Cutting stock??

Chiro75

Chiro75

Joined
Feb 4, 1999
Messages
5,786
Okay, guys, I got my D-2 planer blade stock in last night and started right to work on my test blades. This stuff has been annealed, but it has eaten up two hacksaw blades already and the thing isn't even close to being roughed out in shape. There's no way I can afford an electric saw, so it is files and hacksaws for me. What should I be looking for in blades, and how can I increase durability of said blades and decrease the amount of time it takes to saw thtough this stuff? It is about 90% humidity here right now and there is zero ventilation in my basement. With 106 degrees heat index this work is killing me, and anything to make it easier will be appreciated...


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My Custom Kydex Sheath pagehttp://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/knifehome.html
Palmer College of Chiropractic
On Two Wheels
 
I purchased a small 4" anglehead grinder that also uses metal cutting wheels. I can grind and cut with it. Don't know if it would help or not, but it might be worth a try.
 
So now you know what the weather is like in Houston 8 months out of the year! The heat is a BIG problem for me as well. The only advice I have is work at night or work outside.
You can drill holes as Ed recommended. That is probably your best method at this point without a saw. After the holes are drilled, then your hacksaw would work more than likely.
Once upon a time, I tried a jig saw on Cruwear and went thru so many blades it was pathetic. It may be OK with D2.

CLWilkins
 
I use bi metal 24 tooth blades in my Klien hacksaw. Only push in the direction the saw teeth are facing. If you drag the saw blade back across the steel premature blade ware occures because the teeth on the blade round off.
 
Pick yourself up a cheap used skilsaw and a couple of the metal cutting wheel blades. They work really well, just wear good eye and face and clothing protection... they REALLY throw the sparks! And DO NOT use a saw you care about... the hot metal thrown from these blades eats the bearings in the saw in short order. They are no good for finish work after just a few serious cuts. I keep my eyes open at garage and yard sales.
 
An easy way to do this is with a Dremel and some of their dime sized cut of wheels (which cost about a dime each I believe). Cut a notch across the blade and then break it off. Grind it flat and you're ready to go.

Whoops, sorry, I reread your post and realized that you're profiling the blade. The dremel solution would get old in a hurry doing that - if you twist them (even slightly) in the cut they break like glass. That won't do at all.

[This message has been edited by sharpsteel (edited 22 July 1999).]
 
Hey, CL, do you guys have 90% humidity down in Houston, too? With the heat index its been 106 or so every day this week and it's getting hotter! I have two knives I have to make sheaths for, so I forced myself to go into the basement last night. It was so hot I was wearing a t-shirt and boxers! Only reason I kept the shirt was because I didn't want so much sweat to drop on my work! THIS SUCKS!

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My Custom Kydex Sheath pagehttp://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/knifehome.html
Palmer College of Chiropractic
On Two Wheels
 
Whoa there! It obviously hasn't been annealed. Don't care what you were told, nor what you did. D-2 doesn't behave that way unless it's been hardened.

Annealing an air hardening steel is not as simple as heating and cooling it -- that's how you harden it.

And annealing it is a tremendous pain, though it can be done. I strongly suggest buying some D-2 from a supplier. It will arrived truly annealed.

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Regards,
Desert Rat

 
Has anyone used the Starrett(or similar) high-tension hack-saws? They are designed for use only with bi-metalic blades, but claim to give better blade life and faster cutting.
Aaron

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amacks@nist.gov
Don't forget to pay your taxes...they eventually become my knives:)

 
Aaron,
The Starret high tension hacksaw frame looks similar to my Klein saw frame. The Klein saw frame is the best hack saw I have ever used. It will tension a blade better and is very stout when compared to a convention style frame. I would recomend this type of saw frame to any one who is cutting out blades by hand.
Ray
 
you might want to try a cut off saw, you might be able to pick up an old one for a couple hundred dollars. i haven't been in knifemaking very long, but i've learned one thing, it cost alot when using very hard materials. or you could heat it up and use an air hammer. if your going to stay with knife making and want to make a big investment. you could buy a press and make your own die, then just heat up the d-2 and stamp it, that is if your going to make a lot of knives with the same blade. last you could try a softer material like 440c, ats-34, 1095 or even 0-1.
 
Desert Rat,
The stock Chiro75 is working with is annealed. I buy some of the same planer blades from the same source, and they've always come annealed so I can work them.
One way I can tell is that I can filework the blades once I have them shaped, but once I get the D-2 hardened, a file will just slide off and I have to go to carbide or diamond coated dremel bits to 'file' a notch in it.
I chop pieces to length using a 3" diameter cutoff wheel in a die grinder. Much handier than using a chop saw or angle grinder. It is also possible to rough shape a blade that way, but you go through about one $1.35 wheel per blade.

madpoet
 
:
Steve,Ray is right about pushing the blade just one way. Another thing is to take it a little slower.The hacksaw blades being so thin generate a lot of heat quickly and take the hardness out of the teeth.
If you do the cutting stroke and then hold the teeth away from the work on the backstroke it makes a blade last longer on harder materials. You might try a little turpentine while cutting also if you can.It is pretty smelly,but also helps cool as well as cut harder material.Just some old machine shop tricks.


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>>>>---¥vsa---->®
The civilized man sleeps behind locked doors in the city while the naked savage sleeps (with a knife) in a open hut in the jungle.
 
Ok, I stand corrected. If you can cut it with a file it is annealed. For sure if it is hardened you won't cut it with much of anything.

In fact the filing guides I make to keep the files from going beyond a given depth are of hardened (and not tempered) D-2.

In that case, I've cut a lot of this steel with plain ol' carbon hacksaw blades, so it must indeed be a problem of techinque. Don't be afraid to use oil on the saw blade.

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Regards,
Desert Rat

 
one thing no one mentioned...i used to use it a lot until i got a metal cutting bandsaw, is a chop saw (cutoff saw in metal working shop) ....an old makita woodworking chop saw...they are everywhere and are cheap used...especially since the advent of the compound mitre saws....with an abrasive blade, get the reinforced kind...last twice as long....i used to chop to length...then stick it in there and grind every 1/8" down to the scribe line...all the way around... really fast stock removal....makes a mess though...

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http://www.mayoknives.com


 
I've had incredible results from my $20.00 4" angle grinder with modified cutoff disks, but when I was using a hacksaw, I got faster results by using oil, as suggested earlier, and using as solid a vise as I could get ahold of. If it's still too slow, borrow a tool, or visit someones shop with your steel in the car, then ask nice. It takes 30 seconds with the right tool, and 30 hours with the wrong one.
I got a couple of planer blades, and I've been wondering what steel they are. Are most planer blades D2? These are from Ohio knife company.

[This message has been edited by Osbourn (edited 28 July 1999).]
 
In my experience they are D-2.

I also recall W. Goddard making that assertion in print a while back.

Why are you buying planer blades rather than the raw steel? It isn't all that expensive. Am I missing an important variable here?

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Regards,
Desert Rat

 
Thanks for the info Desert Rat, always good to know what steel you're working. I'm a scrounge knifemaker at this point, and these blades were given to me gratis, so that's my reason.
Chiro, where do you get them for that price? So far, they've been really fun to work.
 
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