Re: water too fast oil too slow actually i have an account on that forum already, just need to do the finger work and read up again.
Re: water too fast oil too slow Nice looking blade, I am considering getting into making some blades. My dad worked at a saw mill when I was growing up and used to take the old files and make some knives from them. Coarse this was 20-25 years ago and alot has changed since them.
Re: water too fast oil too slow I havent done a whole lot of heat treating for several years but used to work quite a bit with coil spring and similar spring steels. The way I had learned and always worked well for me way by the color. I generaly was working in daylight but under a roof (open sided building) and to harden the steel would heat it to a straw yellow then quinch in motor oil or cooking oil. Used water and got away with it a lot of the time but oil was better. On any other stuff I have done the hardening on I have used the same color meathod and aside from a few times of cracking in water or haveing a brain fart and tap or flex it before tempering have had good results. Like I say, Im no master at it but its what I was taught and has seemed to work for me.
Re: water too fast oil too slow i love O-1 steel. just finished hardening one with my oil mixture, other than the intersting thing of getting smacked in the head by a flying, still glowing blade. all is looking good. going to finish the heat treat tommorrow. Bear, those hammers are great i love the feel and how the back of the hammer is angled I was using them and the tongs tonight. thanks again
Re: water too fast oil too slow Great to hear that you're having fun with it... O-1 is a terrific steel... Don't forget to temper it... after heat treat... and you'll have a super tough knife! Yup... the right hammers can make alot of difference... keep those faces nice and smooth and dress all the sharp edges off so you don't mark your blades with little dings... a little time sanding your hammer... can save you alot of time sanding your blades.... Great to hear you're doing well with it... been spending my time just getting my hot forge area organized again... Appreciate the progress reports!
Re: water too fast oil too slow actually its going alright. its been fergin cold down here (for texas that is). Got on blade in the works 0-1 its formed and heat-treated and tempered. it warped a little in the quench so im trying to grind out that. its slow going. i have a "not the right tool for the job" sander that i use for a knife grinder. getting ready to plant the garden, thats eating my time. along with other things round the house. i need to post pictures
I have a question: Does case hardening do any good for knives? Just a thought? I used to do a lot of it using a compound called "Casinite", that we bought in a can. Worked good for doing tooling... Just wondering! We had to work with a lot of various metals, and had an electric Oven" to heat them to different temps... Did brine and oil treatments, depending on what was required..... Loved it!
Sounds like you have some great experiences with metals and heat treating... I think you are talking about Kasenit its mostly for low carbon steels... and knife makers usually use high carbon or alloy for edge retention, toughness and or stain resistance... and either send it out for heat treatment or do their own through air, plate, water, salt or oil quenching and they definitely use gas or electric heat treatment ovens or good old kitchen and toaster ovens... That being said... it does harden steel so I don't see why it can't be used.... give it a try and make sure to post some pics.... Here's a description off the web... An easy way to harden soft, low carbon metals. Kasenit in combination with high heat creates a tough, durable, hardened finish on the surface of metals. Technical Information Notes: Produces a wear surface (surface hardening) on low carbon steel, low alloy steel, iron. Non-poisonous, non-explosive. Application instructions (from Kasenit) for Low Alloy or Low Carbon Steel: There are two methods of application. Method A: Heat the work uniformly to a bright red (1650 - 1700 degrees F), remove any scale with a wire brush, dip, roll or sprinkle the Kasenit powder on the component. The powder will melt and adhere to the surface, forming a shell around the work. Reheat to 1650 - 1700 degrees F, hold at this temperature for a few minutes and quench in to clean cold water. This will give the component a completely hard case of uniform character and depth. Method B: If a deeper case is required, then a container for the compound can be used. A discarded can, lid or tray is suitable for this purpose, but care must be taken to burn off the tin coating before use. Completely cover the component with compound and heat to a bright red (1650 degrees F) for five to thirty minutes, depending upon the depth of case required. Quench only the component in clean, cold water unsing dry tongs for handling. Rates of Penetration: After heating the component to 1650 F using method B, Case depth .005, Time 15 minutes Case depth .010, Time 30 minutes Case depth .015, Time 40 minutes Case depth .020, Time 50-55 minutes Method for Cast or Tool Steel: Heat the article to a light yellow. Deposit it in powder and leave it there until its right tempering heat is reached (see list below). Then plunge the metal into clean, cold water. This will bring out the hardness and also prevent cracking. Heat Tempering List: Small cutting or turning tools, cutting edges of knives, planing tools and reamers, small case hardened parts: Light straw color, 440 F Carbon steel milling cutters, large cutting or turning tools, slotting tools and small punches or dies: Straw color, 460 F Drills, small taps, profile cutters, screwing dies and hammers: Dark straw, 480 F Press dies, shears, wood cutting tools: Orange, 500 F Chisels, large punches, pressing dies and cutlery: Light purple, 525 F Saws, drifts, large dies and heavy chisels: Purple, 540 F Springs or portions of tools to be locally tempered to give maximum resilience: Blue, 560 F <!-- system 11/30/2009 --> <!-- end text --> <!-- end video --><!-- end tabInfo --><!-- end middle -->
Re: water too fast oil too slow Glad you got some knifemaking time in... warpage is a bummer... better than cracks though... sometimes you can bend it back by using wooden dowels and a vise... temper heat... and bend it while its still hot.... I did that a few times with good results.... Good to hear you made some progress... O-1 is a great steel to work with!
Re: water too fast oil too slow Nope... haven't gotten that far yet.... Just ordered 3 new ones though today... made by a custom knifemaker Ed Caffrey.... pretty nice angle peens like the ones I sent Mage....
Most of the work I did was in the punch and chisel area, for presses, and the like. I forgot the spelling! Thanks for the info! That'll come in handy, as there's a guy that has been building a forge up on the mountain next to me...seems that's the work he did before he hurt his back, but nowadays he is working on knives! Should prove interesting!
