New to knifemaking? Start here. Straightforward guides for picking your first steel, understanding the data on this site, and avoiding the most common early mistakes.
Most beginner knifemaking problems trace back to a handful of repeat mistakes, not bad luck or bad steel. Here are the ones that trip…
Full disclosure, before anything else: this is Torus CNC's site — we build three of the grinders compared below. Here's how we've kept this…
Knifemaking has its own vocabulary, and a lot of guides (including this one) assume you already know it. Here's every term you'll actually run…
Fair warning and full disclosure in one breath: we sell 2x72 grinders, so of course we'd love the answer to be yes. But the…
It's easy to look at a fully outfitted professional shop and assume you need all of it to make your first knife. You don't.…
Modern knifemaking owes a lot to a handful of individuals who either revived lost techniques, popularized enduring designs, or brought the craft to a…
Heat treating introduces hazards grinding doesn't: open flame, hot oil, and steel well over 1,000°F. None of it is complicated to do safely, but…
Serious knifemakers eventually ask the same question: what does it actually cost to build a professional-grade shop, not just a hobby setup? This breaks…
If you've spent any time in knifemaking forums or subreddits, you've seen the question a hundred times: "what belt grinder should I buy?" The…
With dozens of knife steels to choose from, picking your first one can feel overwhelming. The good news: for a first knife, the right…
No belt grinder? You can still make a real knife — a genuinely good one. Stock removal knifemaking predates power tools by centuries, and…
Knifemaking went from a niche traditional craft to something a huge number of hobbyists actively pursue, and TV and online video played a real,…
Spend a week on any knifemaking forum and you'll see the question: "Can I make a knife out of this old file / leaf…
Every new knifemaker eventually hits this fork in the road: do you shape a blade by grinding it out of flat bar stock, or…
Disclosure: we're Torus CNC — one side of this comparison is ours. AmeriBrade's specs and package prices below were verified from their site and…
Disclosure: we're Torus CNC — one side of this comparison is ours. Beaumont's specs and prices below were verified from their site and authorized…
Disclosure: we're Torus CNC — one side of this comparison is ours. Brodbeck's specs and package structure below come from their own site and…
Disclosure: we're Torus CNC — one side of this comparison is ours. OBM specs and prices below come from their own listings, verified July…
Disclosure: we're Torus CNC — one side of this comparison is ours. TW-90 specs and prices below come from Wuertz Machine Works' own listings,…
Every steel in the Knife Steel Database is rated 1-5 across four properties: toughness, edge retention, corrosion resistance, and machinability. Here's what those numbers…
Buying steel from a real, known supplier instead of unmarked scrap or "mystery steel" is the single most important sourcing decision a new maker…