Almost lost it in class

T

thegeek574

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Well, this term at the good old community college I am taking Material Science, which is basically metallurgy plus. My teacher has been around the block a couple hundred times, and so he has some really fun stories. However, when he starts talking about knives, I almost just start laughing my fool head off. For example, he is absolutely positive that the Japanese quenched their swords in a slave by thrusting the red hot blade into them, red hot and all. I piped up that they actually used water, and he went on a very short tangent about never quenching in water. Should have said brine.
He is also convinced that the critical temp for 1095 is 1800 degrees for knives.
Here's the best one. He thinks that the reason Damascus was so good was that the layers weren't fully welded and so every layer was a new cutting edge that cut as it went up the blade.

Ever heard some of the fun stuff like this? Please do share.
 
My favorite is "The best handmade knives are made of files/29 Ford leaf springs/<insert tool here>."


-Xander
 
I had a metallurgy professor (who was very knowledgeable), who said for 1084, oil is nowhere near as fast as it needed it to be for a full hardening. His suggestion was to use ice water.
 
You've never heard of Japanese masters quenching their blades by stabbing their slaves? Bro you need to look that up ;) okay that sounded silly even trying to joke!! Lol what a loon
 
The ancient Japanese did test blades on prisoners. Cutting off arms to see how sharp the edge is
 
The Japanese tested sharpened blades on corpses ( the prisoners had already been executed). There were a series of cuts across arms, diagonal from shoulder to hip, across the abdomen, and through stacked bodies. These cuts and their success were recorded on some blades. Later on, these "rating marks" were put on many blades that never were tested in such a way ( the same way that Masamune blades were made for hundreds of years). This is what is meant by a "three body sword".

I regularly run into well educated people who just have no idea about knife/sword metallurgy.

It gets even funnier when a scholarly person talks about Damascus, Syria as the place the steel was made, and about how it was folded a million folds......
 
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One word.......... "blood groove"..... okay, two. I'm Canadian... "maple syrup" and "moose jerky" are single words for me, too.
 
My wife likes to quote the one about quenching in the urine of a red-headed virgin...asks me where I keep 'em out in the workshop. I tell her if I had any they wouldn't be virgins...
 
My old favorite was anything explained on Moonshiners. My new favorite will be Blade Brothers. Knowing for a fact that Todd is a real, competent bladesmith, I'm just waiting to see how many inaccuracies the producers script into the show. An extra 3 minutes caused the stainless to warp? Really?
 
thegeek574 said:
Well, this term at the good old community college I am taking Material Science, which is basically metallurgy plus. My teacher has been around the block a couple hundred times, and so he has some really fun stories. However, when he starts talking about knives, I almost just start laughing my fool head off. For example, he is absolutely positive that the Japanese quenched their swords in a slave by thrusting the red hot blade into them, red hot and all. I piped up that they actually used water, and he went on a very short tangent about never quenching in water. Should have said brine.
He is also convinced that the critical temp for 1095 is 1800 degrees for knives.
Here's the best one. He thinks that the reason Damascus was so good was that the layers weren't fully welded and so every layer was a new cutting edge that cut as it went up the blade.

Ever heard some of the fun stuff like this? Please do share.
Click to expand...

When your professor makes statements like these just ask a question i.e., "How do you control grain growth when you quench from 1800 F?" Just address the implied premises in his discussions using a question.
 
Don Nguyen said:
I had a metallurgy professor (who was very knowledgeable), who said for 1084, oil is nowhere near as fast as it needed it to be for a full hardening. His suggestion was to use ice water.
Click to expand...

This makes sense to me as long as you can lower the viscosity of the cold water and reduce its tendencies to form a vapor jacket i.e. a surfactant. And use an interrupted quench.
Again asking the professor a question addressing these (implied) issues is a great way to address your concerns.
 
zaph1 said:
My old favorite was anything explained on Moonshiners. My new favorite will be Blade Brothers. Knowing for a fact that Todd is a real, competent bladesmith, I'm just waiting to see how many inaccuracies the producers script into the show. An extra 3 minutes caused the stainless to warp? Really?
Click to expand...

That's the first I've heard of it.
Once that becomes popular, get ready for hundreds of new first time knife-makers here that want to get rich



Todd Begg may be good, but it seems like he makes stuff that that belongs in the BudK catalogue.
Just right for TV

At :22 seconds of this video you see one of Bruce Bumps cut n shoots
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/discovery-channel-sets-blade-brothers-437922

Who made the other two folders ?



I just watched both episodes, It must be the same producers as Sons of Guns and the OC choppers
Same contrived foolish elements, impossible timetables to do impossible work, hiccup that threatens the project, one competent, one clown, one hardass...
 
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Yep, I've heard some good ones too! :)

I figure we all expect to hear some goofy things from family/friends/general public... but when you hear them from someone that should know better, it really throws you for a loop.

I had to take a "manufacturing processes" class. One day the teacher was lecturing about how the main benefit of forging is, "You can change the shape of steel without altering it in anyway..." including quenching the part in water to speed up production. :rolleyes:

He and I started to go 'round about it some and I realized I was going to look like that poindexter in class that everybody else wants to shut up... :foot: ;) so I just told him to come to my shop and we would heat up a bar of L6 in the forge, let it air cool, and then try to drill a hole in it. ;) :D
 
I'm making a separate post about the new TV show.

First off, I have known Todd for a long time. He and I both started doing shows here in Washington right around the same time (I think about 13 years ago!). I'd like to think we both got a lot better since then. Todd has reached rock start status in the knife making industry! :) He is a SUPER nice guy with a ton of skillz.

I am super excited to see him on TV. Heck, I think any maker being on TV in a positive light is good for ALL OF US.

The only negative part is that knife making isn't very exciting... so you're gonna have to spice it up and make things more dramatic to get people to watch. Shoot, look at OCC--- the show started off about building bikes, but quickly went to the drama between family/crew.

Being brutally honest, when I first saw the stuff about the cleaver warping I laughed and was even a little tweaked about it. But not with Todd, rather the show producers themselves. I can see Todd saying that blade was going to warp because it would only fit in the kiln laying on its side, and one of the TV folks turning that into some show drama.

Of course the "extra 3 minute warp" is silly, but I look at it like this: If a TV producer wanted to make a show with me, I'm sure I'd end up gritting my teeth and allowing some silly stuff to go in the show. Because ultimately the show is going to garner even more recognition and MUCH higher prices for knives. If me agreeing to some stuff that would make other knife makers cringe, but put more food on my family's table, I'd do it every time.


FWIW- I haven't seen or talked to Todd in a long time, so this post isn't some misguided effort to swoop in and "defend my bro!" but Todd is a good guy and I think in the long run his show could be good for all of us. We all know there is no such thing as REALity TV. ;) :)

Just say'n.... :)
 
I had a welding shop teacher that refused to believe that carbon migration could happen- after I told him that that's how case hardening worked. It was hard not to look like a poindexter in that class too, although he was a VERY good welder. I've never seen anyone use a keyhole technique that slick for full penetration O/A welding.
 
NickWheeler said:
I'm making a separate post about the new TV show.
...
Just say'n.... :)
Click to expand...

On other hand there is grey area between integrity & questionable reality. The show could bring benefits to knives world given that integrity is intact.

Just saying...
 
ALLHSS said:
Bold move
Click to expand...

It's an old joke between us from before we were married. If I made a similar joke in a different context I could definitely get myself in trouble, and would probably have to go live in the shop with the non-existant redheads...
 
I have heard discussions of diamond encrusted steel swords being the best cutting tool.
 
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