HRC range without hyperbole?

N

Naphtali

Joined
May 20, 2002
Messages
150
I have not owned a fixed blade knife whose blade was not laminated steel since 1982. Last week my Cowry X damascus outdoorsman's knives I sent to my nephew and his sons. So I'm down to a single Dozier Sisu.

Thinking I might want to go "traditional," I have been considering Morseth knives - the long out of production laminated steel versions. I tried to find accurate information on the blades. I figured that these knives are old enough that I could find a straight answer to my question - that is, no hyperbole because no one has anything to gain by hyping the product. The question is: What is the hardness range of blade blanks (or steel strip) that Morseth(s) and A.G. Russell accepted from Brusletto to manufacture Morseth knives? Or what HRC range did the manufacturer accept/expect from his finished blades?

I have obtained "authoritative" information reporting the center lamination has an HRC of 61. I've obtained equally "authoritative" report that the center lamination has an HRC of 65. To my mind this is a significant difference.

FYI: Center lamination of the Cowry Xs ranges between HRC 64 and 65. This information was received by way of a friend whose tool and die welding and fabrication business had a portable hardness tester.
 
not all Hrc testers are calibrated the same. no two will give exact results is a way to think of it. that's why its good to use the same machine to tell HRC.
 
nightman said:
https://books.google.com/books?id=E6NZd17WtWoC&pg=PA364&lpg=PA364&dq=morseth+BRUSLETTO++laminated+steel+knives&source=bl&ots=pH9dwqvk6e&sig=OVhhorMq6SFOLxKrlh5X5BuPmy8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZtNyH9b7UAhXM34MKHTw8BfAQ6AEIYTAL#v=onepage&q=morseth BRUSLETTO laminated steel knives&f=false
Click to expand...
Nightman, the link is non-functional in an unusual way.

Regarding uniformity of testing, Brusletto was the sole source for Morseth's laminated steel [stock]. So almost certainly HRC testing would have been uniform. And if Morseth did corroboration testing upon receipt of a steel order, almost certainly they would use the same testing device, or testing facility - again, to maintain consistency of results. . . which returns me to my question.
 
Adamlau, Either site's software or google's does not allow me to view page 364. I randomly scrolled and confirmed I am able to view book's opening pages only. Nevetheless, I suspect the information I seek is in the book.
 
Search for the keyword brusletto in the searchbox located in the left frame. You should be presented with an option to select page 364.
 
Without going through a long story , steel composition ,consistency, quality , has changed since the '40s !
Proper hardness should always be a range , not a specific hardness. For one reason the composition has a range for each element .
We can ,under best conditions hold close such as 59-60 . We can also do better to take each batch and test for best quench temperature and tempering temperature
to keep the hardness more precise. ..Been there , done that ! :)
 
mete said:
Without going through a long story , steel composition ,consistency, quality , has changed since the '40s !
Proper hardness should always be a range , not a specific hardness. For one reason the composition has a range for each element .
We can ,under best conditions hold close such as 59-60 . We can also do better to take each batch and test for best quench temperature and tempering temperature
to keep the hardness more precise. ..Been there , done that ! :)
Click to expand...

It's even more relevant nowadays with metallurgists discovering the big effects of "microalloying," elements present at such small amounts that they almost count as accidental impurities. I believe in the past certain mine sites yielded characteristic ore resulting in steel (or bronze) with low-level impurities that could make a big difference in the quality and performance of weapons and armor.
 
One perfect example is the " Damascus" blade . They were made in India and the iron ore contained Vanadium . First tests to reproduce those blades didn't include V - it didn't work ! A complete copy of the composition included V which did work !
 
mete said:
One perfect example is the " Damascus" blade . They were made in India and the iron ore contained Vanadium . First tests to reproduce those blades didn't include V - it didn't work ! A complete copy of the composition included V which did work !
Click to expand...

Another great example of today's microalloying is the addition of tiny amounts of niobium to structural steel, which immensely increases its resistance to cracking (especially when subjected to twisting/torque). Does it raise the steel's Rockwell hardness numbers? No! But it greatly increases its strength and resilience. This of course affects a blade and how it can be designed. Hardness numbers are only part of the story.

The best part starts at 3 minutes:

 
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