RyanBrown8152 Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 So... I got my hands on a dozen or so chunks of sucker rod and most have the coupler still attached. I have messed with forging one but it was a bear to work with has anybody tried making anything with these? As far as I can tell they are generally AISI 4142 M, AISI 8630 M or AISI 1530 M which tells me nothing but hopefully will help one of you help me! Thanks! Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j.morse Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 My All Purpose Boy works in the oilfields here, and has lugged home a few sucker rods. The only thing I have pounded out of them were some dinner bell triangles. That was from the rod, not the knuckle/coupler on the end. It was HARD stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matto Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 Use sucker rod for punches and chisels. Use the knuckles for hardy tools Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanBrown8152 Posted September 17, 2016 Author Share Posted September 17, 2016 It's the couplers I can't figure out what to do with.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwistedCustoms Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 The sucker rod I get has a female threaded bell made on one end and male threads on the other end of a 20' stick. I've never seen that style coupler, is it threaded all the way through? If you can find brass plugs with the same threads, screw one in each end, fill it with lead shot and weld a handle on = beefy dead blow hammer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 Welcome aboard Ryan, glad to have you. Slit and flatten them for stock. Or you could flatten them some insert some high carbon, forge weld for hawks or hatchets. This is probably just a different manufacturer's product. I saw a number of versions of drill rod but most had integral couplers called "box and pin" for female and male threaded couplings. We had couplers "Subs" in the tool box for adding various tooling in the string, "shims" for aiming the hole or stopping the rod from whipping, "reamers," to clean, enlarge, etc. the hole, sub in a different size rod or tool. The list is long but no we didn't use drill rod with separate couplers. and no, I wasn't an oil patch driller, I did test holes for foundations studies for the State of Alaska, Foundations Geology section of DOT. I've never gotten to forge sucker rod though I'd like to give it a lash. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanBrown8152 Posted September 17, 2016 Author Share Posted September 17, 2016 1st off, Thanks Frosty, To answer as much as I can, Twistedcustoms, yes they are threaded at both ends. Frosty I have split and flattened one and it was a SOB! I was hoping someone here had worked this type of metal in some form or another and had advice on how to best work it. It seems to be some form of stainless steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwistedCustoms Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 There is an old blacksmiths saying, "if it won't rust, don't trust". Not very scientific but still a good rule of thumb. The connecting ends on my sucker rod are rusty when I get them but I've never given much thought to doing anything with them. Looks like a lot of time and fuel for not much payout. The ones you have may be a more modern version. If it is stainless or a high chromium tool steel it will have much different forging and heat treating requirements that simple steels. Some tool steels air harden, some oil harden. I know nothing about forging stainless but I've been told some stainless steels can be forged. If you can track down the manufacturer and get them to tell you what they use you can get the heat treat specs for it. Without knowing that it's a shot in the dark. I know that doesn't answer your question but for what it's worth...... Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Cochran Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 4 hours ago, TwistedCustoms said: If you can track down the manufacturer and get them to tell you what they use you can get the heat treat specs for it. They will likely say it's 'propreitary information' and give you very little information. If you are nice and polite and ask a few well worded questions they might let a little information slip that can be useful. Then again they may not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy seale Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 Also the collars are for wear in a crooked hole, I don't know the comp. but here they are scratched and will rust in it, maybe it's just a wear coating on them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 12 hours ago, jimmy seale said: Also the collars are for wear in a crooked hole, I don't know the comp. but here they are scratched and will rust in it, maybe it's just a wear coating on them. Good point, I hadn't thought of that. They're probably something akin to Vascowear like grader, dozer, etc. edges are made from. HIgh carbon matrix holding carbide particles for extreme wear resistance. If so, probably pretty useless for forge stock. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John in Oly, WA Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 On 9/17/2016 at 6:51 AM, matto said: Use sucker rod for punches and chisels. Use the knuckles for hardy tools So, would that be a sucker punch then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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