5160 - spring temper

[tejas7]

I stock remove 5160 for my larger knives. I purchase it in new, in annealed form from a local auto spring manufacturer. When first starting out, I bought used springs from the junk yard, straightened them, annealed, etc...(the hard way! - quite a waste of time)

My question is - does anyone know the Rockwell hardness of auto spring 5160? After hardening, what would the tempering temp be?
It seems ideal for the back of a blade.

I generally differentially heat treat by using a torch on the back of the blade after hardening and tempering.

Any comments on different types of heat treat info on 5160 (and o-1) are appreciated.

 

[storyville]

Hello Tejas7 -- There is a thread, started by Dunk on 09 Sept titled "spring steel," which may answer your questions. Just check it out by scrolling back or using the search engine.

Hope it helps --
Glen

PS I'm not a maker, just a wannabe, but I have a large chopping blade forged from a recycled leaf spring, hardened to somewhere round 56-58 RC along its chopping area. Awesome tool -- amazing what one can do w/a junked car! I imagine your new spring steel would make for great knives.

[This message has been edited by storyville (edited 23 September 1999).]