Getting ready to buy.....

[Derek Parker]

first off, introductions are in order, as i am new here.
my user title takes care of the name so, im 26 and live in st louis missouri. i have been making knives for total of four years, and about eight months ago decided to make it a business.
an example of some of my work:

unfortunately, i have learned that i wont be able to make the money i would like for quite some time. in an industry where experience reigns, i struggle to keep my head above water. competing with people that have made knives since i was born does not yield a great profit.

the one thing i pride myself on is bringing new ideas to an old game, so to speak. that theory is what led me to this machine in the first place.

about four months ago i started attempting to make my own handle material, and after some difficulty have successfully made quite a few variations. the intention was to use something new on knives, but like i said, i cant make the money i want.
examples of the handle material. first picture is denim, second a twist pattern made from fabric:



sorry for the bad pictures, but thats all i have on the PC right now.

i have started making pistol grips out of this material, and in the future plan to expand into stocks and other parts.
that is mainly what i will be using the CW for, and i was wondering if anyone here had any advice in that area. ive used the search feature and have read many threads about all sorts of topics. so if anyone has ANY advice they would like to give a newbie in general, or about pistol grips specifically, i would be very grateful.

i will be ordering my machine in the next week, and i want to get my area set up. i have one specific question regarding that: is there a dust port, and what size is it exactly? im going to have the CW in a seperate area, as my shop is pretty exposed to the elements. i want to get the dust collection system set up and ready to go by the time i receive the machine.

thanks in advance, and get ready to have another active member in this community.


have a good one.

[LittleRedWoodshop]

it is 2x17

[LittleRedWoodshop]

And placed roughly in the center of the bottom of the machine, very close to it if not dead center.

[TIMCOSBY]

that looks like a dust collection port is not one.

[www.go3d.us]

I think this machine is a great tool for the type of work you are doing.
You can make many style or design easily.
I have no experienced in making gun pistol so I'll leave it to the expert.
As for the dirt port, there is one on the back of this machine about the size of a 24 oz jar but it didn't do any good. There aren't much dirt flying out of the machine. A shop vac will do a good job on collecting all the saw dirt.

HT