Newbie Asking Questions

[Tetsuomugi]

Hello I am chan and I am completely new to this I have a couple questions so I'll just spit them out for you guys to help me out with...Thank you


1. For quenching a knife do I have to use oil? if so what kind of oil?
2. Could I just use water for qeunching a knife?
3. http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/Squ...NC9?Pid=search <---would this be usable to make a knife with? I researched and heard that carbonsteel is a great metal to make knives with but I'm not an expert and you guys are so what are your inputs on this?
4. how would I make a knife flexible and not brittle? is there a special process I need to put the knife through?
5. Do i need to dip the knife in sulfuric acid after I'm done making it to eat the metal or is that only when you use multiple metal combinations?

if you guys could answer my questions I would greatly appreciate it.

[Ray Rogers]

Chan,

First, welcome to our forums! We will help you in any way we can but we can only answer questions. We are not in a position to teach a complete class in knife making so you must do a lot of reading and study on your own. Then, we will be able to answer questions you may have about what you learn from reading. The Search function at the top of this page will let you search through these forums for information that has been discussed many times before. Also, there are many good books, videos, and even some websites with a lot of educational knife making information.

To help us help you better you should fill out your profile. Without that. we cannot answer some questions in the best way. For instance, if you ask what kind of steel to start with and I tell you 1084 but then find out you're in Europe or Asia where 1084 is not available. That just wastes everybody's time. So, fill out the profile.

Here are some answers to your questions but, remember, it would take half a library to answer those questions properly. These answers are just to help point you in the right direction:

1. Depends on what type of steel you use. Some steels require oil, some water, and some air. Quench the wrong way and the steel will probably crack or it won't get hard at all.

2. See the answer to Question 1

3. No, that is mild structural steel. Carbon steel is great for making knives but it must have the right amount of carbon. That doesn't have enough

4. That is controlled by the details of the heat treatment. The answer is highly complex and you are not ready to try this type of quenching yet

5. No. We never use sulfuric acid. You are confusing acid with Ferric Chloride - circuit board etchant - that we use to bring out the pattern in damascus steel. This process is only required with damascus steel


That should get you started. Read a lot, focus on how you want to make knives (stock removal, forging?) and figure out what tools you have available to use. Then you can begin to know what questions to ask and we can start to understand how to answer them for you in a way that can help you...

[xspook2158]

Chan, First of all welcome to the forum.

Ray was correct, completeing your profile will help these guys and even myself to give you the info and material advice that you need for the area in which you live.

There is a lot of info that can also be found from questions that have been asked before. All you have to do is go to search and enter your question, the info can give you Brain Overload, lol

Jeff

[Ed Tipton]

Chan....Welcome to the forum. Obviously, you are new to both the hobby and this forum, and in search of information. We realize that this posting was itself a search for information, but the simple truth is, that even if we were able to give you an adequate answer to your question, you are probably not ready yet to run with it.
My suggestion if you are truely serious about learning to make knives, is that you purchase a copy of Wayne Goddard's $50 Knife Shop Book. The cost is less than $30.00, and it has a lot of good info for beginners, including suggestions on types of steels, tools and techniques, and it is well illustrated as well.
After being armed with a better understanding of the basics, then the answers to your questions will begin to make more sense to you, and you can get more out of them. Searching through these forums is also a great way to get information, but it's a little less organized and it just takes a little longer.
I think you'll find the people here very friendly, helpful, and knowledgable. Good luck.