I want to make some spatulas, I like the old ones that are thin, about 28 g. and flexible. I have a couple that we use all the time. One says it plated with Chromium and looks to be Brass as the base metal. The other seems to be made the same but has no markings on it. I'm a little concerned about using Copper because it is soft and can react with the food. Although it looks great! Brass could be a possibility as could Bronze or some kind of non-rusting spring steel. 

What do you use?

 

Thanks for any ideas!

This is my go to girl,
It is carbon steel, beveled to a knife edge on one side. The edge is hard, as i carles ly chiped it taping it on the griddle. It belonged to a friend of mine that was a WWII and Karean war cook. I have used hand saw blades to make spatulas, especialy the cheap "toolbox" saws like the "shark tooth" and heattreated them much like a knife blade. (I do one of those saws in about once a year, and at the price I dont resharpen them)

I make spatulas out of stainless steel.  I have used old appliances and cut up the flat sides using a bandsaw at first, but later a plasma cutter.  Stainless is tough to work and drill, but the end result is a spatula that will never corrode or wear out.  Drill press for drilling, and special drill bits ground for stainless are a must.  Bending too is tough, but once done, its done.

I like the big band saw blades----enough meat that you can hammer them out; lots of spring.

Thomas,

 

I have one of those blades I picked up while getting wood at a mill. It is huge.

 

Never used any of it. Can it be cut with a zip? Any thing else I ought to know about it, any out of the ordinary precautions?

 

Thanks, 

 

Yves

Treat it as high carbon steel, cuts with an angle grinder an a metal cutting disk, well the ones I use. Probably want to quench in warm oil---test a section to get your heat treat down! Temper to suit your requirements.

Brass from door kick plate, stainless steel, 1085 drawn back to spring hardness even did one in wrought iron looked good but was to hard to clean.

Would spatulas made from brass work without any effects from the food?  Anybody make them from brass and have any long term experience with cleaning or tarnishing?  Just curious because I have about 100 lb of new brass door kickplates, and have been trying to figure out a good use for the material.

Actually, they tend to use a layer of copper as a buttering surface between the steel base metal and the chrome plating for better adhesion. That is probably what you are seeing when the chrome wears thin. A simple magnet will tell you if the base metal is carbon steel.

I have about 100 lb of new brass door kickplates, and have been trying to figure out a good use for the material.

Use some of it in mokume...?

If they are solid brass and not plated steel SCA armourers like them for brass accents on armour.

If you use brass , get the alloy called 260 as it is lead free. Lots of brasses have lead in them to aid machining.

Brass can be work hardened to where it cracks. It isn't like the beryllium alloys we use at work that you can heat treat to a spring temper.

Weygers uses a coil spring for his.

If you want springy use a spring alloy.

Njanvilman, is the value of the kickplates enough to just sell them off to people that need them?

I use mild steel. I made this for a friend about 20 years ago.

Great ideas here guys! Old saw blades is a good source. I see them at yard sales... John, Your right about the copper as a butter. I'd forgotten about that....DAH use a magnet ... Why didn't I think of that....

I'm interested in finding a source for material that is about 1/32" (or slightly less) thick. I've done some online searches and 410 stainless is of interest but the min. order from the site I was looking at is $300.00...

 

Anvil, Nice looking Spatula!! Sweet curve of the blade-

i went to a local steel supplier/recycler and tried to find some 20 ga. stainless drops (probably more than i'd use for four or five).  didn't have any, and 18 gauge and thicker is too thick.

 

good idea to use sawblades, but the woodorker in me says to use more modern saws, because the older ones have better steel for sharp teeth.  please. :)

That, mad wing ins why I use $20 "tool box saws" like the sharktooth. After Ive tried to cut a few nails they arnt worth sharpening, lol. Wile an antique deserves to be sharpend and used untile there just aint enything left

McMaster-Carr carries 410 s.s. on their website.

Nice work Anvil.

 

Do you have a picture of that spatula from the side, or any other pictures of it?

 

Is it forge welded at the handle?  It almost looks like one piece, but would've been serious chunk of steel.

If you use brass , get the alloy called 260 as it is lead free. Lots of brasses have lead in them to aid machining.

Brass can be work hardened to where it cracks. It isn't like the beryllium alloys we use at work that you can heat treat to a spring temper.

Weygers uses a coil spring for his.

If you want springy use a spring alloy.

Njanvilman, is the value of the kickplates enough to just sell them off to people that need them?

 

Never tried selling them.  I got them for scrap price from a friend who was set to scrap them, so I gave him the same amount he would have gotten, and saved him the trip.  They are solid brass, with holes prepunched around the edge to made installation easier and cleaner.  I do not know if there is a market for them. 

The spoon spatula and ladel I made out of brass still have the original patina they had when I made them 15 years ago.

Depending on the size they retail for $23-35

I use the crap saws from yard sales and flee markets for wood scrapers already. Don't know if anyone knows how to hand sharpen saws these days... I use to know a guy in San Rafael, Ca. who hand sharpened saws. I had him sharpen an old box saw I have before he retired. Saw is from 1700's. He did a great job!

 

Great tip on Mcmaster carr-

Cruise on down to Sacramento http://www.bluecollar-supply.com

On the subject of brass and copper, I think that any risk from using a copper or brass utensil like a spatula is pretty minimal.  It is just not in contact with the food for long enough.  Also, it is unlikely that you would be cooking anything very acidic in a frying pan, griddle, or grill where you would be using a spatula.  If you were boiling something acidic in an unlined copper pot or frying in a copper frying pan, particularly if you were doing it repeatedly, there would be a risk.  Just flipping an egg or burger with a copper bladed spatula would, at worst, give you a few atoms of a dietary necessity.

 

It might look attractive to tin the top of the spatula an leave the bottom copper or brass colored.

 

Cuprously,

George M.