally I hate Norton blaze. At that price point I much prefer Norton R999b or 3m 984f cubitron.
Even VSM at half the cost are higher on my list than blaze.
I'd recommend 36 and 60 and 120 ceramics, 3m gator belts in a160, a100, a65, and a40.
Say 10 of each ceramic and two of each Gator. You'll end up wanting to try lots of other things, but that's what I use the most of. I usually use the a160 gators in place of 120 grit as well.
An assortment of aluminum oxide jflex belts is good to have for handle shaping
 
Thanks Geoff,
I will order those belts to start with. I am pretty good on handle shaping I have a Kalamazoo 1" x 42" that I have been using to re-handle my kitchen knifes. Just need to get proficient with my blade grinding. I really don't know how long a belt last or even when to change it? So for those clean plunge lines use a new 35 grit belt correct?
 
i like cubitron 984f also, they last a long time. i get about 15 knives out of a 36 grit, i would only get a few out of an aluminum oxide. it more than justifies the price. i go 36, 80, 120 then heat treat. then 120, 220, 400, 400 cork, 800 cork, 1000 cork. the cork belts last me over a year. i usually ruin them by accident before they wear out. very economical. i use J flex on the 220 and 400 so the belt will curve around the edge of the platen and give me smoother plunge lines.
 
there are a lot of different approaches, but for me i do not do the plunges until 120 grit. i noticed that even if i get the plunges looking nice with a 36 grit, just smoothing them out and removing the scratches with the 80 grit creates the possibility of screwing them up :D same when going from 80 to 120. if i wait until 120, less metal is removed with each pass and you get more chances to adjust and correct.
 
What is your belt progression pre and post heat treat? I was going to order the Norton Blaze in 35 grit not sure what the progression is up to heat treat and post heat treat. I would really like some brands names and grits. looking for 2" x 72". Thank you,
go to Tru-grit and order different brand at same grit to find what works best for you. so a blaze belt is supposed to last twice as long as a bluefire but costs 3 times as much; I use bluefire.
thickness of stock and type of grind(say full flat vs scandi) make a difference. the more grinding you do before HT, the easier it will be to grind after HT. before HT, go at least 120. doing HT on a blade with 36grit scratches can cause cracks.
 
I use the a160 gator for my plunges. Run it flush with the edge of the wheel or Platten for a sharp line, and drift it over the edge like you would a jflex for a smoother transition. It wears them out reasonably fast, but one will still outlast at least 10 jflex belts, and it's harder to screw up, and the belt will still be useful for cleaning up profiles and other general work after the edges are shot.

My personal favorite belt for rough work is the Norton R999b is 36 grit. They eat steel like you wouldn't believe. A fresh out of the box blaze seems dull in comparison. Unfortunately they only make them in 24 and 36 grit. For 60 I use either VSM or the 984f. 120 I usually don't use, opting for gators instead. I still keep 120 around for the odd time I want to use one though
 
Great answers everyone. I should have asked this 6 months ago. I have a graveyard of belts in different levels of exhaustion. IMHO you need to stick with one belt until you know it's capabilities. Then when you try a new brand you can make sense of the comparison. Speed is also a factor. I am grinding at 3500 SFPM. It's too slow for the blaze belts. I can't figure what works best at that speed but I'll take any advice. My plan is to buy a 6" drive wheel to replace my 4" as soon as my budget allows.
 
I use the budget belts from Popsknifesuppy the AO/Zirc blue belts and they put on quite the mileage I've been very impressed. It's also saved me $$ since I stopped using Norton Blaze lol. However I will say I seem to get more mileage out of 60grit when it comes to steels, the 36s seem to knock teeth loose easier. But I still keep 36s for hogging softer materials quickly like wood/G10/kydex. Them 36s is hungry!

After heat treat I only use Trizact/Gator belts; those are the only belts I spare no expense on they're just amazing!
 
For the folks working thin stock fot kitchen knives, where do you start with your belt progression
 
I do pretty much exactly what Geoff does. I also use a fine scotchbright belt, and a 400 cork belt, well worn with green chrome from time to time. I sharpen with a gator ceramic 120 to set the edge, then norax 45 and 30 (like 320 and 600 respectively) I use a 1x30 leather belt loaded with green chrome to strop on my HF 1x30 (have to show some love to the original).
 
I generally go from the A45 to either a 400 cork, or an x22 norax, and then finish with a 1000 cork before buffing. Pretty well everything I make is mirrored
 
Currently I will use a Cubitron II in 60 to hog, or a VSM 50.

Then I will use a Hermes 346 AO in 100 to set the plunge and then heat treatment.

After HT if needed I will use the Hermes 100 to perfect the grind and then use 220 to remove the scratches and then move to 400AO and gators or cork.

If I need to I can go from 50 grit and finish the grind and go directly to 220 to clean up. This really works well if I am brave enough to take it to finish before HT.

I no longer use ceramic 100 that much any more. They just tend to not give me the plunge I want due to them being so stiff. The AO will give a smooth perfect plunge that can be used with a radiused wheel or platen.

One of the luckiest thing is buyers seem to like the satin finish :)
 
For the folks working thin stock fot kitchen knives, where do you start with your belt progression
I usually use a file and drawfile to "break the edge" and start a bevel. 50 then 80 then 120, sometimes P220 then heat treat. for most kitchen knives, I use 1/16" stock.
 
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