I'm not a blade maker, but saw this and thought of the possibilities for others here who have the equipment, tools, and metalworking skills Sharp edge and grip made from the same material.....it would also work for spear heads too with some minor modifications, I would guess. Via:Whiskey & Grit : Photo Cable Damascus: 7 Steps (with Pictures) There are quite an assortment of You Tube clips for blade making using this technique.
Should be pretty inexpensive, too - it only took him five minutes and six seconds from beginning to end...
Actually it's not too bad if you can keep the end tightly wrapped. I haven't watch the video but I've cut a lot of cable on drilling rigs. Keep it as tightly wrapped as you can and use your heat source (a torch in my case) to fuse the ends.You want to melt or fuse the strands but not overly burn the steel. Basically like using a lighter on the ends of a piece of paracord.
I have never tried Cable, But I have worked Damascus quite a bit, and it takes a lot of time and working to get it just right! I use old seasoned leaf springs with other steels to forge what I want, some times folding, some times twisting, some times both to get the layers to look and run the right direction! What draws me in with Damascus steel is it's ability to keep an edge once properly formed and ground! Sucks to have to put an edge on but once done, it holds better then just about every other type of metal I have ever run into! And it sure looks damn nice when finished!!! I am going to try a more exotic blend the next few tools, and see what can be done. Tungsten is one I have been wanting to try and Malory would probably work good as well! Will post up some when I get around to firing up the forge!!! Nice thread Chello!
So besides going on a road trip to your place for shooting (that has been talked about on a different forum), we now need to have a Hammer-in/Metal working get together too? What else do you have hidden up your sleeves?
Well, Lets see, there are those MRAP axles I bought last summer and the 56 in Mil Rims and Tires, getting ready to fire up the tube bender and have some plasma or water jet cutting done. then there is the 42 PowerWagon, and then the Dahlgren needs the lower gun truck built so I have a fully traversable gun, and then................... I aint getting any younger, and still have a lot of projects to get to!
I was wondering the same thing. I guess the next time I head to Colorado I'll drive the 'ol welding truck..
