My first Curd cutter as well

[DrChile]

followed Bob's recs as well.
http://blog.cheesemaking.com/bobs-homemade-curd-cutter-part-2/
Bought a dowel from Lowe's hardware.  I used 3/8 inch diameter stainless steel rod instead of a 1/8 inch (they only had 3/8 inch at the time and I didn't want to wait or travel to another store) - so it's a bit thicker.
Used 14lb fishing line after notching the rod with a dremel.  Used super glue to help secure the rods into the dowel.  It's about 10 inches wide which fits into my big pot i use for 3-5 gallon makes. I plan on making another one using 1/8 inch rod and a smaller width. 

Trent

Disclaimer - I'm not the most handy person at all and this was definitely doable so I would encourage others to try.  Total cost was about $10-12.

[Susan38]

A cheese for your efforts.  Those knots have deterred me from trying this project (although I have lots of fishing line!)  How long did it take you to make?

I recently realized I have some cake cooling racks that might do nicely for horizontal curd cutting (and they actually fit great in my cheese making pot!)...will be trying them out on my next cheese make and if it works will post pics of the results.

[awakephd]

Another C4U!

[DrChile]

Thanks all!

Those knots have deterred me from trying this project (although I have lots of fishing line!)  How long did it take you to make?

HA HA! 
Those knots were the bane of that project.  (i actually forgot how to tie a tight knot at one point).  It started to go faster when my eldest daughter started to help me tie the knots and I started using a hemostat to grab the fishing line - that helped as well.  All in all, it took me about 2 hours to tie them all.

I used it the other day and it worked very well.  I may make another one with smaller gauge metal (1/8 inch) and a smaller width - the one pictured is about 10 inches wide and if I'm making <2 gallons it wouldn't fit into the pot I use for smaller makes (whoops!).

Trent

[TravisNTexas]

Very nice job Trent!  So are you using a knife for the vertical cuts still?  And where did you source your 3/8" steel?

[DrChile]

Yes = using a knife (actually a long offset spatula that one uses to apply icing to cakes).

The steel and dowel were sourced from Home Depot (Lowe's also carries them).

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-1-8-in-x-48-in-Plain-Steel-Cold-Rolled-Round-Rod-801567/204273942

This is a 48 inch long 1/8 inch diamter one - they also have 3/8 inch diameter.  i think the shortest is 36 inches which is what i used.

Trent

[TravisNTexas]

The link is to a cold rolled steel rod.  I was thinking you said you used stainless steel.  The only stainless steel rods I see at HD are all threaded.  I guess if you keep it dry when not using it rust should not be a problem for a non stainless rod.

[DrChile]

Yes - apologies - not a stainless steel rod.  The only stainless ones are the threaded ones (at Lowe's as well)

Trent

[awakephd]

A convenient source of thinner stainless rod (1/8", 3/32", even 1/16") is TIG welding rod. This generally comes in 36" lengths. You can get a package from various eBay sources for a reasonable price, but of course if you don't do TIG welding, that would leave you with a good bit of left over. Another option is to see if there is a welding shop in town that might sell you a few rods.

[TravisNTexas]

Thanks for that tip Andy!  My step son is a professional welder!

[DrChile]

Another thought my wife had was to use the threaded stainless - as you could avoid using the dremel to cut groove in the smooth rod for your knots to sit in - it wouldn't slide through the curd as smooth as a smooth rod but still an idea...

Trent