Combat Abavises

I have. Full disclosure I have limited experience with knife making, but the belts I got from them lasted at least to my expectations and in some cases beyond. I got the 2x72 starter kit, and I felt like it was a good value. In the future I may order different grit sizes IE; I bought 40 grit and I will most likely get 60 or 80 next time. And I may also get one more grit selection in the higher grit end, like a 600 grit. But having said all that I was satisfied with the service and the belts. I felt like the ceramics offered a particularly good value.
 
I’ve used them with no complaints. But like Kev rally don’t have a broad cross reference to bench mark.
 
I bought some from them and the price seemed right think I did it on one of there 20% off holiday specials and seemed like a really good price. So far no complaints. I got the ceramic 36,60,120 and some other 220 and 400 grit.
 
I absolutely love them. I bought the same set of ceramics that Justin listed.

The belts from Combat Abrasives are "sunbelt" brand if I recall. I'd have to walk out to the shop to confirm, but I believe I have that right. The structure of the abrasive is different than the typical ceramic belt. On a 3M or VSM belt the grit is exactly that- grit. On the Combat Abrasives belts the grit almost looks like it was poured on as a slurry. It looks flatter, for lack of a better way to put it. It's less like little balls of grit and more like a layer of coating.

Pros:
the finish at each grit is noticeably better than any other ceramic belt I have used.
good price
they CUT! you wouldn't think so because the belt doesn't feel as sharp as you'd expect, but boy do they cut.

Cons:
Belt life on the 36 and 60 grit is slightly less than from the 3M Cubitron and VSM belts.
They cost more than VSM
I seriously wish they made a belt in 220 grit.


Where I stand is this:

The best bang for the buck belts I have used are VSM. There is nothing that I don't like about them. They cut great and last a long time and the price is fantastic. However, the finish from a 120 grit Combat Abrasives belt is amazing. I don't spend more than a couple of minutes at 220 grit before I'm ready to hand sand. This has to be from the very even texture on the belts. You don't get those random super deep scratches. The finish at 120 is so nice that I can use a J-weight 220 belt on a flat platen afterwards and I don't get the dreaded splice bump because I don't need any pressure. You don't need any pressure because you aren't trying to get those random deep scratches out- they aren't there.
 
And I hate to badmouth any company. Combat Abrasives offers great belts at a fair price.

So here goes the negative:

Whenever I use a vendor I try to get everything I need at one time to save on shipping. I was buying belts and so I bought a bunch of their sandpaper to replenish my Rhynowet that was running out. Big mistake. I give their sandpaper a C-. It's good enough that I decided to use it up, but I'll never use it again.

Second negative: their website is not very good. They have some very strange ideas about belt "kits" and bulk pricing. The bulk pricing is good, but the quantities for the price break are not realistic. I can't see buying 24 of one grit to get a minor price break.

Third negative: even buying the belts in singles, they have minimum quantities built in. It's a minor quibble, but I don't get why they do this. Maybe I want two of something and not four... (?)
 
John Wilson said:
And I hate to badmouth any company. Combat Abrasives offers great belts at a fair price.

So here goes the negative:

Whenever I use a vendor I try to get everything I need at one time to save on shipping. I was buying belts and so I bought a bunch of their sandpaper to replenish my Rhynowet that was running out. Big mistake. I give their sandpaper a C-. It's good enough that I decided to use it up, but I'll never use it again.

Second negative: their website is not very good. They have some very strange ideas about belt "kits" and bulk pricing. The bulk pricing is good, but the quantities for the price break are not realistic. I can't see buying 24 of one grit to get a minor price break.

Third negative: even buying the belts in singles, they have minimum quantities built in. It's a minor quibble, but I don't get why they do this. Maybe I want two of something and not four... (?)
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Good points John. the quantity thing is weird. I didnt mind on the belts I use alot but I didnt need 8 or 12 - 200 grit at the time. I simply emailed them and asked if they would give me 4 - 200 and 4 - 400 which they did. I like picking out belts instead of a kit.
 
That's good to know, Justin. It's great that they will adjust their preset quantities if you ask.

By the way, the belts of theirs that I love so much are the "Steel Shredder" ceramic. I see that they do offer a ceramic j-weight in 220, just not in the Steel Shredder version.
 
My advice is just to go with the "best"..... Tru-Grit. They have any belt brand/type you could want, fast service, and the best prices you will find. The vast majority of abrasive resellers get their belts from Tru-Grit, mark them up, then resell them.

At one time or another I've had every abrasive company contact me, asking if I want to "buy direct and save"..... when I ask for a quote (usually on heavy grit belts) the quote is ALWAYS $2-3 MORE per belt than I pay for the same belt(s) from Tru-Grit. When I say I'm paying less for the same belts, and tell them I buy from Tru-Grit, the answer is always the same "Oh, well, Tru-Grit buys so many belts that we can't even offer them for the same prices"
"Bargain Abrasives" never are.

I agree with John on the VSM ceramic belts...... I've been using them for several years, and just yesterday it took exactly ONE 50 grit VSM XK760X to finish grind 7 Damascus blades (post heat treat) and it still has some life in it.

I don't know if they do it with everyone, but with nearly every order I place, Tru-Grit, will send me a few "sample" belts, asking me to test them, and report back...... that's how I get to real world test "new" belts, and get first hand knowledge of how they will work for me, in my shop.

Again....."Bargain Abrasives" never are.
 
