I just received an email announcing a five day $15 sale at Penn State Industries, the supplier for the variable speed motor for the Viel. Contact PSI is you are interested.

Ken

Dear sharpeners, recently I have discovered colourful, fun, and informative periodic table of elements. http://elements.wlonk.com/ElementsTable.htm

Because steel is an iron-carbon alloy with other alloying elements (such as manganese, chromium, nickel, tungsten) it is good to know something more about it. When you click on an element you will get additional info.


  Elements_Pics_11x8.5.pdf (Size: 595.19 KB / Downloads: 8)
  Elements_Words_11x8.5.pdf (Size: 453.93 KB / Downloads: 7)

I'll skip to the end of the story to say what made me think of a "Bess to Grit Ratio". I tested a 140 grit Atoma edge this evening with lows in the Sixties! Average of 5 tests was 76, low of 69, but I was getting lower numbers as I got closer to the heel. I had to measure it. I could not believe it was consistently tree topping arm hair.

When I hit 69, it dawned on me that I was approaching a 1:2 ratio. Average Bess of 60 with a 120 grit finish would actually be 1:2. 

I've been sharpening some EDC knives with a well used, still working perfectly, Atoma 140 for a few weeks or more. This is in direct relation to Mr. Grepper's quest for Mega-Tooth edges... Which may have sorta originated from Mr. Max's experience with commercial cutlery. 

I'm not sure, but it happens to fall in line with the fact that I've been pushing the limits of coarser CBN and poly-diamond compounds, on linen or leather belts, for... over 3 years, actually. I remember what I had worked up for the Sturgis Rally event three years ago, 30 and 80 micron CBN on linen belts. 

Just had time to say... Yay Tooth! 

Recently I have spent some time in the Alps and have had opportunity to observe the house lord by splitting fire wood.

   

I was surprised how sharp the splitting wedge was. I did not have my PT50B with me, so I can only guess that it was not to much more than 2000 gf.

The other thing that surprised me was the acute angle of the wedge, some 35°. It is the same edge angle we are sharpening on the majority of our knives.

Narrow edge angle guaranties large mechanical advantage of the wedge, but on other hand friction may bind narrow wedge more easily than a wide one.

   

I have a problem making photos for online forums. I often forget to change the settings on my camera. I like simple cameras. My favorite film cameras were the Nikon F, Leica M3, and 4x5 Zone VI (the older rebranded Wista DXII). None of these cameras had built in light meters or auto anything. For me, that simplified things.

My digital camera, a Nikon D610, is amazing. I appreciate the new realms of versatility the camera's electronic brain adds. My problem is that my original equipment organic brain does not keep up. The overwhelming majority of my photographs center around my grandchildren's school programs. Setting my 24-85mm lens to auto focus, anti vibration and the camera to Aperture auto mode, large JPEG (24 mp), fine(minimal compression), single point auto focus, and a starting ISO of 800 works very well. It lets me set and forget most things, freeing my mind to tweak what needs attention.

These settings do not work well for Viel type forum photos. Auto focus gets buggy with closeups. Setting the lens for manual focus helps. Using the single point focusing sauare, I can hit the +button on the back of the camera. The much enlarged focusing target makes precise focusing a snap.Anti vibration does not plsy well with tripods.

I prefer manual exposure mode. Using the camera's built in histogram feature simplifies this.

I like the image quality of fine (minimal compression) and ISO 200. I use a substantial tripod.

The use of the small image size settings makes resizing to 250kB much easier (I should say makes it possible.)

Here is my low tech solution for my forgetfulness: The workbench where I use my Viel is butted up sgainst my red mechanic's rolling chest. This is very convenient for placing my magnetic LED light, a must for good work. The flat steel surface is also ideal for holding notes with fridge magnets. I made up two notes on 3x5 index cards. One card is for starting. It includes the small setting,ISO200, anti vib off, f11, manual focus and Manual exposure mode.

The second card is ending, returning to typical. Large size, auto focus, anti vib on, and Aperture auto exposure mode.

I suspect the physical act of creating these reminder cards, complemented with having them in my line of sight, will be as beneficial as actually reading them. 

Ken

Several members have indicated that they will be modifying their Viel belt grinders. I hope this brief roadmap of what worked both well and not so well for me may be beneficial. The variable speed modified Viel has been a joy to use, and has exceeded my expectations. However, being honest, I must admit that my path was not the most direct or cost efficient. While my Viel is quite functional, I consider my workmanship a bit clumsy. 

If I was restarting from scratch, I would purchase the bare bones Viel (no motor) and the Penn State variable speed motor. For those who prefer simplicity or are on a tight budget, the bulk of the benefits may be obtained by just mounting the motor to the Viel frame and matching the diameter of the motor shaft and the bore of the Viel pulley. Mounting the motor is within the realm of the home shop. Mating the diameters will require a metal lathe. Neither job should require much shop time. For those who lack experience with metal, having both operations done by a machine shop makes sense. 

Two thoughts regarding Penn State Industries: Sign up for the email list. PSI runs frequent sales. You may well be able to save twenty percent. Also, (I did not know this, nor have I confirmed it), contact PSI and see if your motor can be shipped with the four step pulley removed. I had to fight with a gear puller to remove mine. It was a nuisance.

The motor comes with a 15mm shaft, approximately .590". The bore of the Viel pulley is half inch, approximately .500" Your choice, reduce the diameter of the motor shaft or bore out the pulley. Either way will work. Reducing the shaft seems the popular favorite, perhaps on the dubious possibility of reusing the motor for another application. I followed good traditional advice and had the shaft reduced. In my case, the motor shop also installed a reversing switch. I suspect boring out the pulley may be the  most cost efficient choice.

