I was looking for such a device as well. I have seen Jason Knight use a dial height gauge with a scribe on top of a granite slab. To buy this your looking $100-$200 depending on brand, grade, size, etc.

I'll have to look into this option you speak about. It looks affordable at the least.

Pretty simple tool to make. Here is a guide from Walter Sorrels: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2ECjTf5O-U

Kevin if you want a very simple centering method you could just use a drill bit just under the size of your stock on a flat surface and mark your stock. My problem with a center scribe would be if your stock wasn't perfectly flat you have something centered and not straight. I started with a center scribe and use a height gauge now, but I made this simple height gauge(aluminium and angle iron) which I still use with pens or pencils to mark handles. Hope this is of some help.

Here's a fast, simple, and inexpensive way to center scribe your blade edge.

First, you should know what you average thickness is for the knives you make. Most of us work in the 1/4" or 3/16" ranges. I'm talking the ricasso here.

So go down to the local home improvement store and buy a 1/4" and a 3/16" drill bit. $4-$5 bucks each for a decent bit. If you don't have a granite slab, buy a 12" square granite tile (another $5) while you are there.

Chuck the drill bit up in a hand drill and run the grinder. Make sure the drill is turning against the path of the belt. Grind that bit into a point. You should have the ricasso area pretty flat already. So lay the bit down on the granite slab/tile, blacken the edge of the blade with a Sharpie pen, and hold the knife down on the tile with the pressure keeping the ricasso flat on the tile. Now slide the pointed drill bit along the edge of the blade. You don't need to apply a lot of pressure. All you really want is a pair of lines running along the edge, about .1" or less apart, that define where the center is, referenced to the ricasso. Flip the knife over and repeat. You can also scribe a center line down the spine to see how straight the blade really is.

Simple, easy and less than $20

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Here's a fast, simple, and inexpensive way to center scribe your blade edge.

First, you should know what you average thickness is for the knives you make. Most of us work in the 1/4" or 3/16" ranges. I'm talking the ricasso here.

So go down to the local home improvement store and buy a 1/4" and a 3/16" drill bit. $4-$5 bucks each for a decent bit. If you don't have a granite slab, buy a 12" square granite tile (another $5) while you are there.

Chuck the drill bit up in a hand drill and run the grinder. Make sure the drill is turning against the path of the belt. Grind that bit into a point. You should have the ricasso area pretty flat already. So lay the bit down on the granite slab/tile, blacken the edge of the blade with a Sharpie pen, and hold the knife down on the tile with the pressure keeping the ricasso flat on the tile. Now slide the pointed drill bit along the edge of the blade. You don't need to apply a lot of pressure. All you really want is a pair of lines running along the edge, about .1" or less apart, that define where the center is, referenced to the ricasso. Flip the knife over and repeat. You can also scribe a center line down the spine to see how straight the blade really is.

Simple, easy and less than $20

the impediment to this is i just don't have the space to keep the slab right now.

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the impediment to this is i just don't have the space to keep the slab right now.

The granite tile is 12 inches square and about 1/4 inch thick. You could glue it to a piece of plywood the same size and keep it on a bookshelf, or under the workbench, or ontop of a cabinet, or almost anywhere. It doesn't take up much space.

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The granite tile is 12 inches square and about 1/4 inch thick. You could glue it to a piece of plywood the same size and keep it on a bookshelf, or under the workbench, or ontop of a cabinet, or almost anywhere. It doesn't take up much space.

ahh. may give it a try. however, how does this technique work with tapered tangs? I have been trying to implement them in my work for the last year.

If your ricasso area is flat and paralell sided, just hold it flat against the slab and have the thin end of the tang off the slab. If the taper goes all the way through the ricasso area and then reverses down the blade, do this:

Measure the thickness of the ricasso area with some calipers. That is the place that all center lines are seen in reference to and usually the thickest part of the knife.

Now measure the thin end of the tapered tang. Subtract the tang thickness from the ricasso thickness and divide by two. This is the thickness of the spacer you will need to put under the thin end of the tang to get the center line parallel to the granite slab.

So, let's just say that the ricasso is 1/4" thick. That's .250 inches. The thin end of the tang is 1/8" thick. That's .125 inches. .250 - .125 = .125. .125 divided by 2 = .0625 or 1/16". Slide a 1/16" drill bit or a piece of .060 flat stock under the thin end of the tang.

|quoted:

If your ricasso area is flat and paralell sided, just hold it flat against the slab and have the thin end of the tang off the slab. If the taper goes all the way through the ricasso area and then reverses down the blade, do this:

Measure the thickness of the ricasso area with some calipers. That is the place that all center lines are seen in reference to and usually the thickest part of the knife.

Now measure the thin end of the tapered tang. Subtract the tang thickness from the ricasso thickness and divide by two. This is the thickness of the spacer you will need to put under the thin end of the tang to get the center line parallel to the granite slab.

So, let's just say that the ricasso is 1/4" thick. That's .250 inches. The thin end of the tang is 1/8" thick. That's .125 inches. .250 - .125 = .125. .125 divided by 2 = .0625 or 1/16". Slide a 1/16" drill bit or a piece of .060 flat stock under the thin end of the tang.

Thank you.