Im not saying they are the best as i have only made one order from them but, Ed they are worth a look. I follow them on instagram and they appear to manufacture there own abrasives and not resale others. Not positive on this just going by what I see. Im a sucker for sales and always shop around online and I never see any of the big names that sell abrasives doing sales. Black friday was 25% off I think. I will be ordering from them again.
 
I have tried their products. That's the reason I posted as I did previously. Overall their products are more expensive, and less effective than comparable brand name belts, when purchasing from Tru-Grit.

Their "shredder" belts are somewhat close in longevity to VSM ceramics, but they generate far more heat because they are only available in "Y" weight backing. When they asked me for my opinion of the shredder belts, I told them I suspected the belt would be much better with "X" weight backing..... the response was that they couldn't do that.

As far as sales go, I doubt you will ever see a "sale" from Tru-Grit, unless they are closing out specific belts..... the prices are already lower than what the manufacturers sell them for.
 
Justin Presson said:
Im not saying they are the best as i have only made one order from them but, Ed they are worth a look. I follow them on instagram and they appear to manufacture there own abrasives and not resale others. Not positive on this just going by what I see. Im a sucker for sales and always shop around online and I never see any of the big names that sell abrasives doing sales. Black friday was 25% off I think. I will be ordering from them again.
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I love their 120grit Shredder belt so much that I am tempted to make a bulk purchase of this one belt. In all honestly, that is my single favorite belt of all that I have tried. Maybe it's the way I grind, what I grind.. who knows. But the Combat Abrasives 120 grit Shredder gives me a warm fuzzy every time I use them. The combat abrasives belts are not hoggers and for that reason the 36 and 60 grit belts are outperformed by VSM in life and cost, which sounds like Ed's experience as well.

I wish Combat Abrasives well. I follow them, too, and I think they are on the right track. For a one-stop shop it's going to be hard for anyone to compete with TruGrit.. Now if only TruGrit would carry Rhynowet sandpaper!!
 
EdCaffreyMS said:
My advice is just to go with the "best"..... Tru-Grit. They have any belt brand/type you could want, fast service, and the best prices you will find. The vast majority of abrasive resellers get their belts from Tru-Grit, mark them up, then resell them.

At one time or another I've had every abrasive company contact me, asking if I want to "buy direct and save"..... when I ask for a quote (usually on heavy grit belts) the quote is ALWAYS $2-3 MORE per belt than I pay for the same belt(s) from Tru-Grit. When I say I'm paying less for the same belts, and tell them I buy from Tru-Grit, the answer is always the same "Oh, well, Tru-Grit buys so many belts that we can't even offer them for the same prices"
"Bargain Abrasives" never are.

I agree with John on the VSM ceramic belts...... I've been using them for several years, and just yesterday it took exactly ONE 50 grit VSM XK760X to finish grind 7 Damascus blades (post heat treat) and it still has some life in it.

I don't know if they do it with everyone, but with nearly every order I place, Tru-Grit, will send me a few "sample" belts, asking me to test them, and report back...... that's how I get to real world test "new" belts, and get first hand knowledge of how they will work for me, in my shop.

Again....."Bargain Abrasives" never are.
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Yeah I was waiting on your answer Ed because I know we talked about about this on private msg I wish we still had them on this forum.But thanx for all the replys guys.
 
EdCaffreyMS said:
My advice is just to go with the "best"..... Tru-Grit. They have any belt brand/type you could want, fast service, and the best prices you will find. The vast majority of abrasive resellers get their belts from Tru-Grit, mark them up, then resell them.

At one time or another I've had every abrasive company contact me, asking if I want to "buy direct and save"..... when I ask for a quote (usually on heavy grit belts) the quote is ALWAYS $2-3 MORE per belt than I pay for the same belt(s) from Tru-Grit. When I say I'm paying less for the same belts, and tell them I buy from Tru-Grit, the answer is always the same "Oh, well, Tru-Grit buys so many belts that we can't even offer them for the same prices"
"Bargain Abrasives" never are.

I agree with John on the VSM ceramic belts...... I've been using them for several years, and just yesterday it took exactly ONE 50 grit VSM XK760X to finish grind 7 Damascus blades (post heat treat) and it still has some life in it.

I don't know if they do it with everyone, but with nearly every order I place, Tru-Grit, will send me a few "sample" belts, asking me to test them, and report back...... that's how I get to real world test "new" belts, and get first hand knowledge of how they will work for me, in my shop.

Again....."Bargain Abrasives" never are.
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I havnt been doing this nearly as long as some of you guys and Tru-Grit is GREAT!! And yes they always send me a couple samples. I also like Pops Knife Shop, real nice guy. My problem with Combat is exactly what has been stated in the Negitives. In all fairness i have never ordered from them. I'm still fine tuning my belt progression but have it down pretty good now. Next up are abrasives for roughing in scales.
 
Pops knife supply also has good prices on several varieties of belts
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I agree! During my military days, when I lived "back east", Pops was my belt supplier. After moving to Montana, the main reason I switched to Tru-Grit was delivery time..... it's a simply matter of distance/delivery times..... To get an order from Pops, it's 5-7 business days, from Tru-Grit it's 3-4 days.

I generally tell folks that if prices are equal, and delivery times are important........if they are east of the Mississippi, order from Pops, and if they are west of the Mississippi, order from Tru-Grit.
 
I have done Pops and Tru Grit and I don't pay for it to get here faster and believe it or not it took the same time to get here.
 
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