Hello.

I've read comments around the web that brazing was not an unusual historical construction method for blunt weapons. Assuming this is true, it would seem to me that brazing provided acceptable strength, especially for the rigors of combat. My questions are thus: does anyone here have experience with brazed parts on impact tools? And would a copper braze survive hardening?

I recently forge-brazed a spike to a small hammer (clean, flush joint, C-clamped together, wound with copper wire, brought to red heat in non-oxidizing fire and fluxed, etc). The clearance is under .005". It's not hardened or hafted yet but I've thrown it against a wall a few times without breakage. That's not the level of abuse it would suffer as a backyard basher (its intended purpose), though. I just want to hear from others before I spend any more time on this.

Welcome aboard Fox, glad to have you. Were you at the club meeting Saturday before last? Next meeting is July 14th in Palmer.

There are high impact braze and silver solder rods. I replaced tungsten carbides on drill bits with silver solder and if you can stall out a 453 Detroit diesel catching one then yes. IMHO they'll withstand the rigors of combat.

No need to use copper, bronze was common enough to be "period". 

Frosty The Lucky.

There is at least one smith in europe I've heared of copper brazing higher carbon inserts into mild steel bodied blades, what subsiquent heat treatment is carried out I have no idea, maybe someone will have more information. I never managed to find any more information on the technique or who it was but this does however suggest it's a viable option.

3 hours ago, Smoggy said:

what subsiquent heat treatment is carried out I have no idea, maybe someone will have more information.

I'm no expert on this, but since copper melts at 1,984°F/1,085°C, you could probably (depending on the steel) still be able to get the hammer hot enough to harden without melting out the filler metal (and certainly hot enough to temper). No idea if this would affect the strength of the joint, though.

 

Hi frosty.

I was not at the club meet. Thanks for bringing my attention to high impact fillers. That's news to me and should benefit my non-blacksmithing work

On 05/21/2018 at 5:55 AM, JHCC said:

I'm no expert on this, but since copper melts at 1,984°F/1,085°C, you could probably (depending on the steel) still be able to get the hammer hot enough to harden without melting out the filler metal (and certainly hot enough to temper). No idea if this would affect the strength of the joint, though.

 

Well, if anyone cares, I fully heat treated it and the joint seems to have survived.

I spent an afternoon testing the hammer, smashing a few pallets. The spike took a lot of pounding and torque and hasn't broken (yet).

I wouldn't make it again but I guess it isn't bad for a quick and dirty one-off and satisfies my long-held curiosity about this (alleged) historical construction method.

 

Goodbye.