Chris C Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 Can anyone tell me what metal is typically used to make a lug wrench? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 Most are made from steel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted May 26, 2020 Author Share Posted May 26, 2020 Got me, Steve. Of course I meant "what kind of steel". Is it high or medium carbon? I know lug wrenches are often used as punches and chisels, but would they make a good blacksmith's knife? (would it be able to be hardened enough to use satisfactorily as a knife?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 Some were 1080 others I had were L6 both good for blades Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris C Posted May 26, 2020 Author Share Posted May 26, 2020 Thank you. Much appreciated. Might give a blade a try just for fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 Thanks Steve. We junked a bunch of cars where i used to work so now i have a pile of lug wrenches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 That's higher carbon than I thought. Hmmm. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 I guess they need hardened to hold their shape, My old teacher was a test engineer so he got various things tested at his work in his down time, a few things he tested surprised us like L6 for the leather wrapped Estwing claw hammer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 I hadn't thought about them before but they do need to be pretty rigid and light. Long, thin, rigid pretty well means high end of medium to low end high carbon or higher alloy. I'll bet there are vanadium alloys too. I'm thinking it sounds like good axe steel. I've passed on old Estwing hammers at yard sales for considerably less than a SMALL piece of L6 at the Anchorage Metalsupermarket. My distaste for them stems mostly from one guy who kept trying to sell me steel for stock removal when I specifically told him I was doing a pattern welded billet. Wouldn't ball park prices without writing up a quote either. Refused to just give me a price per foot or lb. Were I in the market for blade steel prices are about a wash from one of the mail order companies and availability is much better. A yard sale Estwing claw hammer beats the socks off both maybe make it worth experimenting on pattern weld. Funny world eh? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluerooster Posted May 30, 2020 Share Posted May 30, 2020 Finding out that estwing hammers are of a good steel, I'll happily use them to forge something actually useful out of them. (I hate those hammers, they make my elbow hurt) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Hinsman Posted March 23, 2021 Share Posted March 23, 2021 Lug wrenches, as in the kind that are sold with cars to help swap in a spare tire? I've forged them plenty, and they make decent chisels and punches. I've made a few knives with them as well, hardened in oil and tempered to 450 F for an hour. They hold a good edge. I'm sure that it varies by manufacturer, but they're something along the lines of a 1080-1084 as far as I can tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bantou Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 I’m really glad I found this. I was about to cannibalize one for a set of tongs. Sounds like it would have been a waste of good tool steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 It wouldn't be a waste of tool steel for a pair of tongs. Tongs are tools you'll use all the time. Stronger springier steel allows you to make them thinner and lighter without sacrificing strength. Light strong tools are easier to handle and less tiring. Using good steel for tongs is a good investment. However, I suggest you hold off on making tongs from lug wrenches for a while. The steel isn't easy to move, demands good heat management and it's more prone to catastrophic failure. It's kind of finicky. Right now you need tongs, yes? Buy some bar stock, there are a number of good tong how to videos on Iforge that'll tell you how much and what size to use. Once you get the hang of making tongs, moving on to more difficult and demanding steel means a much higher probability of success. I like coil spring with about 1/2" wire diameter for tongs. They make light springy tongs and aren't so demanding. Sure it's tougher stock to forge than mild steel but not a whole LOT. Another popular tong steel is 4140 and it's popular for a good reason. 4140 is on a par with coil spring for work to move but is less susceptible to poor heat management. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluerooster Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 What about 4130? I have access to plenty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 I have made a lot of tools out of 4130, never any problems with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 18, 2021 Share Posted April 18, 2021 I picked up two lug wrenches yesterday at the scrapyard jut for tong making. