Any of you guys use "Bearing Bronze" for fittings, guards, etc?

[Patrice Lemée]

The local metal place where I get my steel doesn't have that much choice but I did find some "bearing bronze".
I was wondering if that is the type of bronze that knifemakers usually use?

 

[sunshadow]

I generally cast either Rio Grande's yellow bronze or Ancient bronze. Bearing bronze (alloy 932 is a high lead content tin bronze, doesn't forge well, goes red short and crumbles) there is also oil jmpregnated sintered bronze sometimes called by the trade name Oilite which is only good for bushings

I think a lot of folks use aluminum bronze but since I cast it is easiest for me to get casting alloys and use them

-Page

 

[Will52100]

I use a good bit of aluminum bronze bar stock. If you can get a small sample to play with give it a try and see what it looks like. A word of caution though, I went to a solder-less guard because I failed miserably to figure out how to solder bronze.

 

[Willie71]

Patrice, check these guys out: https://secure.anvilfire.com/online_metals.php

 

[Patrice Lemée]

Page, bronze casting is surely something I want to look into someday but for now I am just talking machining/filing/engraving.

Will, that's a good idea, I'll buy a small piece and do some tests.

Willie, have you ever bought from them? If you did, how bad was shipping, especially over the border?

Thanks guys.

 

[Sandow]

Probably want to use silicon bronze if you are going to forge it. If you are just going to machine it, the bearing bronze is fine.

Onlinemetals.com has both:
http://www.onlinemetals.com/merchant.cfm?id=850&step=2&top_cat=850

-Sandow

 

[Willie71]

I haven't ordered from them, but when I entered some items in the checkout to see, the shipping seemed reasonable. They have both Canadian and American sites as well.

 

[Patrice Lemée]

Thanks guys.