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Real question, has anyone heard the presumed philosophy behind this "theory", or is the explanation pure marketing bs targeting the uninformed?
 
DanF said:
Real question, has anyone heard the presumed philosophy behind this "theory", or is the explanation pure marketing bs targeting the uninformed?
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They think, “if you want to call it that “ that they will change/tighten the atomic structure of the steel on the edge by pounding on it with a hammer.:rolleyes: I don’t think so!:oops:
 
The theory is you will increase the density of the "packed" area. I have read that the grain boundaries are compressed so the grains are closer together. I have also seen it said that this breaks apart the grains and make smaller ones, which "pack" tighter. Of course, all this is pure bunk.

A certain forging cowboy's low temp final forging cycles was supposed to do the same thing .... which was bunk, too.

I have read that the edge will be three to ten times harder, and other ridiculous claims.
 
DanF said:
Real question, has anyone heard the presumed philosophy behind this "theory", or is the explanation pure marketing bs targeting the uninformed?
Click to expand...
I'd say it's a little of both, poor understanding and marketing BS.

I'm not sure if this is relevant, or if it goes without saying, but I have heard or read that this theory about edge packing is a holdover from ancient times when more forging/hammering did improve the quality of the steel. However, it's my understanding that this is because one was burning off the impurities rather than changing the molecular structure.
My guess is that we blacksmiths are at least partially to blame for this bunk. Partly due to misunderstanding that has been passed down through the smithies, and partly due to Blacksmiths wanting to retain as much of the knifemaking market and compete with the large, mass production operations who were not forging blades.
 
My reading and understanding of science has me thinking he was 30 years behind the curve 30 years ago. This theory may have still held true for anything someone forges in a home crucible like they did hundreds of years ago. There is really no way this can be true for modern steel manufacturing and PM steels in particular.

I didn't even think about the impurities but yes that may be the truth behind the less scientific theory of edge packing.
 
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