damascus making

I`ve been doing stock removal for about three years, and I`m almost ready to try my hand at making my own damascus. I`ve bought an NC Whisper Momma forge with open ends,some tongs and hammers, and a 100lb piece of 3`` plate steel for a makeshift anvil. Now on to my question. I`ve read some books on the subject,and I know the basic procedures, but I`m wondering what is the proper amount of nickel to use in a bar of 1095/nickel damascus with a starting billet of say 10 layers.Do you use nickel in every other layer with 1095 being on the outside of the billet? Also,should the nickel run the entire lenghth and width of the billet? Is it better to use thicker 1095 and thin nickel, or thin stock of both metals? Any tips and advice that you offer will be of much help!!

You've got the right idea with placing nickel between each layer of 1095. Nickel may not be the best thing to start out with, as it does produce a lot of oxide, and can sometimes be tricky to weld. (especially if this will be your first attempt)
As for thickness, nickel is very compression resistant when compared to plain carbon steel. My method would be to begin with layers of nickel that are approx 1/2 the thickness of the high carbon portion of the mix. By the time you hit 250-300 layers, it will be very close to the same thicknesses.
As an example, most of my damascus begins as 1/8" 1084, and 1/16" 15N20. I often make very large billets, sometimes as much as 40-50 layers to start. Without a press or power hammer I don't recommend doing this, but it does cut down on the time the steel is exposed to welding heat, and reduces the number of times the billet must be cut and restacked. Let us know how things work out for you!

I concur with Ed. My first four billets where with alternating high carbon steel (banding material and band saw blade).

By experimenting with cheaper materials I was less likely to be disappointed if I blew the weld than if I was using some expensive nickel.

Just my 2-cents worth

Mike

Thanks Ed,thats a big help. Yes, this will be my first try,and I was also un-sure if I sould start with nickel/1095.I bought 10 ft. of improved plowshare 1-1/8 steel core bright cable cut in 8 in. sections, so I will probably start with this to get the hang of swinging the hammer.After I weld the cable solid and fold,should I forge the bar round and twist again or just forge the bar flat?At this point I`m not going to try forging to shape, just making barstock.Thanks for any and all help.

John......

When you forge weld the cable..........
It might be helpful to tightly wire the ends with iron wire, or maybe even tack weld them to prevent the cable from fraying out. I tend to twist it tighter throughout the welding process. I do not recommend folding cable, but rather forge it solid, draw it out to a flat bar, then grind the two sides clean and the CUT in equal lengths and re-stack. For some reason, the pattern in cable will wash out with folding. When I was making a lot of cable, I got to the point where I would build a "bundle" of 6-10 pieces, and weld that together to prevent the pattern from being washed out. If your doing it all by hand, try the cutting and re-stacking.
The twisting as you weld cable accomplishes a couple of things. First it will help to push out any flux that may be trapped in the lays, and secondly, as you draw out a piece of cable the pattern tends to straighten out. Twisting it tighter as you go will help to keep the pattern running across the blade, rather than lengthwise. I guess the best way to describe it would be to say that it's almost as if the cable untwists as you draw it out. Good luck, and let us know how things work out! If we can be of help, just let us know!

Sounds great Ed,thanks. A couple more questions before I give it a try.The ends of my cable have all been tack welded.When I take the first heat and flux,do I twist the whole piece,then begin to forge solid and continue to twist after each heat,or do I twist a little, then forge a little, until the whole piece is solid? Also, how many times do you suggest cutting and re-stacking. Is this done only once, or 2 or 3 times.My guess is the pattern will be to plain if you do it too many times, but I don`t really know. I`m attending a hammer-in held at the home of one of our association members this week-end , so it will be the first of the week before I get my new smithy fired up, but as soon as I take a crack at it I`ll let you know how it turns out. Thanks again!!

Twist as you go. In fact, if your doing this by hand, it works really well if as you are welding, you turn the cable as you strike it. (as if the hammer were holding is like a vise would, and you are using your other hand to turn/twist the cable tighter. You'll find it works much easier if you forge it sort of round, rather than trying to make it square. As for the amount of stacking, the best advice is to try and get the first time you draw it out, long and thin enough to cut several pieces (I like at least 5) then restack and weld it all together. There's nothing wrong with twisting it again, after you've stacked and welded. The tighter you twist the more the pattern will run across the blade and the less you twist the more it will run lengthwise.

Thanks a million Ed. With what you have told me and what I have read elsewhere, and what I will learn this weekend I will be ready to put this knowledge and research to the test next week. I`ll keep you posted and let you know what the results are. I`ve got 10 ft. of cable to get it right, which hopefully will be on the first attempt!!