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Abrasives and belt grinding in a working knife shop

Abrasives

Grinding and Sharpening CPM S35VN: Belt Recommendations & Technique

Belt recommendations, grit progression, and sharpening tips for grinding CPM S35VN on a 2x72 belt grinder. Free guide from Torus CNC's ForgeBrain.

1 min readWritten by Rich LinvilleFree to read

CPM S35VN was deliberately engineered to grind and finish more easily than its predecessor, CPM S30V, while keeping nearly all of its edge retention. That design goal shows up directly at the belt grinder: expect noticeably less belt wear and faster finishing than S30V or CPM 20CV, while still benefiting from the same general approach used for premium powder-metallurgy stainless steels.

Unhandled drop-point knife blank with satin grind lines lying on a felt-lined steel tray on a dark bench.

Belt Selection

Ceramic belts remain the best choice for stock removal, but S35VN is more forgiving of belt choice than harder-edged steels like S30V or CPM 20CV. Standard ceramic belts in the same grit range used for other CPM steels will get the job done with less belt consumption per knife.

Red-brown abrasive grinder belt standing on edge in a sagging loop on a steel bench, with a butt splice across the near side.

Grit Progression

StageGrit
Profiling / heavy stock removal50
Bevel refinement60
Pre-finish80
Finish grinding120

Technique

Standard belt-grinding technique applies well here: moderate to high belt speed, light controlled passes, and a coolant mister to protect the temper. Because S35VN loads belts more slowly than S30V, you can generally run a single belt further into a project before needing to dress or swap it.

Gloved hand holding a bare ground drop-point knife blank by its tang in a dim shop, bench and rag blurred behind.

Sharpening

S35VN sharpens noticeably easier than CPM S30V or CPM 20CV thanks to its reduced vanadium carbide content. It still benefits from diamond or CBN abrasives for the most efficient results, but responds reasonably well to good-quality aluminum oxide stones for routine touch-ups between full sharpenings.

Hands drawing a small wood-handled knife along a wet gray bench stone held in a nonslip base, fingertips on the blade.

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