What is push stick grinding and why is it the best?
Push stick grinding is a method of grinding the bevels on a knife blade using a push stick to apply pressure to the blade while it is being ground. This method isn’t the most well-known method of grinding however I personally believe it is the best way to grind majority of knives due to its numerous advantages over other methods.
People often think you need a fancy stick of Teflon or other fancy plastic to try out push stick grinding. But the push stick I’ve been using for the last 5 years is a small bit of wood that I rounded the corners so it didn’t hurt my hands when I applied my full body weight into it. Of course I often loose this particular stick so I’ve made a bunch of others. But you can use any little bit of wood in your shop as long as it’s comfortable in your hand and comes to a relative point that you can apply pressure in the spots you want to grind.
One of the main advantages of push stick grinding is that it allows for more precise control over the grinding process. The push stick can be used to apply pressure to specific areas of the blade, allowing the grinder to focus on specific areas and achieve a more even and consistent grind. This is especially useful when grinding bevels on knife blades, as it allows for more accurate control over the shape and angle of the bevel.
Another advantage of push stick grinding is that it helps to prevent accidents and injuries. The push stick can be used to keep your hands and fingers away from the belt. Since I started push stick grinding, I’ve never burned my fingertips while grinding a blade.
Push stick grinding is also a more efficient method, as it allows the operator to use their full force behind the blade. This results in cleaner grinds and once you’ve practiced can grind majority of the steel off in a single pass, rather than having to make multiple passes like other methods. This saves time and reduces the risk of overheating the blade, which can cause damage to the blade or affect its performance.
Overall, In my opinion, push stick grinding is the best way to grind knife blades due to its precision, safety, and efficiency. It allows the operator to achieve a high-quality grind with minimal risk of messing up the grind you just worked so hard to achieve.
If you want to learn how to push stick grind there’s two videos I’d recommend
The first from when I used to work to Art
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paee54dLShE
I’m hoping to make an updated version soon as there’s a couple things I want to add.
And the second is a video made by Don Nguyen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBv8qZuB9MY
He talks a lot about grinding theory and the whole video is worth watching. But if you want to learn specifically about push stick grinding then skip to 10:20 where he’s demonstrating and talking about push stick use.