Forge welding two parts

[natkova]

Can I make axe by welding those together and shaping eye .

Would it be good axe?

It's leaf spring, it's wedge shaped .

I thought to forge weld two parts together.

I cut those ends 

[Latticino]

Leaf spring often has a high chromium content and can be difficult to forge weld to itself.  You may be better off using the section of leaf spring as a core bit and forge welding mild steel to it as a wrapped eye.

[natkova]

I thought to weld two parts of this and make one big wedge since there is wedge I. It made.

[Latticino]

I understand what your intent is.  I was just cautioning against trying to get a good forge weld with two pieces of leaf spring.  As I noted, I would use one piece and work with a mild steel wrap around "eye".  That is what I did with this one (except I used wrought iron and a piece of leaf spring):

 

[Frosty]

I've had luck forge welding leaf spring to itself. Chrome oxidizes immediately on contact with oxygen, meaning you have seconds at room temperature after cleaning it when it'll weld reasonably easily and no a wire brush doesn't count. You can watch spring steel oxidize almost instantly after a file stroke at high red heat. 

I polish the joint surfaces on my belt sander, the finer the grit the better and apply oil as instantly as possible after the last pass. I literally keep an oily rag within reach. Just plain non-detergent minimum additive cheapy motor oil works a treat. 3 in 1 oil works a treat on perimeter welded joins, it penetrates completely via capillarity.

I tack or perimeter weld the pieces together, re-oil and bring to welding temp. As the oil boils, vaporizes then pyrolyzes it leaves a layer of carbon which will combine with any oxygen still able to penetrate the join. It also raises the C content in the joint surfaces lowering the melting temp.

It's one of the reasons Japanese smiths "flux" welds with a layer of rice paper.

Frosty The Lucky.

[MeltedSocks]

Very interesting lesson, Frosty.

[natkova]

So I think I will leave those for other projects 

[natkova]

Well same topic it's look like  frosty had right about forge welding two carbon steels , I tryed to forge weld mild steel and leaf spring (which is high carbon steel I presume ) .

Had some sparks but I don't think I turned it too much.

I have feeling that I forge welded one part and other just got squished to leaf spring part 

 

I cheated a bit with tacking using stick welding , cause darn thing was flipping on me couple of times 

[Frosty]

Leaf spring made after maybe the 1940s here contains chromium which helps harden steel with lower carbon content, better resistance to fatigue and is abrasion resistant so springs last longer. I don't know about Bosnia but suspect it's the same, it's much cheaper along most of the supply chain than using higher C steel.

Forge welding spring can  be done but it takes more care and an understanding of the Chrome in the alloy. Chrome oxidizes almost instantly on contact with the oxygen in air becoming very inert. This is why things are chrome plated, to protect what's under it, a good example is the shiny silver bumper on automobiles, the chrome protects the Nickle plating from oxidizing and moderate abrasion. Chrome oxide is clear, not silver

Leaf spring can be forge welded but you have to deal with the chrome oxide layer. You can use a very aggressive flux, They tend to be pretty toxic though. Getting it really HOT works but is riskier as you've discovered. Or, polish the join surfaces and pre-flux before it can oxidize, you have a few seconds before the oxide layer is too thick to weld through easily.

I use light oil. I polish the joint contact surfaces on my belt grinder to as close to mirror as reasonable and wipe it with my oily rag before polishing the other side. If you do the same to the mild steel sandwiching the spring you won't need as much heat to get a good weld.

Mild steel has a higher melting temperature, about 2,700f give or take so the more you can lower the welding temp the better for the high carbon steel. 

If you get the joint surfaces polished and clamped together they'll weld without heating or much pressure. In this case, flux just gets in the way by separating the surfaces you want to become one.

Frosty The Lucky.

[natkova]

Tryed to weld old file tong and it went well I think, I used stick welder just to tack some parts, I think it went well 

Your thoughts ?

 

[Frosty]

It's hard to say Nat, I think I see lines where the weld didn't carry through the edges. 

If it didn't take, don't let it get to you files have had significant quantities of Chromium in the alloy for hardness and Chrome is difficult to weld without dangerously aggressive flux.

Frosty The Lucky.

[natkova]

Well frossty it's look good enough for me.

 

[Frosty]

Looks good Nat. It's a working tool not a show piece, a few hammer marks aren't a thing.

Frosty The Lucky.

[natkova]

This is my fist successful  forge welding .

[Frosty]

Keep it so you can look at it, show friends and remember how it felt.

I know exactly where my first successful forge welded piece is. It's on a shelf next to the light switch in my shop. 

Getting that first successful forge weld felt pretty GOOD didn't in Nat? Keep it and you'll be able to recapture a little of that feeling whenever you wish. 

Frosty The Lucky.

[natkova]

Yes it did inteen even it was 1" surface by 1 " probably welded file .

It was small spot but it did welded .

I used a stick welder to tack it s bit.

[Frosty]

I use my wire feed to tack welds, wiring the pieces together isn't as effective. You know, the arc welder was invented by a 5th generation blacksmith to save time and money on failed forge welds.

Frosty The Lucky.