Master Bevel Grind

[jayers3673]

I was wondering, why do some makers grind a half master bevel grind while others
do a full bevel grind. Is it due to the level of experience? cause it seems like all the
accomplished makers such as Loveless, Johnson, Lake & those guys all do full bevel
grinds. Is full bevel grinds all that hard to do where you need to be a master to do it?
and is it that Half grinds are easy & quick and does not require a lot of experience?

I have seen alot of designs that were really cool and functional only to be ruined by
a half bevel grind.
and I might add that half bevel grinds seem to be a lot cheaper.
Is all this tied in together?

Jim

[Txcwboy]

Most of what I see with a full bevel grind is small pocket knives or hunting knives. You dont normally see tatical folders with a full grind. So I think its just preference.

Dave

[jayers3673]

dave,

You are right about tactical knives, it probaby is preference. I should have clarifed my post, I was referring to hunting knives.

Jim

[Ray Rogers]

All of the factors you mentioned come into it. Full grinds will chop and slice better than a half grind, to some degree. Half grinds are cheaper to produce if you are a manufacturer. Half grinds are probably more difficult for makers like us to do because you want the grinds on both sides to look the same so the skill level may be higher for half grinds than full grinds. Half grinds are probably a bit stronger blades due to the thicker spine. Many hollow ground blades are half ground because it can take a very large wheel to do a full hollow grind on a large blade.

All of which just serves to say that like everything else we do, we have to make choices according to what we want to accomplish and what we have to work with as well as our skill level. There is no absolute 'best', only what is best for the job at hand and even that has to be tempered by personal preference ....

[CWKnifeman]

Like Ray said. Grinding a hollow grind ona large can be done even on a smaller wheel but it takes agreat deal of experence. Just like grinding a hollow grind on an angle to get a deeper grind. On most large blades doing a large hollowgrind can be accomplished by feathering the blade to the desired stopping point. This can be very time consuming as well as nerve wracking. the other option is to start the grind with the belt extended over the wheel and after starting the plung cut turning the blade to about a 40 to 45 degree angle to get a deeper bevel on the hollow grind. This can even be done on 10 inch wheels making the blade appear to have a very flat apperance even though it is actually a hollow grind of an aproximately 12 to 14 inch wheels.
Most tactical makers only grind the bevel to 1/3 to 2/3 of teh blade where it wil be a stronger blade.
Curtis