Heat Treat Furnace for Knife making?

F

Frank R

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Feb 19, 2015
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A couple years ago I picked up a little K.H Huppert heat treat furnace from a machine shop. Can I use it for knife making?

Here is a similar one to mine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeAXfJ7hED4

I will get around to making my first knife one of these days. Knowing I can use this furnace means I don't have to buy or build a forge of some kind.

It is pretty small but would I have any problems heating a small axe head? I am concerned that some parts would be closer to the coils than others; resulting in uneven heating.

Edit: I should clarify: can I use this oven for all my heating needs while making a knife or small axe head?
 
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i think if you could put the axe head in vertically, you would be ok with it. That said, you want to make sure any means for holding that ax head upright should be sturdy, as you don't want it falling over into the coils. MOST IMPORTANTLY you need to turn off (or better yet unplug) the unit BEFORE you open the door to insert or remove the steel. You don't want to get lit up. If it will get simple carbon steel up to aus temp (1500 or so) it will probably take a while to get there. I think stainless is out of the realm of possibility with this one. It might make a nice kiln if you ever get into making folders and want to heat treat smaller stuff.
 
That is a small dental burn-out unit. It really won't work for knives. At 1000 watts, it is about half the power needed.
 
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