Advice On Bending Steel

Michael J. Spangler

Michael J. Spangler

Joined
Oct 8, 2003
Messages
2,181
so i got a project i wanna mess with. i'd like to make some damascus money clips. kind of like Bruce Evans does his boot clips out of old band saw blades.
but i'd like to use some damasteel.

so here my question(S). what type of damasteel should i use?
along with what type how should i go about bending? hot or cold?
i figure i'll need thin stuff to be able to flex and make a good useable money clip, but i'm worried about the non hardenable stuff being too soft to keep a good spring or either of them not taking the bending well.

any other advice would help.
pertaining to bending, heating, how i should go about temper, stock thickness. bending steel is all new to me. thanks a lot guys
 
I'd gravitate toward the knife stainless mix they offer. It comes annealed and is pretty malleable. You will still have to grind it a lot to get it thin enough to do what you want.
It should bend without trouble if ground sufficiently thin to be a clip of this type. --about .040 at most, I would guess.

I'd buy the thin stuff in the black (unground), blank it to shape, grind it or have it ground (double disced) to the precise thickness desired, form it (bend it), HT, finish.
 
exactly ehat i was thinkning.... but i was just a little unsure about the bending.
i figure the non hardenable stuff would be ok adn springy if it work hardened a little... but i know nothing of that.

atleast i can have the knife grade stuff HTed to the right specs no problem

thanks man

keep em coming
 
Michael,
The simplest way to bend money clips is to made a bending jig.For a 1"- 1.5" wide clip - Take a board and drill a 3/16 hole through it. Epoxy a 3/16 steel pin in the hole so it sticks out 1.5".Take a 12" piece of 2"X2" wood . Cut off at three inches. Mount a 1.5" strap hinge to connect the pieces.Mount it so the hinge is inside the fold,making a space between the arms when they close. Screw and glue the 3" section to the board so there is enough clearance for the hinge to wrap around the pin ,allowing the metal being bent to fit in the space between the pin and the upright.
To bend the clip - Make a starter bend of 30 degrees in the annealed metal by bending it in a padded vise jaw.Put your metal in the jig and pull the long arm around to make a smooth and even bend. Remove the bent piece and tighten after the initial bend by putting a 3/16" rod in the bend and tapping the clip down with a rawhide or rubber mallet.Bend the tip up with flat jaw pliers. Clean up,shape,HT and polish. I'll make a sketch to show the jig.
Stacy
 
you the man!! thanks a lot man... i figured some type of jig would work well, but havent put much though into it.... once the weekdn comes around i'll build one of those and get some steel ordered! woo hoo thanks man i can't wait to get some of these suckers cranked out.

i'm going to get em made up for my best men for the wedding this october.
can't wait to see em done. i'll post some pics
 
Get a strip of sheet metal the same size as the good stuff and practice making a bunch first. Once you have it down pat, then use the good steel.(just like learning a new knife skill)
Stacy
 
yeah i figured i'd do that with something cheap and available first. man i'm dying to get some of these done. thanks again
 
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