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The Newbies Arena Are you new to knife making? Here is all the help you will need. |
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#1
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Home Depot steel
I have been using home Depot and Ace Hardware steel ever since I began making knives. I was wondering metallurgically what was the makeup of this steel. The steel works fairly well besides flatness flaws and zinc coating that's hell to get off. Im pretty sure its a case-hardening steel, but not positive.
Drop me a line if you have any experiences or knowledge concerning this steel |
#2
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It is low-carbon steel, not suitable for blades. Great for practice, though.
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#3
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Exactly as Don said. It is non-hardening and intended for general purpose structural use ........
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#4
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Thanks guys!
That might be part of the reason the kniives aren't turning out well... Any recommendations on steel suppliers (preferably in AZ) would be appreciated. |
#5
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Get a catalog from K&G.
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#6
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Quote:
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#7
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Ace Hardware sells a special kind of steel that's supposedly "weldable". I don't think it will but does it make a difference? Fact is, im desperate to hear good things about this cheap source of steel.
__________________ If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much space |
#8
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Nope, weldable isn't hardenable, but there is good news about cheap steel. It's good for guards, bolsters, and also making some of the tools to help you make knives better.
__________________ ~Andrew W. "NT Cough'n Monkey" Petkus |
#9
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The point is to get a steel that is hardenable. Differnet manufactureres refer to it in different ways - tool steel, carbon steel etc. You'll probably realise soon enough that there isn't such a thing as cheap knife-grade steel.
The steel you are using now is called MILD STEEL or also 1018 or 1020 carbon steel. The 18 and 20 referring to the 0.18% or 0.20% carbon making them too low in carbon to be hardenable for edge holding. You need a steel that has in excess of 0.45% carbon for hardenability. However, as mentioned, it makes great practise for grinding, and you could end up with some nice letter openers, guard fittings etc. At the regular hardware store, you CAN get knifemaking steel - but it is already in the form of existing tools - files, chisels, saws, but you need heat treatment knowledge and equipment to convert them into a softer (annealed) condition so you can work it more easily and then re-heat treat them again back to a desirable level of hardness etc. It can still be difficult to identify exactly what grade of steel it is other than "file-steel", "chisel steel." Bottom line is - refer to the knifemaking supply houses for apporpriate knife steel, and research what you need to do to make the steel into a proper blade. Good luck. The first steps on finding the crucial info is the most difficult, but the rewards are great. Jason. __________________ JASON CUTTER BLADEART Jason Cutter @ Dr Kwong Yeang Knifemaker, Australia (Matthew 10.16) |
#10
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have you tried rebar?
what part of AZ? i know a lot of junk yards in phoenix and a dumpster or two worth perousing any place big enough to hold a H depot has an industrial area you'll want gloves this time of year metal soakes up a lot of sun just laying around |
#11
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Let your fingers do the walking, get a Phoenix yellow pages, there are several steel stores that sell tool steel. One of them is Arizona Tool Steel. K&G is in Lakeside and has overnight service to Arizona Knife makers. Gib
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#12
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Well ill be ####ed! Toxic, thanks for the rebar idea... i got that stuff all over the house because of recent construction. Don't know why i never thought of that. IT'd probably have to be annealed first, but you could make some nice barstock outta that. Can somebody tell me what rebar is made out of, and more importantly, can it be hardened?
Jon __________________ If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much space |
#13
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Rebar is mystery steel, even if you buy two pieces from the same rack they could be very different steels. The requirements for rebar only specify strength, not alloy makeup. You can get lucky and find a good piece, but you'll be frustrated by the bad ones too.
__________________ ~Andrew W. "NT Cough'n Monkey" Petkus |
#14
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Cold Steel Cult - Ummm, it looks like a bit of research is in order.
Cheap steel? If you're forging, car and pickup springs make excellent knives and are free or extremely cheap from mechanic's shops and junk yards. Grinding, I guess buy some new stock from a knife supplier. It's not too expensive. There has been some good discussion on the Junkyard forum at www.keenjunk.com just this week on blade heat treatment and how carbon content affects it. Or check out the Heat Treating and Metallurgy forum here. It looks like you need to learn a bit more about your material before you work it further. Good luck! __________________ The Wasteland Crow Project: http://wastelandcrow.blogspot.com A blog I share with a friend where we think out loud upon occasion: http://shareourcampfire.blogspot.com/ Proud to be a Neo-Tribal Metalsmith scavenging the wreckage of civilization. My new blog dedicated to the metalwork I make and sell: http://helmforge.blogspot.com/ |
#15
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I got some tool steel from winsor plywood where i live, im useing it for practice, but in theory could it be hardend? i will go back to the store and look at the make up of the metal if they have that some where
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blade, forging, knife, knives |
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