ASTM-A240 304 (S30400) Steel Problem

[gonefishin]

I have some long bar stock that was given to me by a friend who works with steel, pretty thick & really expensive.
Anyway, It's treated so I cannot even cut it to length, like I said....thick. I could use a hacksaw if it weren't hardened, right now 10 minutes of hacksawing did not even start a cut. I have a smaller length of it that will fit in my oven I'm going to use.

I was going to normalize it in my kitchen oven so it could get workable & soft (I'm doing stock removal, no forging involved...so I need it soft to make cuts) & I was looking online to see what a good temp. to use would be and seen this,

http://www.fergusonperf.com/pdfs/56.pdf

The steel I have is ASTM-A240 304 (S30400)

It says it can only be hardened when worked cold - so can I even normalize it? If so, I plan on making a little keychain multitool with a small chisel blade, would I not be able to heat treat this steel? Would the steel even need heat treated since it's a special alloy steel? And if any of this ends up being possible, what oven temp. should I use to normalize?

Any help is highly appreciated.

[bigfootnampa]

What you have is a common type of low carbon stainless steel. It is a modification of 302 stainless designed to be easier to weld. A very poor choice for any kind of cutting tool or edge. Heat treatment is going to be pretty futile with this steel. I suspect that your hacksaw blades are less than top quality. You could easily cut this steel with a cut-off wheel on a 4 1/2" grinder as I have often done. The temps required to anneal this steel are quite beyond the range of a kitchen oven (1,850 degrees Fahrenheit to 2,050 degrees Fahrenheit). It also anneals better when cooled quickly rather than slowly as for most types of tool steels.

[MattBower]

Don't waste good steel trying to make blades with 304 stainless. It isn't suitable, unless you're using in in a forge welded construction with a cutting edge of something more appropriate. You can make fittings from it, though. I have no idea why you're having so much trouble cutting it; its maximum hardness is measured on the Rockwell B scale. In other words it's quite soft. Even cheap hacksaw blades should cut it unless they're completely shot. And as BFN said, a 4.5" cutoff wheel will breeze right through it.

[pkrankow]

Camp set or dive knife (pry bar) or letter opener would be good to make as knives from this material. These items the "knife" is not expected to hold a fine cutting edge.

The material should forge OK, but it will not like moving under the hammer compared to simple steels.

Phil

[gonefishin]

Thanks for the responses. I used a brand new $11.00 hacksaw blade on this, a grinder, an electric hacksaw, & tried a metal cutting bandsaw....for hours nothing even came close to even scratching this stuff.

I'm not sure why if it's supposed to be soft.

[MattBower]

Thanks for the responses. I used a brand new $11.00 hacksaw blade on this, a grinder, an electric hacksaw, & tried a metal cutting bandsaw....for hours nothing even came close to even scratching this stuff.

I'm not sure why if it's supposed to be soft.

Something just doesn't add up here. Grinders will cut even hardened tool steel, albeit slowly. You might ask your friend if he's sure that what he gave you is 304 stainless.

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Sounds like you have something other than 304, as even work hardened 304 is relatively soft. We run tons of 304 through the machines at work with no problems.

And I second the note about a cutoff wheel being able to cut hardened steels, so something is definitely wrong with this picture.

[Timothy Miller]

2 possibility's come to mind.

1 You don't truly understand the tools you have and how to use them. For example you have your blade in backwards on your hack saw or your cut off disk is a cheep knock off made of tar paper.

2. you have a bar of solid tungsten carbide.

[pkrankow]

I will add a third to the cuttoff wheel grinding through hardened steel without appreciable issues.

I will also add that brand name wheels perform much better than the cheapo wheels that some places sell. Even among brand name wheels there is a difference.

Phil

Thanks South, the carbide did cross my mind too.

Phil

[MattBower]

2 possibility's come to mind.

1 You don't truly understand the tools you have and how to use them. For example you have your blade in backwards on your hack saw or your cut off disk is a cheep knock off made of tar paper.

2. you have a bar of solid tungsten carbide.

If you do have a bar of solid WC, I suggest you send it to me for proper disposal. I will happily send you a same-sized bar of 304 stainless, or a blade steel of your choice, in trade! :D

[ThomasPowers]

One aspect of cutting with a angle grinder: was it rigidly held? I have cut a lot of auto/truck coil springs with an angle grinder---as well as RR rail (I have a big grinder) and while the hardened steel usually cuts better than "gummy stainless" I have managed to cut the latter with few issues. *But* if has to be rigidly held and the grinder applied firmly and not allowed to bounce all over the place.

I would cut an end off and test it (heat till a good orange and quench in water and then test for brittleness WEARING PROPER PPE! (The brittleness test should be expected to result in shrapnel!)

[arftist]

Thanks for the responses. I used a brand new $11.00 hacksaw blade on this, a grinder, an electric hacksaw, & tried a metal cutting bandsaw....for hours nothing even came close to even scratching this stuff.

I'm not sure why if it's supposed to be soft.

I cut 304 and 316 routinely with a hand held grinder (metabo 6") with cut off wheeels (sait, metabo, norton,walter). It cuts slightly slower than steel.

My guess is you have something else altogether. I suggest you bring it to the nearest big city junkyard. These days a good junkyard (industrial not automotive) can test metal while you wait. Then let them make you an offer and take the money and go buy some known metal that you can work.