will52100 Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Don't have any pics, out on the rig again for a while. Anyway, I forged an eye punch from 3/4" L-6 round bar. Because it has a tendency to air harden, I did a proper normalize and anneal cycle on it in my oven. I then hardened the lower punch section and tempered. It worked great for punching the eye of a 2.5 pound hammer, no deformation of the end or anything. Unfortunately in the middle of beating on it to punch the hammer eye it started to bend. So punching the eye of the hammer was punch, straighten the eye punch, punch, straighten the eye punch, ext. until nearly done when the handle was in bad enough shape I finished with the straight punch I used to make the eye punch. I'm thinking I should have quenched the whole thing, then did a differential temper on it with the striking surface fully soft. Or just make one out of 5160 and use three or four times, sharpening between, and add to damascus when used up and make another. I get back stateside I'll take pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Hammer blank not hot enough and working to slow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 too long a punch? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJS Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Isn't L6 designed to NOT break, but to bend and smear instead. I think doing a differential tempering, instead of hardening would improve proformance... The other comments might be true and useful as well, but I think I would harden the whole thing, and then temper the struck end two or three times. It is much less likely to spall badly being L6... Keep it dressed of course, but it won't be as bad as some other steels... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will52100 Posted February 22, 2015 Author Share Posted February 22, 2015 Thanks, that was what I was thinking SJS. I'll know more when I get back state side. The thing with L6, at least proper L6 and not some of the versions out there now, is that it will air harden from a forging heat. I made a slitter out of it years ago and after a while the eye broke. It's a hard steel to properly heat treat without an oven. One of the reasons I'm glad I bought a Paragon several years ago. Unfortunately I was thinking of keeping the eye and striking end as soft as possible, not thinking about bending and deforming it.Hammer was hot enough, at least at the start, but I was moving slowly, was by myself and it's a juggling act to punch and hold the billet and hammer at the same time. Though in hind sight it did punch very very fast, better and faster than any punches I've made yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francis Trez Cole Posted February 22, 2015 Share Posted February 22, 2015 for eye punches I use H-13 with a welded on handle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will52100 Posted February 23, 2015 Author Share Posted February 23, 2015 Been thinking of doing away with the eye altogether and just making a split wooden handle around a solid and straight punch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJS Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Rodded handle... Fuller a groove around the tool, and then wrap a 1/4 rod around it hot, twist it tight and then form a handle out of the rod. There was a thread were some Afghani smiths were making tongs, and they made a few pairs with no bits... Just a rivet out at the end of the reins, you squeezed the tool between the reins of the tong, and held it just back from the hinge. Looked like it worked great, its on my list... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will52100 Posted February 23, 2015 Author Share Posted February 23, 2015 That's most likely what I'll do, either that or go to larger stock and make the eye a heck of a lot thicker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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