L6?

I

iowashtr23

Joined
Apr 19, 2009
Messages
57
Okay I have another question for you older experienced knife makers.. I recently bought a 24 inch across buzz saw blade from an auction for $5. It's 3/16 thick and an ole boy came up to me and said " you know that saw there is from the 20's to 30's. So I know without HT a piece I won't know but any of you think it coułd be L6?? I had heard those old saw blades were made from L6 anyone have an idea???
 
I don't think that you will ever be able to know for sure what the steel is in an old saw blade. I made my first knife from a saw blade about like you describe. I still have and, in fact, use that knife. It is a good knife and it reminds me where I started and how far I have come. I will tell you that cutting up a big saw blade is hard and not real safe work. The steel is quite hard so be careful with the angle grinder, Drimmel or whatever. Wear safety glasses. When I made my first knife I had only read the heat treating misinformation given in a very popular book that describes how to set up a knife shop on the cheap. The short version is: Heat the steel till a magnet won't stick to it any more and heat it a little bit more after that. The next thing I was told was to quench the blade in some sort of oil (motor, transmission, canola etc.). And that does work and you get a pretty good knife blade. You get such a good knife blade that it takes a lot of reading and research and effort to make a better one. I believe that starting out on a saw blade is a fairly good place to start. It is a difficult way to begin but it may be that even if the metallurgy leaves a little bit to be desired, the purity of purpose lays a sound foundation. Oh and one more thing; it is also difficult to drill those old saw blades. You really might want to invest in the right diameter carbide drill bit. Be careful. Read. Think. Plan ahead. The best way to learn is to do. Nicholas Jasper
 
Hi from down under. The advice above is spot on. If you can get someone to plasma or water cut the steel for you it is far easier to work. Also annealing is a good move. I use a lot of steel from old bandsaws from mills in the area. Circular saws work well and the hardening advice above works well. I usually temper the blades after hardening at 150 degrees Celsius for an hour to bring the edge back to about Rc 60 (depending on the steel). I only edge quench the blades. If you use a carbide drill make sure there is absolutely no lateral movement or they can break. (Speaking from experience.) Good luck and have fun.
 
Thanks for the info.. This isn't my first knife though, it is my first purchase of a buzz saw blade. I just am not familiar with L6. I usually make all my knives out of O1 or 1095. I live on Iowa and grew up very close to where the great Howard Clark lives. I had read about him and him using L6 for his swords. I think I'm gonna cut out a blank and either HT myself or contact Howard Clark to help me determine what this metal is.
 
Honestly, most likely its something like 1070+2% nickle, 15n20 or maybe 8670M..The L6 storys are usually because the sawblades contain nickle..I know Phillip has a lot of specs saved on different saw blade tests and they can vary..The vast majority end up being some kind of high carbon steel with nickle..He even has specs on one that looks like 1095 with nickle..We have one in the shop that is likely 8670M..
Very long story short, they can be many things but are usually NOT true L6..Good steel non the less :thumbup:
 
Several years ago, I did several knives out of saw blades. I was just starting out making knives. I did the same as suggested which was heat to non magnetic and quench in an oil. I used motor oil and transmission oil mixed, if I remember correctly. I've read hear where a canola oil will work pretty good and probably much better than the motor - transmission fluid oil I used. If you can find a old skill saw with an all metal frame and motor housing you can get a cut off blade to fit and use that for sawing. I used that for a long time to rough cut out blades, even when I started to use 440-C. Hope it goes good for you. Not every knife maker will invite you in but many will. Try a phone call first if the maker doesn't show he's doing business where you think he's living. Frank
 
I'm pretty sure no saw blades were ever made from L6.

But the old one are very good knife steel. I only made a couple thousand knives using it. :)
 
For the record, back in the 80s' and 90s' I was calling it L6, then latter got hold of some know L6 and it was a different animal. I liked the old saw blade steel better. :)
 
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