Estwing Splitting Wedge.

M

Marjan Pjetrushi

Joined
Feb 11, 2019
Messages
6
Hello I was wondering if anyone could help me who knows any information regarding the new estwing splitting wedge steel type? I did a spark test but im stuck between mild or medium. It says forged steel is all the info I have. Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
Hello I was wondering if anyone could help me who knows any information regarding the new estwing splitting wedge steel type? I did a spark test but im stuck between mild or medium. It says forged steel is all the info I have. Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
Why would that matter? It'll be some kind of low-alloy carbon steel, probably the same stuff they make everything else out of due to the volume discounts they can get on just buying a large quantity of a single grade. Spark testing does vary depending on hardness, and wedges tend to be deliberately soft except at the edge since they're getting repeatedly struck with a sledge, so bear that in mind. Knowing the steel grade will be totally meaningless unless you plan on re-heat-treating it and need to formulate the protocol accordingly, and the factory heat treatment should be fully suitable for its intended task.
 
Thankyou for the reply, and I should have been clear and included I was wondering if it was a steel worth forging a hammer out of. It is definitly soft as you note.
 
Forging junk of whatever provenance is usually not worth it.
If you Must,for whatever reason,don't worry about what it may be,just test a small piece.
Forge it long,hard-quench it,see if it's hardened by breaking it.
 
1055 is their standard steel, so if attempting to heat treat it I'd follow protocol for that and see how it goes. But honestly you'd probably be better off starting with bar stock of a known grade. There's a certain depot serving the needs of blacksmiths that carries round stock for making hammers from, and even the largest size is only $25. I say leave the wedge alone.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
1055 is their standard steel
Click to expand...

That's the word on the street,and i can't very well argue with this...

But:

I have a broken Estwing(not uncommon around here,they really don't stand up to real use,long story,nevermind,i don't want to provoke Estwing lovers..:(...)
Anyway,i use it as a hot-cut.Out of curiosity i've done some Terrible things with it.Once i cut a nearly 2x4 section of steel with it,driving it with a commesurate force with a sledge,naturally.
I tell Thee,it's not like any 1050 that i ever banged on...The stuff remains hard even in a pretty damn bright red range..And we all know how thin that section of edge is.Eventually it started upsetting,but just barely...I dunno about it being any low-alloyed steel...
 
jake pogg said:
That's the word on the street,and i can't very well argue with this...

But:

I have a broken Estwing(not uncommon around here,they really don't stand up to real use,long story,nevermind,i don't want to provoke Estwing lovers..:(...)
Anyway,i use it as a hot-cut.Out of curiosity i've done some Terrible things with it.Once i cut a nearly 2x4 section of steel with it,driving it with a commesurate force with a sledge,naturally.
I tell Thee,it's not like any 1050 that i ever banged on...The stuff remains hard even in a pretty damn bright red range..And we all know how thin that section of edge is.Eventually it started upsetting,but just barely...I dunno about it being any low-alloyed steel...
Click to expand...

Eh...in the volume and price point they're forging at they wouldn't have any reason to use anything but low-alloy carbon steel. If they were using something that was resistant to forging they'd wear out their (outrageously expensive) forging dies at a much faster rate and they'd have to amortize the cost of tooling over the given volume of product those dies produced, leading to a much higher unit cost. And forging more resistant steels required heavier duty equipment with consequently sturdier foundations, so you have higher property/plant/equipment expenses. For blue-collar tools like Estwing makes, the numbers all agree with their assertion.
 
I think I am gonna cut a piece off and try it, 1055 or not, if everything works out I plan on messing around with it and seeing how it turns out but I most likely will look into just picking up some stock. Thank you for the reply’s,The help is appreciated
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top