I use the Tormek machine in a sharpening business I own and operate. In my case, its use is limited to working on knives and household scissors. I make the distinction of " household " scissors for a good reason.
My principal business is the sharpening and repair of salon shears. To that end, I use a piece of equipment manufactured by Rapid Edge ( a neat little $20,000 toy ). The sharpening of these shears is very specialized and requires someone with a lot of knowledge and experience to do it properly. The Tormek machine is useless in this type of work. I have found, however, a niche in the market place where the Tormek equipment can be profitably employed.
Sitting in my doctor's office one day, I overheard a nurse complaining about all their scissors being dull. Before leaving, I spoke with her and looked at the type scissors she was referring to. They were all what I tend to call " household " scissors....definitely NOT the type scissor you would see in an operating room environment. I asked the nurse how many pair they had that needed attention. There were 17 pair. I said I would sharpen them for $7.00 bucks a pair. They were delighted that someone could help them out. I used some other water-cooled, slow-rotating grinders I have to do the job. Sensing, though, that this could be a nice side-line business, I recently acquired the Tormek machine because it can be quicker when doing a lot of pairs at one time.
I now solicit this doctor office business on a regular basis. I kept getting asked by office personnel if I also did knives. I now tell all the office staff to bring in their knives from home when I'm scheduled to be at their office. I charge $6.00 a knife. Between hitting a couple of big offices and doing all their scissors and the people's knives, a $400.00 to $500.00 day is not uncommon.
I started this business about 2 years after I retired....got bored silly sitting around the house. A man can play only so much golf and ride his motorcycle only so much before he realizes he has to get back into the mainstream before he goes crazy.
