# Stock Removal Distal Taper



## Seffers93 (Aug 9, 2020)

Hey everyone!

My wife and I are closing on a new house at the end of the month. I'll be setting up a small knife shop in the garage. I have a long list of tools and supplies to get and still tons of research to do, but I feel like I'm getting somewhere! 

So onto my question.. I would like for my future knives to have a distal taper (I'll be using stock removal) but I'm having trouble finding specifics on how to achieve this.. like a YouTube video or detailed instruction. I've found a few videos going over tapered tangs, but that doesn't cover grinding bevels with a taper. I've read a thread on here with a bunch of people creating diagrams and trying to go over angles and whatnot.. I honestly just got confused lol. 

From what I understand, it seems acceptable to taper the steel before or after grinding the bevels.. just preference. But if you're using a straight jig to grind bevels, the grind will not follow your intended path (unless your intended path is a straight line from heel to tip?) so you would have to free-hand and adjust the angle as you go?

I'm also looking for tips on how to measure out the taper and mark the taper lines to grind?

Any insight or links are greatly appreciated! Can't wait to show everyone the first knife in September!


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## Kippington (Aug 9, 2020)

Welcome to the forums!
Have you made knives before? Post some pictures if you have - we don't know where you're currently at in your journey. If you haven't made a knife yet, you're thinking way too far in advance.

It sounds like you might be going through analysis paralysis. Don't overthink it - as you make knives and get to know the tools you have available, you'll come up with your own methods and ideas.
Remember, there's no singular 'correct' way to do it!


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## Seffers93 (Aug 9, 2020)

Kippington said:


> Welcome to the forums!
> Have you made knives before? Post some pictures if you have - we don't know where you're currently at in your journey. If you haven't made a knife yet, you're thinking way too far in advance.
> 
> It sounds like you might be going through analysis paralysis. Don't overthink it - as you make knives and get to know the tools you have available, you'll come up with your own methods and ideas.
> Remember, there's no singular 'correct' way to do it!



Thanks for the reply Kippington!! I’ve seen a lot of your work on the forum. Your knives are amazing!

To answer your question.. I’ve never made knives before. It’s something I’ve wanted to try for a while but haven’t had a space to work (currently in an apartment). I’m just trying to gather as much information as I can before I set up shop. I know a lot of the skill and technical knowledge will come with practice. Maybe I really am getting ahead of myself! Thanks for the advice!


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## McMan (Aug 9, 2020)

Good thread and info below. Forgot who wrote it though 





Understanding Distal Taper


There's a lot of variation in kitchen knives when it comes to distal taper. The topic tends to get glossed over and the details get heaped into one narrow definition, so hopefully this thread will help explain some of the more subtle characteristics of a good taper. First we should cover what...




www.kitchenknifeforums.com


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## Ploppy Blobby (Aug 9, 2020)

Kippington said:


> Remember, there's no singular 'correct' way to do it!


Too true, found @Matus blog extremely useful. Definitely worth checking it out if you haven't already. 




__





Knifemaking for beginners


A blog about knifemaking for beginners with DIY tips for kitchen, outdoor and hunting knives. Detailed description of projects, tools and processes.




matuskalisky.blogspot.com




Great detail for grind/profile


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## Tim Rowland (Aug 9, 2020)

Lots of good videos, books, etc. out there.
My first suggestion would be to practice as much as possible and try to find a local smith who may do some teaching courses. 
As for any videos specifically about stock removal distal taper.
The only one that I can think of is a 2 part series from Noah of Vachon knives on his diamond grind that shows how he adjusts pressure points while bevel grinding after his initial hollow.
I think they are on his Instagram.


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## Seffers93 (Aug 9, 2020)

Thanks for the replies everyone! I appreciate the help!


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## Kippington (Aug 9, 2020)

Seffers93 said:


> Thanks for the reply Kippington!! I’ve seen a lot of your work on the forum. Your knives are amazing!
> 
> To answer your question.. I’ve never made knives before. It’s something I’ve wanted to try for a while but haven’t had a space to work (currently in an apartment). I’m just trying to gather as much information as I can before I set up shop. I know a lot of the skill and technical knowledge will come with practice. Maybe I really am getting ahead of myself! Thanks for the advice!


