lawnmower blades

[gragh]

I'm sure this has been asked..

but what kinda steel is in standard lawnmower blades and Chainsaw bars?

 

[mete]

Someone who worked in the business said lawnmower blades were a 15xx series though I don't remember how much carbon ,though that couldn't be very high .

 

[Will Leavitt]

Please spend the $10 and buy a known steel from Aldo or some other supplier, the time you spend developing a good heat treat isn't worth the time and energy.

 

[Kyle Royer]

Please spend the $10 and buy a known steel from Aldo or some other supplier, the time you spend developing a good heat treat isn't worth the time and energy.

:thumbup::thumbup:

 

[Sam Salvati]

Man oh man I made a machete from a lawnmower blade, heated only about 1/2 inch of the edge, quenched in cold water, no temper, still have it no cracks, no chips no nothing.

 

[bikermikearchery]

The advise to buy a known steel is very sound and will simplify things considerably. However...... I like to make things out of old stuff. Thats how I learned and I just like to. Newer mower blades tend to be a low carbon metal that does not harden well. Some older mower blades will harden up quit nicely. You need to learn to do a spark test, and heat, quench, and break some metal to tell what you have. You need to be willing to put a lot of effort in to something that mite not work.
The book $50.00 knife shop By Wayne Goddard has a lot of information on used metal.

 

[chewbacca]

I am a NooB to this, but my brother makes blades once in a while...He told me, and maybe someone can confirm...the old one-piece chainsaw bars were very hard, and made nice knives.

Since they added the chain sprocket at the end of the bars, they started spot welding three layers together, the outside layers are hard, likely high carbon steel, and the middle is quite soft. If you were going to use a chisel edge they might still work.

 

[kc custom]

Its been years since I've forged anything but a few years back I made Damascus, blades and what not from chains, sewer snakes, cables, just about anything I could get my hands on. As I look back on those times they were fun and a learning expierience. Most of what I learned was buy good steel of a known alloy content the learning exp. is still there and when you're done you have some idea as to what you've made.