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The Newbies Arena Are you new to knife making? Here is all the help you will need.

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  #1  
Old 10-07-2015, 12:08 PM
tlbrooks53 tlbrooks53 is offline
 
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Static electricity?

I'm building some kit knives using both G10 and Micarta for handle materials and I'm using a Delta 4" bench top sander for rough shaping and a Harbor Freight 1x30 belt sander for finish sanding. The problem I'm having is with the HF 1x30. Static electricity builds up and will periodically shock the crap out of me! I've even tried wearing rubberized gloves without much help. Has anyone else had this happen and what did you do about it? Any suggestions would really be appreciated.
Thanks,
Tom

Last edited by tlbrooks53; 10-07-2015 at 12:11 PM. Reason: Wrong size
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Old 10-07-2015, 12:59 PM
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Ray Rogers Ray Rogers is offline
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Nylon wheels on the 1x30? That would do it. Anyway, a common problem with all sorts of grinders. Various solutions have been tried. You could get an anti-static mat to stand on. Try one of those grounding straps that attach to your wrist. Put a wet sponge on your grinder so that it keeps the wheel damp (messy!). Put a ground wire on the grinder itself. Humidify the air in the grinding area.

One of those should help, good luck ....


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Old 10-07-2015, 10:44 PM
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Buy a can of anti-static spray and coat everything. I know of a computer manufacturer who used dish detergent in one of their computers when static was a problem. (Antistatic spray is basically just a type of detergent. There's a positive and negative end on a long molecule and it sorta shorts out the static buildup.)


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Old 10-08-2015, 11:05 AM
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TJ is right. Just spray the belt.
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Old 10-08-2015, 01:05 PM
tlbrooks53 tlbrooks53 is offline
 
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Thanks for the suggestions. I may try both the wrist strap and the anti static spray together to see if I can get it under control. I'm not an electrician but why doesn't the ground wire on the plug take care of static build up?
Tom
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Old 10-08-2015, 01:09 PM
tlbrooks53 tlbrooks53 is offline
 
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Ray,
On the wrist strap option, where should I attach the little alligator clip? Just clip it onto a metal part of the grinder itself?
Tom
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Old 10-08-2015, 01:45 PM
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No reason to complicate this. Just spray the inside of each belt once while it's running. Do this the first time you use each belt. Once is enough for the life of the belt.

Laundry static spray.

It has nothing to do with the motor or other electrics. Just the friction of a new belt against the wheels.


Also, never wear gloves or long sleeves while operating a rotating machine!!!

Last edited by Don Robinson; 10-08-2015 at 01:50 PM.
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Old 10-08-2015, 02:19 PM
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QUOTE: On the wrist strap option, where should I attach the little alligator clip? Just clip it onto a metal part of the grinder itself?

Not sure since I never had to wear one myself but I think the idea is to attach the clip to an earth ground like a cold water pipe or one of those grounding rods driven into the earth.

I'd put that aside though and try the anti-static spray first. If it works for you it would be a lot simpler and more convenient ...


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Old 10-08-2015, 08:52 PM
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It gets very dry where I live, especially in Winter. I have attached a small brass bristle brush with wire connecting the bristles to the frame. The bristles are pointy and draw the charge away. They don't even have to touch the backside of the belt. The same simple technique is used in industrial settings to remove charge from rubber rollers, belts and such.

Dan
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bee, belt, build, building, coat, cold, common, g10, grinder, grinding, handle, help., kit, knives, materials, metal, micarta, nylon, problem, sander, sanding, solutions, spray, strap, wheels


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