Lines on edge of Damascus

B

brettn

Joined
Dec 4, 2010
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I'm starting to forge Damascus and have noticed my billets seem to compress more in the middle when I draw them out. This causes the layers on the outside to roll up, which results in lines the run the length of the billet on the edges. Am I doing something wrong or is this normal? I'm using drawing dies in a press to draw out the billets.


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Laminations being more compressed toward the center is normal. It's due to the surface cooling faster than the center, so
the steel in the center tends to move toward the edges of the billet. It happens more with a press, than with a hammer.
The black lines are normal also....to some degree, depending on what you're using for flux. They'll likely be .010-.025" deep....or so.
 
That sound normal.

The edge on the final blade is the core, anyway. The pattern along the edge area is usually a plainer "watered" pattern of long lines. Above the edge on the main bevels, the manipulated pattern shows bolder. The more the blade is forged to final shape, the more the manipulated pattern shows. On a random pattern billet (with no manipulation), the bevels will show the pools and eyes, but the edge will only show lines.
 
If you move the material in smaller bites you can avoid or almost eliminate the phenomenon described. I just did a class with a new maker. We made a ladder pattern billet. We used the press but took no more than an 1/8th inch press per side at a time. This made the process much longer but the billet stayed square and the layers did not bleed out the sides. It was very well defined and even throughout.
 
what Chuck said, it also helps if you control the width. Ie. don't let the billet grow in width from the original stack.
 
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