1095 steel/hardening/quenching

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I currently use a wood fire in a kettle grill with forced air. I heat to nonmagnetic (test with a magnet on a piece of threadstock) I have no way to measure temperature....that I need to change.
 
Rick:
I seem to get "good" results, but my labratory consists of the file test and brass rod test. Beyond that, it's up to me to simply try to destroy the blade and go off of my experiences with commercially produced blades. I wish there were an alternative for me to learn as much as my brain will accept, but there is no local schools that I am aware of. I would be all over it!
 
I feel your pain... I am not so far off from being a confused newbie.... not far at all. I thought reading article after article would give me the knowledge I needed to make a good knife. It helped a bit but confused me even more. The real leap in the learning curve is in the "making" and the "using". Cut stuff.... lots of stuff and see what you think. It wasn't until after a few hundred knives(making and breaking) that I really understood the info I was reading. Not that I didn't make decent knives until that time... I just lacked the practical experience to troubleshoot and fine tune my process.

One day, it all made sense and I suddenly had a good grasp of metallurgry... but then I bit the "apple"... it looked so tasty. These days, I know enough to realise just how little I actually know... lol. That WILL makes sense to those who are on the same road.

Rick
 
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I was just sitting here reading this thread and got a call from an old timer who bought a 1095 knife from me about a year ago (quenched in canola) and has used it everyday since, just to tell me it’s the “best” all around knife performance wise he’s ever owned… and here I thought it was only “good”.

Of course, he wants another one from me.

… that’s what I’m talking about.

Humility is a virtue. :)
 
I have a few blades out there Tai, hopefully I can get similar feedback. They haven't been gone too long though. That was actually inspiring to read.
 
I’ve heard hundreds of testimonials over many many years, just like that. I’m satisfied with it. What more is there for the lowly knifemaker? Everyone one is happy. :)
 
How can a steel be a stickler for details and at the same time be open to ever persons whim and interpretation?
 
Fred.Rowe said:
How can a steel be a stickler for details and at the same time be open to ever persons whim and interpretation?
Click to expand...

How can it not? It has no mind of it's own.

It just is.

I just hope we can still get 1095 20-30 years down the road.
 
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I think we should all go out and order a bunch more of the junk. Get a good fix! :D

... it's good junk.

You all can keep your 1084... or just scrap it out.
 
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Fred.Rowe said:
How can a steel be a stickler for details and at the same time be open to ever persons whim and interpretation?
Click to expand...

I said it before, Fred... It only matters if it matters. If you are content driving back and forth to the grocery store in a Ferrari with only 4 cylinders firing, why waste time and money on a mechanic? Then again... way did you waste the money on a Ferrari in the first place?

Wanna race?:)
 
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Rick only has 3 wheels on his wagon, (or should that be stroller?), anyway...

Don't listen to Rick.

(Just kidding Rick. You do great work,... but then there's your yap.)
 
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How far should a guy go with destructive testing? I mean, I can almost guarantee I can break any knife with a few shop tools. But what is practical testing...besides obvious cutting, to test your blades hardness/flexibility...ect.?
 
IMO, no testing is practical past what you would expect your knife to do during use. It is not practical to break a knife in a vice. Would you expect your customers to do it?. That said, I think it is useful for makers to know when their blades will fail. It makes more sense for me to know what my knives CAN'T do. I do the majority of my destructive testing by hand, under my own power. Prying, digging, chopping, etc... Until I build something to accurately measure the forces involved in breaking blades(workin' on it) I can only go by actual field use.

It is widely accepted that knives should be able to cut things... that shouldn't be a difficult achievement. The challenge lies in how long they can keep cutting.
 
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