Blade sharpening questions

[R_squared]

As Bird and pennwalk suggested, a belt sander works very well. I use a 3 inch, hand held belt sander with a 50 grit zirconium belt. This setup does not overheat the blade edge and touchup with a hand file is not necessary. Its easier if you remove the blades from the deck and clamp them down onto a workbench top and let the cutting edge extend out past the tabletop. Sharpening goes pretty fast as long as you use a lighter touch. This keeps the zirconium grit sharp longer. The 3 inch belt sharpens the full 3 inches and leaves a uniform beveled edge. Of course a hand file works to, but it takes a long time if your blades are real dull. Whatever you decide to go with, pick a tool that does not overheat the cutting edge. Also, forget about using that 3 dollar blade balancer, way to inconsistent.

 

[johnnylight]

Thanks I'll give that a try.

 

[johnnylight]

Update.

Here's what I did:

I picked this up from Pro Tool makita 9557PBX1 use this website for image :http://www.toolup.com/Makita/9557PB...afficleader_Shopping&utm_term=Makita 9557PBX1

and also ordered :Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices


I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[KevPH1]

Nicholson is all I ever use, You have to know when it is junk. Like any tool it needs to be sharp. Once it starts to slip in the sweet spot just toss it away like a dull drill bit.

Let me get this straight. File your blades sharp ok.
Dull your drill bits and toss!
Hmmm!

Maybe a "how to" thread for sharpening drill bits is also needed.

 

[djradz]

Glad to see at least one of your purchases was the angle grinder. I think you'll find it far faster. I don't mean to offend anyone here, but for me, I've never felt that the bench grinder came close. Besides, if you want to do some light sharpening without removing the blades, its out of the question.

Years ago, (I won't say exactly how many, but it's more than 20) I asked the same question of the tech at the chainsaw/lawnandgarden/farm implement shop that did something on the order of close to 100 per week, expecting he'd have some high-tech grinder with some sort of jig with a setable angle etc., and instead he takes me in the back of the shop and shows me his 4-1/2" angle grinder and large vise. He said he had stopped using a bench grinder years previously because of problems with overheating the blades, much slower production and difficulty in grinding consistently across the entire cutting edge. For bush hog (rotary cutter) he sometimes used a 7" or 9" angle grinder due to the need to remove even more material. Since that time, I've done the same. The key is to have the blade clamped well or if still on the mower/cutter, in a position that it won't move when you start grinding.

I have found that a file can give some final fine-finishing and add even more consistency/straightness to the edge. In addition, as others have noted, a 4 to 4-!/2" sanding disc can also give a really nice finished edge. It would be a bit slower, and probably go through more disks, if there were some deeper dings to get out.

Let us know what you think of the wet grinder. I'll be very interested but due to its small size I just can't see how it can compete.

 

[johnnylight]

exactly now I can do either or--on or off.

 

[Bird]

I still use the bench grinder some, but years ago when the lawnmower blades were pretty much just flat, it was a lot easier to grind a consistent amount off. Now with the curves they put in the blades, it's not as easy, so the angle grinder has a much bigger advantage.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I wonder what happened to the old blacksmiths that used a forge and hammer to sharpen plow shares and such. Didnt loose lot of metal sharpening that way. Light touch up with a file afterward if needed but most time not even that. I used to love watching our neighborhood smithy work that iron when I was a kid back in the 50's .

 

[johnnylight]

remember the man that used to drive around with his truck for grinding.

 

[Squeak n Itch]

A radial arm saw could do the job, too. As you might guess, I enjoy metal working more than wood working. Actually, the use of the saw for other metal cutting applications is very convenient.

Can you provide info on what wheel you'd use for a radial arm saw? Are the RPM's too fast for a standard wheel? The radial arm saw, on first guess, would be a great option. I'd love to try it.