Chris Waldon Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 When forging a knife, do you forge, then normalize, then grind, then harden, then temper, or do you forge, then normalize, then harden, then temper, then grind? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panzertank27 Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 well im just a total newbi but i forge, grind,anneal/normalze,heat treat,temper, draw, finish bolster,handles on,shape handle,finish all. spit shine , done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markb Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 I'm newbie too ,the masters will be here soon to set us straight,but here's what I do Forge normalize forge normalize Anneal Grind,finish to 220 grit Normalize Harden Temper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Waldon Posted May 10, 2009 Author Share Posted May 10, 2009 What's the point of normalizing while forging when you're just going to anneal and undo the effects of it? I: Forge (all the way) normalize then I have not idea whether to grind or heat tread first Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryecon Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 normalizing de stresses the steel you do in between forgings to kinda calm the blade and put everything back where it goes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 (edited) looks like you guys are catching on well, soon I can pass on the mantle of moderating this section to one of you:) normalizing should be a part of all blacksmithing operations to relieve stress. which in turn help prevent warping and cracking. Annealing is to lessen the amount of grinder belts/files we wear out, as Hardened steel will eat them a lot faster than the softened steel. grinding can also introduce tress into the metal. so even with all this other stuff goingon, I still normalize a few times after grinding to make sure, then I harden. And I always temper ASAP after hardening, as I turned a nice fencing 'off hand' dagger into 3 boot knives, by not tempering soon, and it cracked into pieces while it was waiting, from the stress. Of course most times there is a little more grinding to do after, to clean up scale from the hardening operation, as well as final sharpening to give it the edge. Edited May 11, 2009 by steve sells weird typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Waldon Posted May 10, 2009 Author Share Posted May 10, 2009 Ok, so this is what I'm gathering from your input: Forge, normalize every once and a while ?Anneal? grind to final shape ?normalize? Harden ASAP Temper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryecon Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 ok here it is in a nutshell anneal forge to shape normalize final forge normalize grind polish etc normalize harden polish temper final polish handle guard etc sell my way not necessarily the right way but it works for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Ok, so this is what I'm gathering from your input: Forge, normalize every once and a while ?Anneal? grind to final shape ?normalize? Harden ASAP Temper correct, only reason to anneal is to make softer for grinding. Temper immediately after hardening to prevent the quenching stress from fracturing the harden blade. You got it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Normalizing will also refine grain in modern steels. I normalize 3 times after forging. Then grind/file/sand. Then Normalize again, Then Harden-Temper, then final grind, then polish, then hilt then make a scabbard, then sharpen! If I am interrupted forging I will generally let the piece anneal in the forge (propane). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pault17 Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 Thank you guys for asking and answering this question so recently. saves me from extensive searching. I have been reading a lot about bushcrafting and am getting into trying out several blades for the same. currently using car coil springs from an early 70's impala. I just ran a 4.5 inch grinder with cutting wheel down one side of the spring and ended up with a lot of single turn pieces to practice with. I know it is probably cheaper to buy one, but nowhere near as fun. thanks again paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecart Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Also pay close attention to the colors of the steel when you are tempering. I heat treated a knife yesterday, then tempered in the forge. Evidently didn't pay very good attention to the colors. After heat treat, the knife skated a file pretty easily. To make a long story short, I had the knife in my hand a little while ago. As I reached to turn on a radio, I dropped the knife, point first, into the concrete carport floor. Took the tip off of it, I noticed while I was reshaping the tip that the edge is VERY soft now since the tempering. So losing the tip was a bad thing. Finding out I ruined the temper was not so bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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