Regarding mounting the motor, I have not seen it, however, I believe Rupert's bracket for mounting the motor may be the ideal path. The next best path would be to scrape off the plastic from the PSI included bracket. I sawed off the handle, which was not an efficient choice.

I oriented the motor such that the label was centered on top. A better choice would have been to place the two motor brush screws at three and nine o'clock.

I used 12mm Baltic birch plywood for the two sides (7x12") and the cross piece which holds the motor controller. The cross piece is joined with a dado and two #6x1 1/2" screws on each sude. No glue; the entire assembly is easily removable. Four 1 1/2" quarter by twenty thread flat head screws secure the wooden box to the metal frame. I chose the countersunk flat head bolts so that the unit could lay flat on either side.

The cross piece is flush at the top and two inches shorter than the sides. This makes easy storage for the motor cord. This has proved a good design. 

Rather than trying to provide access holes for the brushes, I decided it was just as easy to remove the wooden box, if needed.

I originally planned to use 19mm Bbp, however the extra thickness would have made mounting the motor control difficult.

I used Bbp because I have worked with it before and had a supply on hand. I believe it will go the distance. If not, I can easily replace it. For rougher duty, like regular farmers market professional duty, I think 1/8" aluminum plate like Max uses would be a better choice.

I really like the slower speed. It is quiet and the work stays cool. I have not needed the reversing option. I still like the idea, however, it is something which could easily be added later, if desired.
Once the motor is mounted and the pulley and shaft mated, any further work can be done or postponed. Building the wooden housing allowed me to safely secure the motor control. Transporting the unit is easier now.

In fact, almost anything beyond mounting the motor and connecting the shaft can be done at anytime or not at all. The added housing, wood or metal, offers little real benefit for a stationary set up. I have several plans for my Viel, the delay being budgetary prudence. I plan to add pyroceram to the platen. I plan to add some of the Viel jigs, most notably the drill bit jig. I plan to add a block arrangement to allow a knife to be held flat(level) and have the belt at the bevel angle. I may adapt the Viel to work with Tormek jigs. Beyond that, who knows?

I hope this is useful. I have intentionally not gone into much detail to keep the post reasonably short. Please feel free to ask questions. I am not a guru; constructive criticism is most welcome. As I have stated before, I am indebted to other forum members for guidance in this project.

Ken

I watched a video about cleaning a Scotch-Brite belt in a bucket with water and Dawn dishhwashing detergent. My fine belt was starting to look cruddy, so I tried it. I used hot water with Dawn and let the belt soak overnight. The tub had some gunk it it in the morning. The belt looked cleaner, not perfect, but much better. I rinsed and dried it.

In hindsight, I should have had a soare belt on hand before doing this. The cleaning worked well, although I do plan to order a spare belt. I have found the Scotch-Brite fine belt very useful. I remove it from the Viel. I don't know if the belt stretches. It won't stretch when removed.

Comments welcome.

Ken

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I've really been getting into sharpening with ever coarser grits lately in response to Mr. Grepper's quest for tooth. It's been an interesting study.

I know Mr. Grepper and others are mainly focused on belt grinders, but the only way to get a clean edge with a coarse belt will be by honing on a stationary belt. Even a Kally vaporizes steel instantly at 150 grit, and it's totally impossible to get a clean edge. The worst part about even trying this on a grinder is how quickly you will run out of blade. It might not mean much on cheap knives, but you won't get many sharpenings on a Spyderco before you will notice your blade shrinking (been there, hate it).

*This might be possible with a super low speed Viel!* Parts for mine are coming soon via Mr. Rupert, and I'm truly looking forward to finally meeting Mr. Viel on steroids! 

Anyway, I don't know if y'all sharpen freehand, but I can get a totally clean edge on very coarse stones. Last night I used a 140 grit Atoma diamond plate to sharpen a "known" blade. I've been using this knife for several years. It's good old 52100, with my normal heat treat. 

I have to admit, it was not easy getting a totally clean edge off a stone this coarse. It definitely requires all the skill I possess, and took me about half an hour to accomplish for the first time. I honed at 90* to the entire edge on the Atoma with Zero pressure. I removed the very minor wire edge/burr by slicing through leather, and I "stropped" on my palm to remove leather debris, and anything that didn't look like clean teeth at 30x magnification. 

I was stunned with the result. I would not have guessed how sharp 140 grit can be. Push cutting paper? Sure enough! Unbelievable! Bess scores with my KN100 were kinda ragged though, from 130s to 180s along the length of the blade. This was after slicing and push cutting a few feet of thick cowhide.  

I'm going to EDC this knife full time, and only touch it up on the 140 Atoma. Nothing else. No refining or "cleaning up" of the actual scratch pattern will occur. I'm going to let nature run it's course, and let the chips fall where they may. 

I'm using 52100 because it's what I normally use, and I'm not going to waste time on steel that won't hold up to this difficult mission. This is one of the most challenging and unique tests I've ever done. It certainly ranks right up there with splitting hair, but with the added practicality of holding up and touching up under normal use.

I did receive a large box of belts from Tru-Grit today, with the 1x42 Blaze and Cubitron IIs in there somewhere, but I also ordered two different types of 60 grit stones last night. IMHO, stones are way more accurate and manageable for a project like this. I don't want to grind on my knives with these coarse belts until I have a machine that's capable, but I'm really looking forward to it!

I just ordered some boron carbide 1 micron honing compound. With compounds like Tormek and Lee Valley's green compound, the grit breaks down with use and becomes finer. Does the boron carbide compound become finer or maintain the same grit size?

Thanks.

Ken