# i want a Kalamazoo 1SM belt sander.



## boomchakabowwow (May 7, 2015)

i've been wanting to take a swing at making a knife. my focus would be more on outdoor blades.

i've even collected a few nice pieces of wood for scales.

i'm gonna knock on the door of the old man that lives across the street and see if he has one i can use..to test the water. i suspect he doesnt have one. he gave most everything away.

i want to shape handles, grind blades, shape blade profiles...and even sharpen knives.

i've seen a bunch of videos and there is a huge volume of stuff showing guys putting razor edges on knives with a couple of well done grinds across the belt and leather. 

does a belt grinder over heat a blade?

the Kalamazoo above seems like a super nice unit. i dont like harbor "fright"..scary! i have hurt myself twice with stuff from them. anyone love/hate this model?


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## rick_english (May 7, 2015)

Nice grinder; I have one. Better suited for sharpening than for steel removal, though IMO. Maybe start with a paring knife and see how it goes. You could also try thinning some Goodwill blades for practice. Blades do get warm; just dip them in water every so often.


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## mhpr262 (May 8, 2015)

I have recently bought this one here:







and have successfully thinned quite a few knives with it so far. What I have found: It is absolutely necessary that you can access both the slack part of the belt as well as the part supported by the fixed plate from BOTH sides without any issues. Mine is accessible without problems only from the right hand side (I have been able to make do, though, but it's annoying). 

I don't know how fast the Kalamazoo is runninng, but mine is running pretty fast and overheating is generally not much of an issue, with one exception: be very careful with thinning and grinidng the bevel near the very tip, there is so little material there to dissipate the heat that it is quite easily possible to melt the tip away in a fraction of a second. Otherwise just don't press the knife on the belt to much and you should have no problems with heat.

For thinnng over the whole height of the bladeface I use a 60 grit belt, for a quick "tune-up" by knocking half an inch off the shoulders of the bevel I use a 180-220 grit belt. For putting on the final finish before buffing with a cotton cloth wheel I use a 400 grit belt. I also use this for sharpening cheap knives and(or putting a new bevel on them. I am going to get an 800 grit belt for that soon, 400 is still a bit too rough and removes too much material for my taste.


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## cadberry (May 8, 2015)

I have the 1" Kalamazoo and I like it a lot. I find it works well sharpening and shaping knives.


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## gic (May 8, 2015)

I have a cheap Ryobi from home depot, belt goes both vertical and horizontal which I like, does not have a grinding wheel though, uses PSA 6" disks which will wear a lot faster than a grinding wheel


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## Keith Sinclair (May 18, 2015)

I have the 1"X42" Kalamazoo. Just a hobbyist but like this sander. Easy to change belts, powerful 1/3 HP motor. Mostly use it on knives, have found it is quite handy for other tasks as well.


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## Sabaki (May 19, 2015)

As most thing's in life getting good at something... practice practice practice :thumbsup: There is quite a learning process grinding on any machine, it all comes down to what result you want to achive

The fun begins when u get the desired result without ruining every blade, Good luck!


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