Forbin: Gotcha. The object of my desire remains the same, then.
Now who wants to be my sugar daddy and buy me the radial arm saw of my dreams? No? How about a table-mounted belt sander/grinder, then, so I can make more knives.
Opalcat, I might try to talk you into a table saw instead of a radial arm saw but that’s another topic. If you want to get your foot in the door on knife grinding take a look at a Delta 1"x30" belt sander. It’s not a proper knife grinding machine but if you’re patient you can get some serious work done with it. The trick I found is to get belts from Ace Hardware as they have skived joints that don’t bump every time they go over the platen.
but radial arm saws are so coooool! I have used them to cut out 1/4" deep, 1" wide channels in wood and it was so fast! (yes I know this is what routers are for but shut up)
Is that Delta sander expensive? I would LOVE to get my hands on something. I have made knives with a dremel before, out of old files 
So anything is a step up. Thanks for the tip on the belts. That bump can throw a knife, I would imagine, if you weren’t holding on well enough :X
Whoa… $75 is all!?? And it has a disc sander as well?!?
I think I paid about a hundred for mine. Good little tool that is well worth the money. Connect it to a shop vac if you have one to collect the dust and try not to let iron dust build up too much on the aluminum rest as it will “weld” itself in place.
I’m in the camp that thinks a RAS is potentially more dangerous because of what can happen in a kickback, it launches the motor and blade toward the operator. Table saws can kickback too but easier to just stand out of the way of the board. Whatever saw you get be safe. No one wants an Opalcat short a paw.
Actually I think you’re smart to cut big grooves on a saw as you do than with a router. I use a Freud dado stack on my table saw (Delta contractor with a Biesemeyer fence). It can do 1/32" inrements so I can make grooves for plywood just undersize enough to get a perfect, no gap fit.
I may well ask for the sander for christmas !! I don’t have a garage… do you think it would drive the neighbors insane if I stood in my back yard grinding steel for 3 hours at a time?
Amazon has them for $89 and I found a site selling them at $75…
Amazon also sells this http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00006JZZY for $109 Delta SA446 Shopmaster 4" Belt & 6" Disc Sander
Opinions?
The sander has an induction motor so it’s quiet but you are grinding metal. It wouldn’t be too hard to build a little box to sourround it on three sides, maybe the top too to deaden the noise. Line it with egg crate foam or styrofoam to absorb some sound and you’d probably be okay.
Just my WAG but I don’t think the wide belt would be good for knife work and it may not be possible to do slack belt grinding with it.
the belt I made my first knife with was about 4"