hello, i have been wondering whether the steel that i have been using is good for axes and such, all that i know is that it is the same kind that is used for repairing ships and that it's really hard,so if anyone has any information on this, please let me know

 

:sidenote: i have no idea whether this is the correct place to put this topic, but this is my   best guess

We talking Hulls or driveshafts? Lots of different parts of a ship to repair. Hulls are generally not that hard but some places might be an abrasion resistant steel---like areas where nets are drawn over on a regular basis. The answer to if a steel is good for axes is that it works well when you make one from it. Generally axes use a medium to high carbon steel and a spark test of your material followed by a quench and break test or file test for hardness will tell you a lot.

Traditionally cargo vessels had hulls and frames made of mild steel. Size was a safety factor thus the scantlings were large. Thicker was better and the vessel could and did remain in service for 30 or 40 years.  The trade off on dimension is the dead weight you have to push around and the cost of the fuel required in the process. Cargo pays the bills not the weight of the hull, components or the fuel  Many modern vessels are constructed with high tensile steel, this is to reduce the hull component weight. High tensile steel tests out between 50K to 80K on the deformation scale (pull test) .  The drawback to HT steel is that it essentially work hardens in service and tends to crack. This factor was the cause of any early demise of many tankers so constructed in the 70s and 80s.

 

As Thomas noted, there is a mixed bag of other metals as well in any vessel being scrapped.  

 

If you shop scrap steel look for yards that wreck old government hulls as they would likely not be HT steel.  The wreckers in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh do most of the worlds marine scrap work, no environmental or safety regulations whatsoever) and for the most part, they ship the scrap to China.  

 

Peter 

I had an elderly blacksmith once told me that when the local steel casting company was scrapping some WWII armour plate from ships he had a run of anvils cast from it. Generally armour plate was more of a Ni steel and not so hard; but it sounded neat anyway!