Need Brush Bandit knives

[Marky Mark]

I have a Brush Bandit that I want to get new knives for. It is a model 90 I have 52 hours on this unit and the knives are getting a little dull. I would like to get a new set and my used ones sharpened, is there a place on the web that I can send the old knives out to? and get a new set.

 

[Koa Man]

I use Zenith Cutter knives and feel they are pretty good. I sharpen my chipper knives myself using a bench mounted belt sander with 80 grit paper. Pretty easy to do and knives look like they were machined.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Originally posted by Koa Man
I use Zenith Cutter knives and feel they are pretty good. I sharpen my chipper knives myself using a bench mounted belt sander with 80 grit paper. Pretty easy to do and knives look like they were machined.

How many others here do that? It sounds a lot cheaper than having a machine shop do it at $40 to $60 a shot. I assume your method doesn't work when the blades are REALLY dinged-up, eh?

 

[rbtree]

You have to be careful not to take the temper out of the edge.

I get mine sharpened for .60 per inch, so that's only $36 a set. Cheap, and you can get three or four cycles, as the bottom knife and top can be reversed, since the bottom one gets much more wear.

 

[Koa Man]

The belt sander will not heat up a knife like a grind stone. I try to touch up mine pretty regularly. You can always cool the knife down with a wet towel if it starts to get warm to the touch. I stopped using the machine shop I used to take my knives to after they changed the angle on 3 sets of knives for my Gravely 395 and it wouldn't chip well at all, even though the chipper is a self feeder.

 

[a_lopa]

self feeders got to have a perfect flat edge ive played around with 36degrees they chip nice but doesnt quiet last as long as 40 degrees

 

[Yellowdog]

How often are you adjusting the bed knife after sharpening?
I have found, through the time involved in moving bed knife, that it is cheaper to flip my knives and then get new ones when the other side is dull
Use a BC2000 with double edge.
I am interested in trying the belt sander, though. How do you keep the angle??

 

[Koa Man]

I am interested in trying the belt sander, though. How do you keep the angle??

Just eyeball it. It will be close enough. The belt sander does not remove metal as rapidly as a grind stone, so it will be easy to check. Belt sanders are very good in sharpening kitchen knives as well, but use a very fine grit, like 150 or so. For chipper blades, use 50 or 60 grit.