How to forging wrought iron?

D

Dixieblade57

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Jun 20, 2007
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I am working on a knife that I want to use a wrought iron guard on! My questions are on the forging of wrought iron. I remember hearing someone talking about try to forge wrought iron and it just fell apart. :confused:

What is the optimum temperature to forge wrought iron at?

Does it need a quench to make it stronger?

Does the wrought iron need to be twisted to bring out the grain in it or will the grain show well, just from forging?

Can one piece of wrought iron be welded to another piece of wrought iron using borax?

This is my first venture into trying my hand at forging wrought iron, so any advice that anyone can give me on this subject will be greatly appreciated!!
We need a smile that is a babe in the woods, (as that is kind of where I feel at the moment on this subject)! :D
 
work it hot, very hot! you dont need to use flux with wrought, weld it near white.

The grain is different from piece to piece, its very organic material. Theres next to no carbon in the iron so quenching its a bit pointless!

Have fun with it, its a lovely material to work.
 
I like to work wrought iron at 2000F to 2400F. The only time I have seen a bar of Aldo's wrought iron crack other than on the very end was when it was forged at below 1400 with a 150# fairbanks power hammer.
 
Dan Seaver said:
I like to work wrought iron at 2000F to 2400F. The only time I have seen a bar of Aldo's wrought iron crack other than on the very end was when it was forged at below 1400 with a 150# fairbanks power hammer.
Click to expand...

So that kind of says to me the problem that I heard someone talking about was caused by trying to forge at too low a temp.

This wrought iron is some I bought that was recovered from the old grain elevator torn down on the Great Lakes. I did have the link but, can't dind it now! It was some of the many bolts and rods stretched throughout the elavator.
 
Work wrought at a yellow-white heat, when you get to orange you are too cold.
The lower your carbon content, the higher your working temperature

-Page
 
If it does crack when your working it just reheat and reweld! It moves so easily under the hammer its a joy to forge!

Its one of the few materials I like the coke forge for over the gasser,.

oh, and of course, the material self fluxs, so its going to kick out lots more sparks / slag / debris when you hit it, can catch you off guard !
 
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