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bantou Posted April 19, 2021 Share Posted April 19, 2021 On 4/17/2021 at 8:22 PM, Frosty said: It wouldn't be a waste of tool steel for a pair of tongs. Tongs are tools you'll use all the time. Frosty The Lucky. I’d rather save the tool steel for the countless hardened tools I need to make. My blacksmithing tool inventory right now consists of a hammer, JABOD, 66lb Chinese cast steel anvil, and a cheap chisel/punch set I bought to get me through until I can make my own. I have some leaf springs off an F250, a couple sway bars, and the tire iron to work with for that. I’m still trying to find a good source for soft steel. Living in rural Texas makes finding good known steel for a reasonable price a challenge sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 19, 2021 Share Posted April 19, 2021 For small round mild I have often found scrapped electric fence rods to be very soft under the hammer---the ones predating A-36. I once made a nice small dragon from one using the triangular sheet metal stabilizer for the wings. (Bent ones get tossed where we blacksmiths can straighten them!) Strap stock is usually not that difficult to find "junked". Got any friends who will let you prowl their farm/ranch scrap piles? Just watch out for galvanized stuff! Now for "Good Known Steel" other than A-36 I'd have to drive the 80+ miles to the city. (For A-36 if the windmill repair and supply place doesn't carry it; it's only 50 miles to a dealer. Have you checked any local machine shop for drops? One "trick" I have used to good effect is to always buy one stick of steel more than I need when I make a trip for steel. If I make a mistake I don't have to make another trip wasting time and $$ and it gives me a supply to use on other projects without a massive outlay of money to "stock up". Same thing with nuts and bolts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill at Rusty Nail Forge Posted April 19, 2021 Share Posted April 19, 2021 1030 as the numeric name indicates is only .3*% carbon. This makes it ok for tools but less ok for knives . Don't get me wrong they will harden a little. below is a great article that defines this specific steel ASTM A519 ASME SA519 SAE 1035 AISI 1035 Steel - AISI 1010 1015 1020 1025 1045 1018 1117 1035 1040 1050 1215 4140 4150 (tubingchina.com) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 19, 2021 Share Posted April 19, 2021 Ahh the only mention of 1030 on this page is yours; can you tie it into what it refers to? 4130 is mentioned earlier and is different than 1030. I picked up the ASM Metals Handbook to check out steels. 30 points C is the cutoff between low carbon and medium carbon steels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill at Rusty Nail Forge Posted April 19, 2021 Share Posted April 19, 2021 Also note the source/origin of the tire iron. i have had some you could use for years and other seemed to be onetime use deals. The ones that come with the car(newer smaller cars dont come with em any more) tend to be on the lesser quality side compared to the after market ones. so to blanket state that tire irons are **** could lead you to a failed project in some cases. Recommendation: get one...cut a piece off of it...spark test it....harden(quench) it with water. if its hardens your good to make what you were going to make . if it doesnt, cool too...make something else. 2 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: Ahh the only mention of 1030 on this page is yours; can you tie it into what it refers to? 4130 is mentioned earlier and is different than 1030. I picked up the ASM Metals Handbook to check out steels. 30 points C is the cutoff between low carbon and medium carbon steels. you are correct ...i miss read earlier.....disregard that post.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dian Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 4130 and such is nice if you need some springiness in a part (e.g. some flexture). you quench it and thats it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 (edited) I like the results I've gotten from the lug wrench I used for a punch. I'm thinking about making some eye punches from the other ones I have after my shoulder issue is resolved. I'm having Blacksmithing withdrawal syndrome (BWS) and it's horrible. I've been playing with clay a lot but it's the equivalent of chewing on a straw when you want a cigarette Pnut Edited June 12, 2021 by pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 When I had a bad case of blacksmith's elbow I forged CP 1 or 2 Titanium as it is so soft at forging temp I could use a tiny hammer and my elbow didn't notice I was sneaking in forge time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 I can still swing a hammer without pain it's just all the other movements that hurt. I know I shouldn't be putting it off but I'm trying to make it through the busy season at work so I can get through the winter financially after we hit the dead season between November and April. I'm not forging because I don't want to exacerbate the injury any further. Hammering isn't the issue. Setting up and breaking down the smithy is when I hurt my shoulder. I don't know if I'll make it to the slow season or not but I'm sure as soon as I see a doctor I'll not be able to work for at least 4-6 weeks. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.