Hmm.. what to do with 75' of 1/2" 1095 feeler gauge material?

[picker77]

This followed me home several years ago for a project (building a view camera), and didn't get used at the time. It's good high carbon steel, just in an unusual form.  It's precision ground and polished 1095 feeler gauge stock, in three 25 ft 1/2" wide rolls in three thicknesses. I have a roll of 0.020", a roll of 0.025", and a roll of 0.030". Specs say Rockwell RC48-52. I've been kicking around what it might be useful for in the smithing or knife making world, but so far haven't come up with any brilliant thoughts. Anybody care to toss some ideas around?

 

[Frosty]

Include layers in damascus billets? I'm thinking pallet banding, this and maybe something lower carbon for nice dark bands. Hmmm?

Frosty The Lucky.

[ThomasPowers]

Bandsaw blade for bright Ni layers. As it's so thin you may want to canister weld it.

[picker77]

Hmm.. I have a batch of this stuff, which is old 1" wide .035 thick band saw blade. I am a damascus babe in the woods. Would it be possible to successfully weld a damascus billet made from this 1" wide bandsaw blade layered with 1/2" wide feeler gauge pieces laid side-by-side? Never read of anyone layering a billet with some layers being pieced together, but I suppose that doesn't mean it can't be done. If I tried that, should it be stuffed in a canister with 1095 powder?

 

Edited September 1, 2019 by picker77
Added another question..

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Check for a welded edge. Many metal cutting blades have a cobalt teeth added to a softer backer (bimetal blades). If so, you will want to remove the cobalt teeth as I do not believe you will be able to forge weld them.

1095 is a spring steel. When I worked for a gunsmith we made small springs from similar stock.

As a machinist I used feeler gages like that cut to shorter lengths.

Make a holder and see if they will sharpen like a straight razor-probably need to get harder though.

[picker77]

I'll do that, BGD. Thanks for the suggestion.

[ThomasPowers]

I would not try to weld up a billet with them side by side; just another thing to go wrong.  I would not use powdered metal either just the billet inserted in a sealed canister with a bit of oxygen scavenging material in it.

[billyO]

If I had that laying around, I'd use it in damascus for little 3-finger EDC knives, but would use 3-4 layers of the 1095 for every layer of 15N20.  My 15N20 stock is in .0680" and .0720" thicknesses.

 

Or you could make some damascus billets 1/2" square, twist, then do some smaller multibar knives.

[picker77]

Heck, Billy, I might try that. At least it would be the size billet (maybe) that my ancient wrist/arm could handle with a hammer, ha. Don't have a power hammer and at my age I definitely am not going to try to hand-work a normal size billet. I have some 0.049" 15N20 in 1-1/2" and 2" width. I suppose I could band saw a 12" piece of the 2" lengthwise into three approx. 5/8" wide strips and stack some of that with the 1/2" 1095 feeler gauge material, maybe using two 1095's for each 15N20. Sounds like more experimental fun!