Can someone name the steels in these files i found?

J.McDonald Knives

J.McDonald Knives

Basic Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2007
Messages
2,021
my uncle had these in with the scrap metal pile. from top to bottom the brands are Nicholson, Slack legend, and Save Edge. i would like to make a pig sticker out of the nicholson but i need to know what steel it is. i also want to make some knives out of the other two if they are good steel. all three have a rasp on one side and regular cross cut file teeth on the other side. the nicholson is 17 1/2" long and 1 3/4" wide. the slack legend is 16 3/4" long and 1 5/8" wide. the save edge is 19 3/4" long and 2 1/4" wide. should i anneal them first before working on them? thanks for your help.

Files.jpg
 
didnt you jsut buy a pile of steel tht you know what it is

come on we could guess all day and not be right
? you starting to wander why few ppl are answering you any more
read and try that works there have been many threads about this stuff but my word is dont bother (you have good steel not files )
 
The search function here at the forums is a wonderful thing. I've used it before and found out that (current) Nicholson files are 1095.

However, these looks like rasps, which may only be case hardened. The only way to tell is to test them and see if they harden. I know that sounds suspiciously like work, but sometimes you just gotta do that in order to figure it out.

-d
 
For the first year and a half; I forged about anything that would, get hot, spark or attach itself to a magnet. Now that I have a fair understanding of what it is, that I am trying to accomplish I use only known steels, with, known heat quantities.
If I were to have the opportunity to redo that first year and a half at the forge, I would acquire only known steels and forge them.
If you work with steels that are identifiable; your forging and heat treating skills can be amassed at the same time. Having one skill without the other makes one a less than accomplished bladesmith.

Fred

Go to the shop; make fifty knives, and learn something.
Send me one. I will test it for you.
 
i guess ill just put these files back in the scrap metal bin. i just thought it might be fun a few months down the road to try these. i figured it would be a way to test my skills and to see how much i have improved. forgive me for wanting to plan ahead. i wonder if its worth it for me to come to yall for advice again. yall are starting to make knife making not fun for me anymore.
 
Pimpin, dont get all rilled up.

When the Budhist monks used to get applicants they would always treat them poorly at first. At first I thought I understood this until I went to seek out a tea master. Having trouble relating to my teamaster I often thought he was unessecarily rough with me. Then one day sensing my misunderstanding he sat me down for tea. He told me that in the old world if you had enough respect for someone to seek them out as a teacher it was your job to make yourself teachable. It was not the knowledgable persons job to conform to your view of how things should go.

He was right. He knew everything I wanted to know but had niether resposibility or need to share any of his knowledge with me. I was much more humble from that point on and learned more than I can tell.

The guys on this forum are amazing. They do things with steel I only dream about. But they dont feel the need to share with every poster. I think they all like you even though you may have a bit of youthfull exuberance. They are also a fickle crowd that dont like to repeat themselves alot. The file question has come up probably about 2 millions times, so its not you but the question. On my first posts I was also reminded of the search funstion several times and shure enough, once I used it I didnt even need to ask most things.

Dont be afriad to come ask questions but dont get butthurt over some ribbing. I know you texans are tough enough to take it. Like most guys buddy relationships this one comes with some smart ass comments and such but is worth it and once you get used to it even fun. Do search first though or expect more of the "use the search function" response. It's not personal, they just dont want to type it all again.
 
I think the problem is the myriad of questions coming from all over the knifemaking map with very little goal or plan. In one thread youre talking about designing 5, 10 knives, the next your posting your first, the next youre saying you have 50 feet of known steel, the next saying you need to ID some files....cutting wood...making anvils....making forges....HT specs....and unfortunately most if it is just the click of "search" away.

Enthusiasm is great but so is methodically going about things. You dont need to learn everything at once and its easy to burn out if you do. I would focus on the basics....cut out a shape, grind two bevels on it, and HT. No scales, no pins, nothing. When you can do that and the blade passes all your tests, youre ready to throw something else in the mix...rinse, repeat. Trying to learn everything, make an anvil from scratch, surface grind the anvil, identify steel, cut and dry your own wood, forge, build a forge, learn to grind, learn to HT....if you try that all at once youll just end up in a big heap of frustration which it looks like that where you are heading.

Slow down, pick something basic, and do it ten times.
 
thanks for those words BigJimSlade and David. that helped me alot. im the type that likes to give myself a challenge. helps me learn things better. the second knife im working on didnt turn out just like i wanted yet and i just have the profile of it done. ive been going over the design in my head and stuff. the challenge im giving myself now is making a hidden tang for this one. plan to use part of those axis antlers i have. they should be ready for use right? they are about 1-2 weeks old. and the other part of the challenge is applying a guard and im still working out how i want to do it and what i want to use. any suggestions for me for the guard? also im sorry about blowing up earlier. its nothing personal.
 
PimpinSquee said:
how much i have improved. i wonder if its worth it for me to come to yall for advice again. yall are starting to make knife making not fun for me anymore.
Click to expand...

