Rich Hale

Have you tried that?

I am not sure how I could let the steel slowly heat to a specific temp, 1200f in a forge and then raise to 1600f. Colors to me are not good enough as ambient light is such a big factor. http://www.suppliersonline.com/propertypages/S2.asp

I thought he asked how to forge the claws,,not the axe head itself....

Welcome to the site,,,,,Nice piece of work for a first or for that matter it is a nice piece..period....And there are a few folks on here that look into specific areas that target their interests. There is a place covering tomahawks and axes that might get more views of this.....I suspect a mod may move it.. Keep at it and take lots of pics...

i am again in the old school on this...however in light of the information above shared by Ric Furrer i will likely use it on all of my billets now. If it does prevent any scale during the time it takes to get to fluxing temperature it will be a welcome support to my work. Thank you!

Did you forge the axe head?

Back to the question from the start. Bandsaw blades and bandsaw blades. Some metal cutting blades have soldered on carbide teeth. I would pass those up as the backing material is likely not chosen for edge holding abilities. Band saw and circular saw blades used to cut in logs in sawmills are my first choice if I use recycled steels. They both have a need to hold an edge through the shift of the folks using them. And they must not shatter if they find something in wood that would pose that challenge. I have used both. Sections of the mill band saw blades for laminating in billets welded for pattern welded knife blades. As mentioned above the nickel content adds a lot with its brightness in a finished piece. I have also used large,,to me diameter circular saw blades..the steel was a little thicker than the band saw scrap I used. I cut out the profile of the blade with a plasma cutter. and then ground back all of the edges. leaving steel that had its original heat treat intact. I ground the bevels keeping the blade cool. I kept a finger on the back of the blade while grinding so I monitor heat and cool often. These knives came out really nice. Also as said above. New steel has the advantage I like. I order wot I feel will suit the blade I wish to make. The steel comes annealed and easy to drill, saw, and grind. It also is easy to look up how to forge and heat treat it. I think that alone is a strong plus for anyone new to knifemaking. Heat treat done correctly is the critical base for a good blade.

Actually to be really picky I think we need to replace the word tempering with the heat treat in its entirety,,,,And I do understand that lack or insufficient tempering can for sure leave a steel too hard and brittle maybe. Depending on wot the base steel is. With so many new folks on here so often. I think the whole process,,Wot is used to harden the steel and how it is then tempered will be wot I limit myself to in reference here. And for those that notice, I did not even mention normalizing and the number of cycles in a process. This is one big reason that I reference the information in the forums, they do have the information that many times is simply not typed once again as an answer in a thread. Somehow In my life I had not heard of how John Deere got his start. Another of the many reasons that I read the forum almost daily. I did a quick google and found this thread. http://www.iwest.k12.il.us/schools/thawville/projects/1800/index_017.html It does mention the steel but really limited. S Reynolds no doubt put a lot more effort into research. Thank you....

Pretty much all of your answers are in the forums here,,,,Knife making lessons for a start,,,,if you wish

If you were concerned as I had posted...for sure I had not tried it...and I think I pretty clearly explained my thoughts. If you consider that as offensive to you then I will keep that in mind for the future,,,hope it works well for youi!

Thanks Basher,,may give it a try with your method,,,,,,

Give it a try and let us know...

KY in cans or welding without cans?

If you use wood that has been properly stabilized it will work greaqt in a kitchen setting carved or plain.

Kind of blending two fairly different process's here. Can welding and billet welding outside of cans. I use kerosene in a can. For outside of can billets I am very traditional i my ways. I grind each and every mating surface. and tack a handle on one end, and wire the stack every two inches or so. I place inn forge that is preheated and turned off. I want the entire piece to warmup all the way to the center. Then I fire the forge up and flux the piece with twenty mule team. If it does not stick I warm a bit more til it does. I do not let the piece come to a color that makes me think scale is forming before I flux. When I do the first weld I have a lot of time in prepping the piece. I do not want to have issues in a welded billet. When I draw the billet out I remove every big of scale from every side to be welded, then repeat the steps above.I wire brush the sides and reflux before each and every heat. I do not forge except at a welding heat. I use new steel for my billets, and wot I do is working. Twenty mule team works. It stops oxygen from scaling the metal where the layers weld. Use wotever you wish, many other things works also. WD40 the way I see things will burn up long before you have heated to welding temp. And as above,,inside a can is not the same. WD, paper kerosene or wotever may use up all of the oxygen and prevent the scale. I cringe when I see,,"it was in a utube video" GASp! it is just like here!..we do not know the qualifications behind the person doing it on video or in here...have to sort out validity for ourselves. However at least on here a quick request for pics of some of their work will help sort that out. And if you would like to see some of my work, check out the knife making tutorials including the advanced series on pattern welded steels. Of course the series of books by JPH, the complete bladesmith and the other two should be in every shop. I also learned a lot from his two vhs videos on making pattern welded blades. And never forget more is learned in shop than at a keyboard. Use the net to make a plan and then do that plan,,,,,

Along with wot Frank said. Writing about the necessity of the blacksmith as the United States was settled towards the west would be a more focused work. Smiths allowed communities to exist. We may even be able to think of them as the early day big box home improvement store....and a lot more. But even narrowing down your work to that may make it hard not to exceed your page count..a visit to a farm museum where you could see some of the items they made,,,wagons parts, hinges, latches, springs, wagon tires. Would be great for your work. And of course the small items like nails. The smith in a small town would also be the place for repairs of metal items...And without internet. you could place an order for a new item...maybe a replacement spring for a rifle or pistol? and expect a pretty fair turn around. Have I reached the 8 page minimum yet?

Many times I have tried to forge weld belts and each end up the same,,,stink really bad and do not bond...have never gotten past that .

Most body fluids are saline based, Slightly less than one percent. Without doing your research my guess is milk is also. Saline will cause oxidation. Lots of decades ago I had a friend that drove a semi with box on back, He hauled ten gallon metal containers of milk to be processed, The floor of the rig was made from stainless steel. Every few years they replaced the rusted out floor as the milk would eat it away. Not sure how my brain is able to dig this information up from deep within as I for sure have consumed a lot of milk over time.

Just a thought: Of all the wild rams in the USA, I have never seen one in pics or mounted that had any more than one full curl......Artistic freedom can change all of that whenever we wish,,,,,Good start and for sure it will help you build skills....

For as weapon lesser than a colt I would need armor....

No easy fix that I know of...they can likely be replated,,,may be more pricey than new replacements.

At times I feel as if I am in a battle of wits and out of bullets!

This mesquite tree will not be slain for the stump,,,I killed it long ago for something else...

HW I am so sorry for how you treated this anvil....However since I am a proactive anvil sympathizer...I will give it a good home for its eternity. And I will waive my usual monthly fee. It will be kept oiled and clean and daily I will speak kindly to it. No newbie will be allowed to hammer dents into its face or horn. It will never see the cutting tip of an O/A torch. Pm me for my shipping address. I will prepare a new mesquite stump for its arrival. You may request current pics most of the time and I will send right away. Of course I expect you to pay all shipping costs, and since I am so old and weak I will have to hire a couple of young lads to take it out back and place it quite carefully and respectfully onto the afore mentioned stump. I will submit a bill for that expense. :)

Slow the speed down a lot and it will make your motor a little stronger, If you have not used a PH before the slower speed will help you learn,,,later add a turbo charger and nitrous oxide