Help! brassback questions

[TMHunt]

I am currently working on a brassback bowie knife. I have made countless bowies but this is my first brassback. I would appriciate any hints, tips, how to's, pictures, suggestions. Etc. I have the blade profiled and have the brass dovetailed into the top. I guess my question lies with the fusion of the two after heat treat. Is this best done with silver solder. If so some info on that would be great as well. I have never done that before and need some expertese! Thanks much! Todd

 

[dax0007]

It is very COLD in here)

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

I don't think I saw this originally.

Soft solders like Stay-Brite or TIX work well. They work within the tempering range, so there is no worry about altering the blade temper.

The alternate method is to silver braze it on, clay coat the spine, and heat the edge with a torch, doing an edge quench. This isn't the easiest method, but when well done can give both a rock solid brass back and a hamon/quench line.

Either way, grind the brass flush and smooth after the HT.

 

[TMHunt]

I don't think I saw this originally.

Soft solders like Stay-Brite or TIX work well. They work within the tempering range, so there is no worry about altering the blade temper.

The alternate method is to silver braze it on, clay coat the spine, and heat the edge with a torch, doing an edge quench. This isn't the easiest method, but when well done can give both a rock solid brass back and a hamon/quench line.

Either way, grind the brass flush and smooth after the HT.

Thanks for the repy, but I have already finished the project.

 

[Salem Straub]

Looks like you figured it out fine!

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

So, what method did you use?

 

[TMHunt]

Well. As you can see it is dovetailed in the ends. The brass is press fitted then there are 4 brass pins evenly spaced that go down through the brass insert and into the top of the blade then peened into the spine. as if that wasn't enough, silver solder holds it in too. I made a test piece with this method before I made the knife. I could not beat the brass strip out of the material with a hammer.