Improved? After one or two knife attempts? I didn't "improve" until I had practiced many long hard hours. I'm still trying to improve.


"i wonder if its worth it for me to come to yall for advice again."
Man, this ought to make all of the guys that gave you advice feel really good.
Maybe you should get a job and let this rest for a while. Of course you are very close to 900 posts in two months, a record Im sure you'll be very proud of. Have you learned anything? 900 posts.


"Yall are starting to make knife making not fun for me anymore"
A "poor me" statement. First I've seen on a knife making forum though.
 
rhrocker said:
Improved? After one or two knife attempts? I didn't "improve" until I had practiced many long hard hours. I'm still trying to improve.


"i wonder if its worth it for me to come to yall for advice again."
Man, this ought to make all of the guys that gave you advice feel really good.
Maybe you should get a job and let this rest for a while. Of course you are very close to 900 posts in two months, a record Im sure you'll be very proud of. Have you learned anything? 900 posts.


"Yall are starting to make knife making not fun for me anymore"
A "poor me" statement. First I've seen on a knife making forum though.
Click to expand...

So the kid talks alot!:rolleyes: He said he was sorry for blowing up. Inquiring minds want to know....ALOT:D Keep grinding Jacob..
 
Make the files into knives. If they are to hard or won't cut hang em on the wall. At least you got the practice. How many files do you need in a drawer any way?
I let my antlers dry out and cure for 6 months at least. Boone & Crockett won't measure one for 90 days???? not sure about how long.
Just a caution.
 
Jacob,
As for your original question about what kind of steel the files are:
Ast I can tell from the photos -
The first one is brown steel
the second - black steel
The third - grey steel.

OK ,I got that out of my system.

There is no way to know (The file question pops up about once a week). Just use your 1075. It will be as good as any file, and you know how to do the HT. Leave the experiments for several years and several hundred knives later.
I have people bring me all kinds of steel from cranes, tractors, industrial plants, nuclear reactors, etc. I smile and say thanks. Then I put it along the wall of the smithy. That big stack of steel looks impressive. When I want to make a knife I pull out a piece of steel from the metal rack ( not the wall stack), read the marking ( I mark both ends and both sides), and proceed with a surety of what it is and what to do to it.
Stacy

BTW: I got the books back. Thanks . I'll pass them along to the next newbie.
 
file knives are just so darn risky...
To tell the truth, every story I have heard from my friends or co-workers who had owned a file knife always ends the story the same way..."It was great until it snapped"

I know that there are some bladesmiths that swear you can make a great knife from a file, and I know lots of people try...

But I just think it's a lot of work for a blade thats real tricky to pull off right.
Look at how much work they are, only to have them snap on you like that.
I swear if you break another file knife you may have a heart attack on us...

I suggest a easy steel....and an oil quench...and a 400' tempering for 2 hours!
 
ill just save them for trying new designs. even if they snap ill have been able to try out the design in the field. they will make a good learning experience as far as design wise goes. keeps me from waisting my good known steel. thanks guys.

Stacy, glad you got the books back. you have any DVDs i could borrow on how to do flat grinds or hollow grinds better or on knife sharpening with the belt grinder or wet stones?

TJ Smith, thanks for that info on the antlers. glad you informed me before i goto cut them up (not going to cut them until they are dried out).

rhrocker, i like to gather as much info as i can on something before starting it and still like to get even more info as im going. i like to see if certain ideas are worth risking or if they have already been done. i dont know if my idea about leather micarta scales has been tried before but i think that it would look great. give a new twist to leather handles.even if i never get credit for it if it gets popular and stuff ill just be glad that i made a good contribution to the knife world and other areas if it applies to them.

i know for a long time yall have been thinking that i was just spinning my wheels about making a knife but i have and im still going to continue to make knives. i still enjoy it and its still fun for me. as i was breaking in my new belt grinder today and working on the handle ideas just started to flow in my mind. this is the second hobby that has been able to get my mind thinking on many different levels. but unlike the other hobby this one i have actually started and finished. the reason why i have not used the search function much is because alot of the time i dont find the exact info im looking for. i do find some but not certain things and i have to write that idea down in the form of a question while its still fresh in my head. complimenting other peoples work helps me remember what their designs look like and that gives me new ideas for stuff.
 
PimpinSquee said:
the reason why i have not used the search function much is because .
Click to expand...
99% of the time I cant get the SEARCH function to work for me at all...

Most of the time I just go ahead and ask about what I want to know.
Given there are about a million bladesmaiths on the forum at any given time, so the odds are one of them knows the answer...
 
Allan Molstad said:
99% of the time I cant get the SEARCH function to work for me at all...

Most of the time I just go ahead and ask about what I want to know.
Given there are about a million bladesmaiths on the forum at any given time, so the odds are one of them knows the answer...
Click to expand...


The search function on this site is not good. It is ok if you put one word in...most of the time. When you put two words in and it doesn't do SH**....99% of the time.
 
David- Thanks for your reply. Although I'm not Mr. Squee, I got a lot from your statement.
I checked out your site, you do beautiful work!!

Thanks again,

Kevin
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top