CaptainBruno

Great thanks guys! I'm only going back there in a week or two but If I do manage to get it I'll let you know. Also ThomasPowers, do I just call up my nearest scrap yard and ask them what they'd pay/charge?

So the school where I am learning welding has this massive slab of steel that's just rusting on the floor. This thing easily weighs 200 pounds and I don't think it has been touched in several years. And I think that it's safe to assume that it is just some A36 mild steel because I don't see why they would have any sort of high carbon or alloy steel of that size just sitting there. So my question to you guys is. Considering that the owners of the school have most likely forgotten this thing and wouldn't mind getting rid of it? How much do you think I should offer them for it? I can haggle decently but I'm looking for a sort of range to work with. A piece of steel that size would be very useful for me as a work slab for working soft metals and wood, also If I need a flat piece to work on. What would you do with a slab of that size? Thanks.

sounds exactly like the one I'm building right now. Thing is. I'm only using welding. There has been little to no blacksmithing involved in this project. If you're interested I'll upload the blueprints for you?

Great thanks a whole lot. I'll see how that goes.

Okay so, I've made a knife and it comes to the point where I need to harden the blade. This is where I am stumped. The knife is made from a grobet file that some guy broke. So I have a few questions. 1 How do I gauge the temperature of my piece in the fire without some sort of pyrometer? 2 How do I figure out what the right temperature is? What am I aiming for? I read in "The Art of Blacksmithing" by Alex Bealer, that "In recent times the proper hardening color may be realized by touching the steel with a small magnet as the heat rises. The magnet will stick until the metal reaches a red heat. At the exact moment that the magnet ceases to stick, the steel should be quenched for maximum hardness." Is it really that simple? I'm always reading about hardening temps always around 1500 degrees. But they're always a bit different? why doesn't everyone just use the magnet technique? Thanks.