440c / d2 damascus

[Gee Ham]

Can anyone tell me if it's possible to make damascus from 440c and d2? A friend of mine acquired some of each, and after an unsuccessful attempt this past sunday, I thought I should seek some advice from makers more experienced than I before I waste any more good blade steel.

 

[Grayzer86]

Neither steel welds well to itself or others, so I can’t see them welding well to each other. Additionally if you haven’t welded stainless before it’s a whole different ball game than normal carbon steels requiring basically full and complete oxygen exclusion. I will let the pros explain why it’s so tough, and how it could be done, as the specifics are above me, but I will say it’s certainly not a combination I have ever seen or heard of.

 

[Larrin]

It’s possible but not with traditional methods, and the contrast at the end wouldn’t be good either.

 

[Gee Ham]

It’s possible but not with traditional methods, and the contrast at the end wouldn’t be good either.

I was afraid of that. Oh well, thanks..

 

[kuraki]

Oxygen free environment, higher than normal welding temperatures, and while technically not absolutely necessary, power forging equipment. The stuff moves incredibly hard at heat compared to normal carbon steels and hardens as it cools off making forging and temperature management extremely important.

Really not worth the effort for the result.