Hello to all the very knowledgeable folks on this forum. I have read hundreds of posts in many different sections of this forum and have tried very hard to research an answer to the following question. I have been making a few knives by repurposing material from old farm tools such as corn cutter blades, sheep shears and other blades used around farms. I use a plasma cutter to cut the blanks to preserve the initial hardness properties. This has worked very well so far and I am considering building or buying a 2 x 72 grinder to speed up my finishing. I usually do not remove all the old forging marks or trade marks as i would like people to appreciate the history of the steel.
My question is what safety measures are considered "common sense" when using a grinder to shape blades? Mainly grind edge up or down? I would think edge down to keep blade from cutting belt but have read references to grinding with the edge up. I have lots of experience ( 50 plus years in manufacturing} using industrial type equipment such as saws, small & large drill presses, machine tools, filing machines and large belt grinders. I have used the grinders but not to specifically shape blades. I now use belt sanders and a 1 x 42 sander/grinder to rough grind and then finish with files and sandpaper. My wife is very concerned about my safety after seeing a show where a knifemaker was seriously hurt using one.
Thank you in advance for any info or experiences you are willing to share,
Arby