jmrtn8 Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 Can anyone on the forum tell me how to forge weld??? I wanted to forge weld these drill bits I dont use to make a knife. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maillemaker Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 Sounds ambitious. First off, a little more information would probably be helpful. What kind of forge are you using? Can you get the stock to welding heat, and recognize when it's that hot? Do you know what flux is? How long have you been forging? I've asked for advice about forgewelding or firewelding, and these questions would all be asked anyway; I don't mean to be rude. The general process for firewelding is as follows: 1. Clean your stock to remove any rust or other oxides 2. Bring to red heat, and apply the flux 3. Bring to white-hot "welding heat" 4. Quickly brush off the scale 5. Start the weld, striking the steel with firm blows that don't bounce. You need to start out gently, or you will drive out all the partially molten metal that allows the weld to take. Gradually increase the strength of your strikes. Now, I've tried to weld quite a few times previously, and it is in no way an easy task. There are a lot of variables, and even though I've been told I'm a decent smith, welding reliably is a skill that I don't have. That's the gist of it, and I'm sure any of the MANY experienced smiths will correct me if I have any misinformation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 If these bits are M-2 white hot, is way too hot... just FYI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 as Steve mentions without knowing what alloy they are made from any instructions will just be a guess! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 Sounds ambitious. 3. Bring to white-hot "welding heat" 4. Quickly brush off the scale 5. Start the weld, striking the steel with firm blows that don't bounce. You need to start out gently, or you will drive out all the partially molten metal that allows the weld to take. Gradually increase the strength of your strikes. As Steve Sells says White hot is too hot, not just for M2 steels, but most carbon steels, works for wrought iron but that's a different material altogether. I am curious on how your wire brush differentiates between the scale and molten metal. I would suggest that the poster at least views a live forge welding situation, (local smith, group meeting or classes). One good live demo is a quicker way to go than reading or viewing any amount of information on the net or elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeatGuy Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Would not the spiral shape of the drill bit make difficult to make a sound weld to begin with ? brad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbruce Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I don't think the most experienced knife maker on this site would attempt this, It's just not going to happen in my humble opinion. No harm in trying......... One other thought....If the bits are high speed steel I don't see much hope........ If they are the old high carbon bits you might have a fighting chance.......mb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 One word: Canned Damascus.... oh, wait...... two words Just a thought though: As for the twisted metal being hard to weld; maybe un-twist and hammer flat(ish) One more thought (hey I'm on a roll and haven't even had my first cup'o'coffee yet. I know "DANGER, DANGER!!" )"I wanted to forge weld these drill bits I dont use to make a knife." Are they un-sharpenable? Broken? Why don't you use as drill bits? Even a broken bit can be resharpened. I make short drill bits for my lathe by cutting off old ones and resharpening. Just sayin' :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maillemaker Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I am curious on how your wire brush differentiates between the scale and molten metal. Good question, and one I never considered before. I read it in The Blacksmith's Craft, I think. Again, I'm just repeating what I've heard from others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Good question, and one I never considered before. I read it in The Blacksmith's Craft, I think. Again, I'm just repeating what I've heard from others. That was probably a reference to wrought iron welding as opposed to fire welding mild and carbon steels. The molten faces on wrought are usually slag, and that is either shaken off or wire brushed off prior to placing the items to be welded together on the anvil, Wrought and mild carbon steels are equally capable of being fire welded, just a slightly different technique being used, wire brush the face on mild steel and you will have more difficulty getting two or more pieces to start to fuse together, where you hit also affects the quality of the finished weld. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evfreek Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 These broken drill bits are kind of hard to say goodbye to, huh? I have found that most drill bits are high speed steel. This is difficult to forge and heat treat. But, they are fairly easy to sharpen, especially if you understand a little bit of drill geometry. There are many good resources on the Internet about drill sharpening, but I would caution you about Teenut's instructions. They are flippant, hard to understand, and maybe a little detailed for the beginner. The drill bits that are not very useful are old fashioned or junk import steel bits, especially those made out of plain carbon steel. They can be "unwound" hot and forge welded as the bit in a wrapped hawk or a simple knife. Spark test to figure out what you have. If you really need a broken drill bit, I have a burnt carbon steel one that I got in a $10 box from a garage sale. It cannot be sharpened since it is burnt. Most of the bits were mangled, but I could make out a few nice US made HSS bits in there which were useful. Also, the seller threw in a pair of real wrought iron tongs that were rusted shut for free . I'll send you the bit if you provide a SASE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Budd Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 I've made a few knives from drill bits, but I don't think I would bother trying to weld them together. I prefer to sharpen until down to stumps and then I use them for centrepunches, scribes and little chisels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiapan Posted April 2, 2011 Share Posted April 2, 2011 i like that little knife, would be interesting as a letter opener kinda gift. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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