Thanks!

If you've never made a knife before, I suggest the first knife you create should be something small like a petty. It will give you a solid foundation to base your future questions and improvements on.
Because it's not large, you'll spend less time on each step, allowing you to more efficiently test your methods as you go. It'll also be a good test of how you deal with heat-treating and any problems that you didn't anticipate.

My first knife was under 10 cm / 4 inches blade length. I still hold onto it today, use it as a beater in the workshop.


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## Seffers93 (Aug 9, 2020)

Kippington said:


> Thanks!
> 
> If you've never made a knife before, I suggest the first knife you create should be something small like a petty. It will give you a solid foundation to base your future questions and improvements on.
> Because it's not large, you'll spend less time on each step, allowing you to more efficiently test your methods as you go. It'll also be a good test of how you deal with heat-treating and any problems that you didn't anticipate.
> ...




Thanks again for the tips! I'll definitely keep this in mind for my first knife.

I'm so excited to get started! I've already started ordering materials so I'll have a good bit to practice with when it comes time to move. Also found some beautiful stabilized wood blanks from a couple instagram accounts that were recommended here. But those will be saved until I've had some practice lol.


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## M1k3 (Aug 10, 2020)

@HSC /// Knives uses a sine table (correct me if I'm wrong). Maybe something to check out?


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## M1k3 (Aug 10, 2020)

I know he uses it to taper tangs. Not sure if it would work for you the opposite way.


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## Caleb Cox (Aug 10, 2020)

A surface grinder might a be tall ask for an intial shop setup.


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## Seffers93 (Aug 10, 2020)

A surface grinder would be out of my budget right now. I’ll probably only be working with a 1x30 belt grinder. Wen has a pretty cheap one with a 5” disc. Can’t decide if I should go with a 2x72 just yet..


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## HSC /// Knives (Aug 10, 2020)

M1k3 said:


> @HSC /// Knives uses a sine table (correct me if I'm wrong). Maybe something to check out?


I use a sine plate on a surface grinder to taper tangs for hardened steel.

for laminated blades with soft cladding I can forge most of the taper in and grind the rest in on a belt grinder.

distal tapers are forged in (and final grinding as required) and for stock removal blades, distal tapers are ground in.

when grinding a distal taper I generally do that before grinding the bevels.

if it’s a stock removal blade then usually you have an even stock thickness throughout and it’s flat and parallel to start with.

then you can mark or scribe the spine center or offset it with parallel lines and use those as a guide to grind in the angle for Taper

I think @Kippington gave you the right response(s).

Anyway it’s gonna take you like 20 or 30 blades to get any of this down....


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## Seffers93 (Aug 10, 2020)

HSC /// Knives said:


> I use a sine plate on a surface grinder to taper tangs for hardened steel.
> 
> for laminated blades with soft cladding I can forge most of the taper in and grind the rest in on a belt grinder.
> 
> ...



Maybe more than 20 or 30.. lol. Thanks for the reply! I appreciate all of the info!


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## HSC /// Knives (Aug 10, 2020)

Here’s a 3” utility neck knife I’ll be grinding soon on hardened z wear.
stock thickness is .10

I simply scribed a centerline on the spine. I’ll grind a taper using that as a guide.


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## Seffers93 (Aug 10, 2020)

HSC /// Knives said:


> Here’s a 3” utility neck knife I’ll be grinding soon on hardened z wear.
> stock thickness is .10
> 
> I simply scribed a centerline on the spine. I’ll grind a taper using that as a guide.



Makes sense! I'll definitely need to try it on something small first. Hopefully my little grinder will be able to pull it off lol


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## Seffers93 (Aug 10, 2020)

I’ve decided to go with a 2x42 belt grinder. Hoping that’ll be better for me. Unless I can find a 2x72 for $500 lol


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