Unknown steel

[ranger1]

I'm going to be forgeing a blade from a WWII arttillery shell (yes it has already been exploded).I plan to shape a small piece and see how it hardens and tempers.And also how it welds under the hammer.My question is should I play wit this stuff or do a san-mai with a 1095 core and know it will produce a decent blade?

[Andrew Garrett]

I'm just speculating, but I'd bet big money that it won't be good blade material even if it is steel.

During WWII, as you know, quality material was in shout supply. With all the gun and tank barrels, and thousands of other parts that needed to be hardened, I'd say that artillery shells were made from the cheapest slag that would do the job.

They also wanted it to fragment real effectively, steel would resist that to a greater degree than other cheaper metals.

I'd go with a san mai blade. They look great and you know what you're getting at the edge. This is contingent on even being able to weld your shrapnel to the blade steel, of course.

[AchimW]

There is a big chance that the shrapnel material is not steelbut cast iron.

By the way, tank barrels were never made from hardened steel. To resist shock and pressure, tough, ameliorated steels were used. Many of them are made from nickel steels that are excellent as a tough, bright element in damascus steel.

Achim

[ranger1]

Another unknown factor is if its American or Japanese.

[metalbender]

heat... sabot... hep... smoke! infantry.. calvary.. just a joke! 50 tons of rolling steel! load em up and lets go kill! oowaaah! ... sorry couldnt resist, yall are bringing back my old m-60a3 days heh

[ranger1]

I figure worst case,I'll use it for the guard and pommel.But first we'll heat hammer and hope.

[Matt22191]

Your fragment could be almost anything; a wide variety of steels and cast irons have been used in artillery and mortar shells. Pearlitic malleable iron, 1340, 1018(ish), 4140, 4340, 4190, 52100 (!), special high fragmentation alloys (one in current use is called HF-1); you name it. I believe in WWII most shells would have been pearlitic malleable iron or 1340, but I'm not at all sure about that.

By the way, American steel WWII arty/mortar projectiles ("projos" to us artillery types) were hot forged or cold extruded. Some were heat treated. All -- including the malleable iron -- were finish machined. We're not talking about rough, cast iron spheres here.

[DiamondG Knives]

I have some fragments that came from Okinawa, and are belived to be fired from the Missouri "Mighty Mo" due to the are they were recovered from. I have used it in damascus and was very happy with it. My father was inWWII, Korea, and Viet Nam. I made a blade with shell frgments from Okinawa, Barbed wire from the DMZ in Korea, and a Chicom Bayonet from Vietnam. The handle was burl wood from a Cherry tree fron the yard of his boyhood home. The knife turned out great.

From what I could tell, the framents were malable iron, they forged well at a cherry red, but were prone to cold shuts at high heats. once I had it flattened, I sanwiched between 2 thin pieces of 15N20 and welded, then did the same with each other piece of "war steel" then welded up all the billets.

Ill dig up a pic somewhere.

Good luck and God Bless
Mike

[ranger1]

Mike,
So if I can flatten the steel and sandwich in a piece of 1095 I could possibly get a decent blade.The red tape I had to go threw to aquire the shell is unreal.And I still haven't gotten formal approval.It seems I'm the only one excited about getting this project started.I hate the waiting.

[Matt22191]

Red tape? Are we talking about a complete shell with the HE removed? There shouldn't be any red tape for simple fragments.

[ranger1]

The island is a national historic site.Except for 18 acres that is a Coast guard station.And get this its also a national wildlife refuge. you have to get permission just to go there(.Oh, its Attu Island Alaska.)There are only 20 people on the island,all U.S. Coast Guard.