my first time....

M

Maryann

Joined
May 25, 2006
Messages
2
well, it was a comedy of errors but after a couple of failed attempts with gas
I made a charcoal forge and heated a piece of car spring to non-magnetic. I hammered out something resembling a blade and quenched it in
diatematious (sp) earth.

after it cools I plan to use a belt sander to do the final shaping and then heat treat it in an oven for an hour at 400 degrees.

I wonder if someone will tell me if this is the correct method or should I be doing something different.

this is my first attempt at making a knife and I'm self-taught.

Thanks in advance for you advice.

Maryann
 
I'm no Wayne Goddard but you will have to heat it back up to non magnetic in the forge and quench it in oil or tranny fluid, then you can temper it in the oven, which you will have to do a few times. Last step would be to clean it up and put a finish edge on it.
 
Welcome to Bladeforums!

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Lots of tutorials at, www.knifehow.com .
What you did is anneal the metal after forging it.That made it nice and soft.Now you can grind /file/sand it to almost the final shape (leave a little thickness on the edge to sand away after hardening) .To harden it you will heat it to non-mag again and quench it in oil.ATF will work,use at least two quarts,a gallon is better.Plunge it straight in,point first.You have now hardened the blade,but it will be too brittle as is.After the knife has cooled in the oil enough to touch it (3-5 min.) clean it off (if you run a file along the edge it will skate off without biting into the metal). Now, put it in the oven at 450 for 1 hour.Take it out and let it cool to room temperature.Put it back in for another hour.Cool it off and now it is tempered.The final part is to sand it as smooth as you want,add a handle (and guard if you like) and lastly - sharpen it.Check out the knifehow site for lots more detailed info.A final note is to avoid the mistake of many first knives - drill all the holes in the tang BEFORE you harden it!!!After hardening and tempering it will be nearly impossible to drill the tang.
Welcome to the world of knifemaking.A few good books are "Step by Step Knifemaking",by David Boye; "The $50 knife shop" ,by Wayne Goddard
Stacy

PS: OK,I'll be the crass one here (I know most of the other guys though it) The title of your post really got my attention, "My first time..." by Maryann
 
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