crackerjack Posted September 21, 2016 Share Posted September 21, 2016 I cut a blank from a harrow disc. I annealed it several times and it has lain around a couple of years. I put it in white vinegar for about 2 weeks and cleaned it a couple of times. I removed it today and cleaned it. It now has a crack in the handle that wasn't there before. What could have caused this? Could the vinegar contribute to it cracking? Maybe relieving stress? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted September 21, 2016 Share Posted September 21, 2016 Likely the crack was always there, just very fine and hidden under the rust. When you cut the section free from the rest of the disk, you relieved tension on it. Putting it in the fire relieved even more and the crack opened up to the point that you can't miss it. Just one of the wonderful things that happens when you use 'free' metal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted September 21, 2016 Share Posted September 21, 2016 Ditto Vaughn, it was a hidden fault, the vinegar probably cleaned the crud out of the crack enough for it to show well after your anneal steps. No surprises you get used to and look for this when you use scrounged steel. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted September 21, 2016 Share Posted September 21, 2016 Remember, your using used steel. Those rakes get a lot of abuse and all that flexing causes metal fatigue that shows up as cracks. It's a hazard of used steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crackerjack Posted September 21, 2016 Author Share Posted September 21, 2016 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crunch Posted September 22, 2016 Share Posted September 22, 2016 Got TIG? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crackerjack Posted September 22, 2016 Author Share Posted September 22, 2016 no Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted September 22, 2016 Share Posted September 22, 2016 As JPH said it is a design change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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