June 16, 20224 yr Hi! I work at a 19th century museum forge, and have some pieces that'll need tempering, but are too big for either the shop's tempering oven (it's a little toaster oven) or my own home oven. It definitely makes me wonder how tempering was accomplished before the advent of temperature-control ovens! Even the country blacksmith needed to make and repair scythes and wagon springs. Do y'all have any suggestions on techniques I should look into, or better yet any books written with the pre-industrial-revolution blacksmith or even swordsmith (scythes are close enough to swords) in mind? Currently my research has been a dead end. The local libraries are rather scant on blacksmithing information beyond the basics, and the answers I tend to find online and from folks I know is "buy a heat treatment oven" which I neither have the budget nor space for at the museum. I am absolutely willing to sit over a fire for an hour moving a blade back and forth, if that's how it was done. That's all I've been able to come up with so far. Otherwise, if anyone knows anyone in the Baltimore area who can do a heat treat on 1075, that'd be fine, but would remove the learning experience. (I know Carey has his shop in Catonsville but they're pretty busy right now and can't do it. My friend works there.) Thanks in advance!
June 16, 20224 yr Yes, you can temper by moving a long blade or item back and forth over a heat source like a forge fire and watch the tempering colors. Or, you can dig a trench build a fire in it (charcoal may be best) let it die down to an even bed of coals and put the blade or tool on the coals and watch the tempering colors. I'd do it in the twilight or on a cloudy day so that you can see the colors better and not be dazzled by the fire like you would in full dark. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand."
June 16, 20224 yr Author Cool, thank you George! We have a big firepit at the museum that's typically used for historical cooking, I'll see if they'll let me temper a tool there when it's not in use. As much as the forge boss would love to have some outdoor workspace, we have a power pole right where that would be. Sigh.
June 16, 20224 yr How are you hardening it now? you are aware that tempering is useless unless you harden it first right?
June 16, 20224 yr Author Of course, Steve, I do this all the time with smaller stuff like chisels, draw knives, hatchets, etc. It's not too hard to get an even enough heat on our coal forge, and I usually just quench stuff in a can of oil and temper it in the little toaster oven in the back (we have our electric tech like bench grinders and the mini fridge tucked away out of sight). This is the biggest piece I've worked with so far, and I'm already realizing its size is going to present different challenges.
June 17, 20224 yr Traditionally, weren’t scythed mild steel with the edge peened to sharp work,hardening them in the process? I imagine 1070 would work harden pretty quickly. David
June 17, 20224 yr That is always what I had understood, usually peened on a stump anvil (dinglestock).
June 17, 20224 yr Altho I've heard that as well, I'm of the belief that a dinglestock was for field dressing or owner sharpened at the ole farm forge. I've always "assumed" that new ones were heat treated. Notice I said assumed,,,
June 17, 20224 yr https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP7J4VkBWck Hardening and tempering from 7:00 Willy
June 17, 20224 yr Author Wait, are they tempering with hot sand?? That's so cool. Edited June 17, 20224 yr by Mod30 Remove excessive quote.
June 23, 20224 yr Note that around 8:20 and 9:47 they are hammering on the blade *cold* so fairly soft! And at 10:25 they are using the denglestock and later the bar kept in a "holster" with sand and oil to touch up the edge.
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