Hardness Testing

[SVander]

Is there a way of testing the hardness of the blades after heat treat other than the skating file trick. I don't want to go and spend a pile of money but I would like to be able to tell what hardness I am achieving by my heat treat.
Thanks
Steve

 

[Kit Carson]

Steve, you could try what I used to do before I picked up a Rockwell tester. Most technical/trade schools that teach machinists courses have one and I never had any trouble getting them to test my blades.

 

[johno]

Some tool shops may have one that you could use, maybe for a price, and some areas have inspection services that should be able to do it. I also seem to recall that there were portable hardness testers available, maybe not for cheap but probably cheaper than a regular one. I seem to recall that the portable ones were generally Brinell testers.