Will grinding tho round-point off ruin temper?

Genco_Glider · 05-14-2008, 10:03 PM

If I gring the round-tip off, to make it a spike, will it ruin the blade's temper?

Joe Chandler · 05-14-2008, 10:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Genco_Glider

If I gring the round-tip off, to make it a spike, will it ruin the blade's temper?

Not if you do it properly. Go slow, and have water on hand.

scar9783 · 05-14-2008, 11:09 PM

If your going to try altering your blade on your own I highly suggest grinding without gloves...If your hands cant handle the heat niether can the blade. For best results make 2 swipes on the grinder and dip in H2O if the tip becomes red you've gone WAY TO HOT! Blade should not change color to keep proper hardness.

poona · 05-14-2008, 11:13 PM

What type of razor is it?

Russel Baldridge · 05-15-2008, 04:07 PM

Agreed, if the steel changes to any kind of color, you've altered the temper.

floppyshoes · 05-15-2008, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by poona

What type of razor is it?

I guess you can't grind off the round point if you don't have one.

Kenrup · 05-15-2008, 07:05 PM

It isn't hard to grind down a point by hand. I've done it with a 220 grit stone. It does take a bit of time but it doesn't heat up either. If you are not use to grinding, I would recommend the slow way.

cannonfodder · 05-15-2008, 07:28 PM

When I take grinder/cutter to blade, I do it with a constant water stream on the blade to lubricate/cool the cut. The water slows down the process, and you cannot use cardboard sanding drums because they will disintegrate from the water. I use stone wheels and diamond cutters. If all you are doing is blunting the tip to avoid spike bite, just use a cheap hone stone from K-mart and roll the tip by hand. Don’t try to use a soft stone like a Norton or you will cut a groove in the stone and ruin it.

Let me ask again, what brand razor is it? If you say double duck or wade and butcher, you had better run for your life.

captp · 05-15-2008, 08:25 PM

I agree with what everyone else has said so far. If you are lucky enough to have a friend who owns a Tormek and will let you use it, that's your best bet. The Tormek is a low speed, water cooled, electric powered stone wheel. I would never use mine to sharpen a razor, but reshaping a blade is perfect on one. It will NEVER draw temper from a blade.

Genco_Glider · 05-15-2008, 08:43 PM

I would be grinding off the round-point off a Dovo or TI...I don't have a water-cooled grinder, just a normal high-speed bench grinder and a small cut-off tool with grinding wheels, which is also very fast and not speed variable. I guess I could dip th blade in water every second or two, but I'll tell you what, that metal heats up quick (I've not cut a razor, just scrap steel) if your hand is near where you're cutting you'd have to drop it in about a second...so I'm guessing >100 degrees...I wonder what temp ruins the temper? and is 100 degrees too much? What is the max temp?

Mike Blue · 05-15-2008, 09:01 PM

The point behind doing this barehanded is that you want to feel the temperature change so you don't overshoot the tempering temperature.

Grind a bit, dip it, grind some more, repeat. Take your time, the grinder will remove the metal eventually. Go too fast and if you see color change in the steel it's already too late. Go slow.

captp · 05-15-2008, 09:05 PM

If it's too hot to handle, it's probably getting too hot for safety, but 100 degrees is pretty much nothing (is that Celsius or Fahrenheit?) to a piece of steel. As others have advised you, keep a large glass of water on hand and dip it every pass on the grinder; make the passes fairly short. Zip it across in one directin, dip it and repeat in the other direction (or run it the same direction each time; I doubt it makes much of a difference) Good luck on your grinding.

Philadelph · 05-15-2008, 09:06 PM

I completely agree with what Mike just said. Lots of guys have tried it successfully with a dremel. It isn't too hard. Also, I've heard it said that the temper starts to change at around 300 degrees. But I've only heard that, not studied it myself.

Bruno · 05-15-2008, 09:28 PM

I've done it with a dremel successfully, and that was on hollow grounds.
It is actually really simple. You just clamp the blade in a vise and work it with a dremel.

Use high speed (less time for heat to spread)
Use fresh drums (remove metal faster -> less time to build up heat)
Don't linger in 1 spot (do not heat 1 single place, but spread the heat around)
Do not hold it to the metal continuously (give it some time to air cool between grinding strokes)

It is really very easy. It looks scary, but there is nothing to it.

Mike Blue · 05-15-2008, 11:13 PM

A tempering oven will begin to produce a yellowish-bronzish blush at about 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Colors are subjective but that's pretty close. 350 is way too hot to hang onto bare fingered.

Bruno's idea of using the vise as a heat sink is a useful addition to this discussion. Extra mass will allow for more heat absorption. If you're quick you'll have a little more time to get the job done before you overcome the ability of the blade or heat sink to dissipate heat.

Then, there's this stuff: http://www.toolfetch.com/Brand/Heat_...bles/HF-12.htm

It's a paste that works as a barrier to heat transmission. It works too.