overmodulated

you have the recipe! share pics when done

tell you what ... don't know about the bolts but those e-clips rock. have fun straightening them and pounding them into submission, but fine high-carbon steel - they made the hardest blade edges I've been able to come up with. nightwatchman once mentioned they can fall in the .80 - .95% range when I inquired about them.

Thomas; good advise on the differential temper - I will keep that in mind. My doubtfulness was with regard to the merits of quenching the whole blade vs just the part that needs the hardening, but if what you stated is true, question answered!

Thanks for inputs. By destroying the blade I mean inducing visible crack(s) from the edge, going back to the center of the blade, due to the expansion and compression between the edge and spine. Perhaps if I repeat this using oil instead it will work better. I read on the forum that some pour water along the edge. This seems hard to do for a long blade - by the time you move from base to tip the residual heat from the back of the knife will surely re-temper the edge to softness. What am I missing with that procedure? I've used tempering tongs and question the effectiveness of this relative to not quenching the entire blade in the first place (i.e. doing edge only seems best). Thoughts, experiences? Greatly appreciated. I am about to risk two more knifes to heat treatment this week and don't want to lose them.

Folks: I'm still at an experimental stage with kifemaking (having only completed about a dozen to date) and would like to know your prefered methods for edge hardening. I've ruined about as many as I made, so I'm still a little trigger shy with the quench method and medium. What seems to work best for you? I've quenched medium to high carbon steel in different oils with better luck (i.e. less destruction) than in water, but with an apparent tradeoff in edge hardness. My goal is to achieve a very soft (non-brittle) knife spine together with hard edge. My attempt at edge-quenching in water destroyed the blade. Is it better to quench the entire blade and then temper back the spine, or avoid quenching the spine in the first place? My knives are in the 4-12 inch length range, and use simple steels between 1050-1090, and spring steel of type 5160. Thanks!

very nice - thank you!

Rich: what kind of machine do you have? I searched the internet on this and was surprised with how little there was to choose from for a non-commercial user. Thanks

Folks: how many of you either stamp or etch your name or symbol on the blade? Can you offer any advice on doing so? Will regular hardened steel letter stamps work on an annealed high-carbon steel blade? Does anyone try to etch with cordless dremel? Am wondering how this works out. I don't trust the steadiness of my own hand for it, nor the penmanship. Thanks for sharing any feedback.

This question was spawned from a related thread (whether or not to buff the wooden handles): Based on a little bit of research into what compounds I should buy, and what suppliers I should use, there seems to be no quality control behind this arbitrary color rating scheme. Do all white compounds have the same micron sized cutting/polishing particles in the mix? (is white always white? doesn't one color from one manufacturer overlap with a different color from a different manufacturer?) who determines this? we can't just be using color - it does not appear to be standardized, so I can't trust what I'm buying. Are there any buffing experts on the forum who use only known, reliable sources and materials? Would appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

youngsmith: what's your impression about the edge hardness you achieved with this material when quenched in water? I thought I could do better than what I achieved using peanut oil as the quechant. As a guage of hardness, in addition to the obvious file checks, I look at how easily the blade can be scratched superficially. It left more to be desired. But I can't tell if it's a limitation of the steel, or my method. Am considering using water next time. Please give me your opinion about the hardness/edge holding ability you achieved. Thanks!

Hi. These clips go underneath the railroad tracks, up against the RR ties, to keep the track from sliding longitudinally over time. You can find them along abandoned tracks, although they're not as common as loose spikes. heed all the warnings that people are about to lay on you about trespassing train tracks ...

awesome first knife. I did dozens of primitive (one-piece) knives before ever trying one like you just made! I bet it will hold a great edge too, considering the steel source

Tx for the compliments. If I recall correctly, Nitewatchman put it in the 1045 - 1060 vicinity, so it's just bordering the "high-carbon" category. Personally I'd like it to have a little more carbon or other hardening alloy. Quenched it in peanut oil and the edge didn't work out to be as hard as blades I made from 1090 or 5160. Should a large heavy beast have a little more give?

a general purpose Sasquash Slayer... 2nd crack at attaching handles (used walnut). first time messing with bolsters (used 416 stainless). mistakes aplenty... like trying to forge and grind a flat piece of stock. still can't get a decent uniform hollow grind, so this failed attempt was converted to convex edge after the initial attempt. will keep trying thanks for all of your advise and guidance throughout!

