Anyone know what material forklift truck tines are made from. Plenty of worn/broken ones available, thick enough to make tools.

have seen a lot of threads on anvils made from them check under welding and anvil section

Well I just emailed Clark, Yale, Hyster, Komatsu, and Toyota. Hopefully they won't blow me off. I will let you know what they come back with.

Chalky,

Not sure of the composition. However they make great hammers. Also the protocol in lifitng gear world is that once broken they get scrrapped rather than repaired. Not sure if this is due to cost or liability but it may support a composition formula (if you find one). Best of luck with the OEM mfgs.

Peter

some info here welding forklift tines

The opinion is 4140 or similar. Which is what you would expect for that use.

Thanks for the info. I was hoping that they would not be some fancy alloy so I could forge them. I will give it a go.

Here is the response that Clark sent today. I will edit if the other companies get back with me.


Depending on the load class, forks can be made of SAE-4130, 1040, or
1045 steel and hardened to Brinnell 229-269, 285-321, or 285-363.

This is what Yale told me.

We purchase forks (Kenhar) and they are made per B56 specifications as an industry standard. What I was able to find on an old drawing is that they are made to HC-91 spec’s. That is, they are made from Medium Carbon–Boron Steel and heat treated to 302-388 BHN. Other than this, I can’t tell you any more, I don’t want to tell you anything wrong.

I used forklift tines for my anvil. They were 4140H. Since they were only 3" thick, I laid them flat and have a 5" - 6" face. Works perfect and easy to face. I took the leftover pieces and made 2 hammers with it, one for me and one for my daughter.