A good tempering procedure for a piano wire clip?

[gomipile]

Can anyone lay out a good tempering procedure for a pocket clip made from .059" thick 1080 or 1090 piano wire? I've never made an actual spring before, and I just want to know what has worked for the people here before I start experimenting with my (admittedly very cheap at about $6 per pound of wire) materials.

 

[12345678910]

The piano wire I buy is already spring tempered.

No need to heat treat or temper it, but the bending to get the final shape you want is a whole other story.

Since it is springy , you have to over bend it past the shape you want.
It is also tough as heck to bend.

 

[gomipile]

The piano wire I buy is already spring tempered.

No need to heat treat or temper it, but the bending to get the final shape you want is a whole other story.

Since it is springy , you have to over bend it past the shape you want.
It is also tough as heck to bend.

Ok, the stuff from McMaster Carr is already tempered as well. I'm glad to hear that it shouldn't require re-tempering. I've done a ton of jewelry work, so taking my time with the pliers shouldn't be a problem.

It might take a few tries, but like I said, the wire is pretty cheap.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

If you need to do tight bends, anneal it first. When formed, the wire must be evenly heated (think charcoal block) to red and immediately quenched in room temperature canola oil. File test for hardness. File should skate off surface. Clean to bright steel, and temper at around 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

 

[gomipile]

If you need to do tight bends, anneal it first. When formed, the wire must be evenly heated (think charcoal block) to red and immediately quenched in room temperature canola oil. File test for hardness. File should skate off surface. Clean to bright steel, and temper at around 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

Sounds about like I hoped initially. Thanks for the info.

 

[hammerfall]

most piano wire was made by patenting treat. usually need austenitelization high carbon steel(1086~1095) then soak arround 500 C to get sorbite. follow by cold drawing the sorbite to over 80% deformation, then stress reliving at 230C or higher.

and i don't think you can anneal piano wire, the springy is based on deformation of sorbite(a type of pearlite in size and carbid matters). when annealed, sorbite gone into larger sized pearlite. it will lost its potential to be springy no matter how you deform it. anneal, quenching, tempering process can make it springy, but never as strong as the patenting treatment. wires with patenting treatment are the most springy and strongest form you can get.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

I agree with hammerfall. Much of the pre-made spring wire I have tried to reshape will not re-harden properly. No matter how carefully I do the HT, it either breaks or ends up with no springiness. Some of the steel wire and rod in hobby shops works ( but some doesn't).

Try a piece of your wire and see what happens.

 

[Bruce Bump]

I havent had good results heat treating high carbon wire. I finally went to oversized leaf spring stock 1075 1095 and finish grinding as cool as possible. The piano wire I have is already spring temper and will bend to shape without harming the temper.

 

[John L]

Tai Goo makes fishing hooks out of wire..perhaps piano wire. I wonder if they are spring tempered before or after he forms them. Hmmmmm? Very pretty hooks at that.