Hi: There are items that are touted to clean up sanding/grinding belts to make them last longer, and am wondering how effective these really are. Once I use a belt for wood rather than just metal, it tends to get gunked up. Any experieces? Thanks much!

I didn't realize that a little thicker blade increases the probability of success during quenching!

Folks: your advise please: Once the scales are epoxied and pinned in place for final grinding, how do you deal with keeping the whole assembly cool in between passes at the belt grinder or sander? Grinding the excess wood down to the metal in a full tange design still generates much heat once the belt contacts the metal, enough heat to possiby compromise the epoxy bond. Am concerned about repeatedly sticking this in water as it seems this could ruin the wood or the bond. Thanks much!

what compound is best for this? (wooden handle and not the metal parts)

Folks: I've only quenched about a dozen blades of various steels types before, but one thing is already becoming apparent to me which I haven't seen in written this bluntly before.... please let me know whether you concur or if I'm off base with this thinking: There is a direct relationship between how hard your edge ends up being and how much risk you're willing to take by inadvertantly destroying it. Stated differently, if you go the safest routes during quenching, you typically end up with somewhat less hardness than that steel is capable of attaining. Take the biggest gamble, and any high carbon blade potentially achieves its greatest level of hardness. This is at least how I'm seeing it. Did I oversimplify the tradeoff to be made here? Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge of this process.

yea I have so much leftover cerramic tile from the house construction I don't know why I just purchased ceramic glass. but I will give it a shot and hope it is superior

Rich: the blueprint is informative but didn't offer quenchant volumes or even a rule of thumb. John: great - thank you. Fire cement? Haven't heard that before, only clay. Do you leave just the edge exposed? Is it easier to knock off the cement after quenching than the carburized skin to get back to smooth finish?

Sir: I believe I read most of what the site has to offer on this, beginning with the basic and advanced heat treating stickies. I didn't see clear answers to these questions - perhaps I asked them with a little different twist. What I gleaned is that the RR clip I forged is 1045-1060 (rather than 60-80 as stated above), and this steel is in the mid-high-carbon range. Some quench with water, some with oil. No one suggesed a particular recipe or ratio for quenchant volume based on blade dimensions or mass. I learned that edge quenching is responsible for the bow of many swords (katanas), but would also guess that this kind of stress makes it more prone to edge cracking. I would also imagine that if this quench method significantly increases the odds of failure then it wouldn't be as popular as it is, because the spine can be softened other ways. I've seen your work and am impressed. I've ony made a handful of knives so far (mostly primitives) and would therefore greatly appreciate your insight here. Thanks!

Folks: can a standard table-top drill press be used for sandling (with a sanding drum), or must the spindle oscillate? There aren't many table top DPs that oscillate (those that exist get mixed reviews). Any recommendations? I want to be able to handle small radius curves for knifemaking (e.g. 1/2 to 3" radius curves). Thanks

Pardon my duplicative post under Heat Treating, General discussion... Folks: have several questions before I risk inadvertantly destroying another knife. (I'd try to answer these questions on my own through experientation but I don't have a forge in my own house, and have to pay for limited forge time at a local educational smithy.) I have an approx 15 x 3/8" blade hammered out from a RR anchor clip. (One gentleman on this forum suggested it's simple steel in the vicinity of 1060-80). I'm going to attempt to quench this with quenching oil in an aliminum roasting pan (like what you'd use for a turkey). 1. Would there be any problem laying the knife on its side at the bottom, or does the oil need to flow freely on each side? 2. Does edge quenching introduce greater risk of cracking at the edge than full immersion in the oil? (I ruined my last piece of work while edge quenching.) 3. Is 1 gal of oil enough for a blade this meaty? Thanks for any insight!

Folks: a couple of questions before I risk inadvertantly destroying another knife. (I'd try to answer these questions on my own through experientation but I don't have a forge in my own house, and have to pay for limited forge time at a local educational smithy.) I have an approx 15 x 3/8" blade hammered out from a RR anchor clip. (One gentleman on this forum suggested it's simple steel in the vicinity of 1060-80). I'm going to attempt to quench this with quenching oil in an aliminum roasting pan (like what you'd use for a turkey). 1. Would there be any problem laying the knife on its side at the bottom, or does the oil need to flow freely on each side? 2. Does edge quenching introduce greater risk of cracking at the edge than full immersion in the oil? (I ruined my last piece of work while edge quenching.) Thanks for any insight!