First heat treat today...questions.

D

Dr.O

Joined
Nov 13, 2008
Messages
69
So I did two blades 1084 and 1095.

Used a thermocouple controlled forge with metal baffle.

Took them to 1515 F and quenched in 130 degree park 50.

There were several areas on the blades that were a gray storm cloud look and everything else was charcoal black.

Do these colors/patterns indicate anything important?

I tempered them 400 for 1.5 hours.

I put an edge on the 1084 and did some chopping whittling cutting, and it was still shaving, so I think it is alright.

The 1084 was a hay color, and 1095 more bronze/hay after temper.

I think ill do another temper cycle with the 1095.

Any advice, suggestions?
 
Parks #50 oil is designed to work best in the 100° range. 1095 should not be taken much above 1475° for the hardening heat as in doing so you are dissolving some of your carbides into the solution, and losing their benefits. The 1084 will also be better in that heat range, and need not exceed 1500°. Colors produced during tempering are subjective to oils and other contaminates on the steel, and mean little. 2 one hour tempers will serve you better than a single prolonged temper, and quenching in water after each temper can also add a slight degree of improvement. At worst, it does no harm and frees you to go back to work sooner.
 
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LRB is pretty much spot on, with the exception of the carbides going away....they come back. You want all the carbon in solution before the quench....but that is just a metallurgical discussion.

What you did sounds OK, with the exception of heating the Parks#50. It did little harm, but #50 works best between 70-100°F ( 20-40°C).


The "gray storm clouds" on the 1095 could be auto-hamon effects. This happens sometimes with 1095 in a fast quench. Most folks consider it a plus. The pattern may end up with really interesting "clouds" on the blade when finish sanded. Once you sand the blade to 800-1000 grit, try rubbing the blade for a few minutes with lemon juice. See if that brings out the hamon more. If you like the look, great. If not, just sand the dark/light tones away and finish as desired. You can do some searches for "hamon" and read for days. Here is the Bladeforums search engine. Bookmark it: https://www.google.com/cse/home?cx=011197018607028182644:qfobr3dlcra

Photos always help with questions about a blade.
 
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Congrats on using a pyrometer. It takes a lot of the guesswork out of the equation.
 
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