Looking for information on Stainless Spring Steels

Q

qwertyname

Joined
Oct 11, 2000
Messages
104
I have been looking into this some, and am a bit confused. Here are my questions:

1) Can any hardenable stainless steel be heat treated as a "spring steel"?

2) Are their stainless steels which are better "spring steels" than others?

3) How do you heat treat stainless to make it a "spring steel"?

I am not planning on using the material as a blade, I am thinking about it as something like a liner lock material, so I don't particularly need any certain hardness.
 
A super good spring stainless steel is 301 1/2 hard. It will take high temperatures over 1500 degres farenheit without loosing its elasticity. It is a little difficult to drill and as I forgot to mentioned is hardened as it comes. It's also an exact match to 416. I'm not positive who produces this but I believe it's a company called Thermo Dynamics. I was given a bunch that was being scraped.It may be too much of a problem for you for all you want but you asked and all I wanted to do was help. Frank.
 
Some SS spring sock after lots of openings gathers stress and snaps.

I prefer 17-4-ph, 410 hc, or 420hc that I heat treat myself.

I like the 301 but found that after many years of using it some knives lose the set on the spring.

Carbon makes a great spring but putting up with the rust is a PITA.

So I did some home work until I found steels that would take heat and cold openings. Some steels (440c) ect if left in the freezer and opened will snap.
The ones mentioned passed the tests!

------------------
Web Site At www.darrelralph.com
MADD MAXX !

[This message has been edited by Darrel Ralph (edited 03-10-2001).]
 
Thanks for all of the input. I think to start with I am going to try the 410 SS for a prototype. My text books talk about the 303 and 316 stainless springs, but in this case I am somewhat worried about the plastic yield strength, so I am going to move into the 400 series stuff.

I probably would look at a carbon steel, but for some reason, the acidity in my hands puts rust onto a carbon steel literally in minutes. I was handling a Cold Steel Trailblazer in Carbon V (or maybe San Mai III, off hand I don't remember exactly), I set the knife down and asked to look at something else. Since I was the only customer, the guy behind the desk didn't pick up the trailblazer immediately. In about 10 minutes I was done with the other couple of knives, and noticed my finger prints had started to etch the Cold Steel! Fortunately a little Metal Glow took it out, but I have been pretty leary ever since.

Again, thanks for the input,

Qwerty
 
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