what would cause the end of a billet to fall off ? it was 1084 powder & s.s. scouring pad in a can . as i was forging it down with a press , the last 2" fell off . it was 3/4" x 1 1/2" and i started with a 3" square can , so it had been worked for awhile with no problems . did i let the temps get a bit too low ? first time this has happened . paul

It probubly welded ok. Stainless mixed with carbon steel does not forge very well the stainless tends to be hot hard and you can develop shearing problems. The stainless moves at least five times slower than simple carbon steel. You would have been better off to use a stainless powder.. Some of these very high crome materials tend to be hot short as well. you need to cycle the material very often during the welding process to get a good result. You will get a better result using materials that flow at the near same rate.

Paul, could you put the broken end down into some ferric chloride, and then look at the pattern? I'm guessing that the SS and the 1084 powder will etch differently. This may (or may not) give a clue.

thanks for the replys - I was still squeezeing it down with the press , not really forging it yet , but maybe it what Steves says . I've only done two cans of that mix , so not real experinced with it yet . I still have the rest of the billet to do yet , so if I have any more problems I'll report them . I've gotten two knives out of it so far . Paul