i am hoping to eventually make a knife out of a file, but since i have no forge i was thinking about just using stock removal method, with an old grinder and other files i hope to make a knife but i am wondering if it would be a better choice to heat it first and let it slowly cool to decarbonize to it is easier to form, and then i plan to harden it again, would a normal fire and some coal get the file to the right temperature to harden it? i have no blower either so i plan to use a fanning method, thanks i hope to hear some advice on what method i should use.

save the files for forming the steel they do not make that good a knife (to high a carbon content) get some old spring you can use charcoal and if you dont have a blower what about a piece of pipe for a blow tube ? and a lump of sumthing for an anvil grab a hammer and forge it!! check forum for inprovised anvils and any chunk of spring will make a knife and probably be better than a file (less likeley to break)

ty for the reply, but what is spring?

Leaf or coil spring from a vehicle.

welder19

i have made plenty of knives out of files, they are ok material. i believe most files are 1095 or W1... and yes I would DEFFINATELY want to anneal it first.

if you dont have a torch or forge, best thing to do would be to build a fire and get a food bed of coals going, set the file in the coals and wait till it gets to a cherry red. now what you can do, is either pile some more wood on the fire and let it die down... or drop the cherry red file in a bucket full of perlite. perlite can be bought at the local gardening shop and is a light white volcanic mineral.. its cheap too, i bought a bag of 17 liters for $4.99 and i have used it for annealing tons of junk.

try not to get the stuff called vermiculite tho, it is basically the same but i have heard it can make you sick or something..

thanks, i will do just that :)

IForgeIron.com > Lessons in Metalworking > Blacksmithing > LB0003 Blacksmithing Forges and > LB0005 Blacksmithing Anvils

Just to clarify something, you don't want to decarburize the file. The process is called annealing. This is a physical change, and easily reversible. Debarburizing is a chemical change and it takes quite a bit of effort to reverse (usually too much). Lots of knowledge (possibly more than you'd want ) on heat treating here BP0078 The Metallurgy of Heat Treating

thanks, il read that an gather as much knowlege as i can, although i cant quite understand the molecule and atom part lol

Files are often used by beginning blademakers. They do need to be softened first so they don't break if you drop them. If you do not have heat treat skills or equipment you can only soften the file until it reaches knife temper and then work it at that hardness---usually with abrasives as it may be too hard to file. You must also keep it cool when working so you do not draw the temper further. However when you are done your knife is already heat treated and ready to handle.

To draw the temper to start you can use a kitchen stove---know how hot it actually gets though as the markings on the knobs are just a "guess"---why they make oven thermometers and sell them in grocery stores. You will probably want your first file knife to be drawn around 400-450 deg F.

A good book like "step by step knifemaking" would be a good place to start. Does your local public library offer ILL services?