My first

go mike

go mike

Joined
Dec 5, 2008
Messages
1,597
I finally got some steel, and cut out my first blade. It's A2 steel, so if anyone has information on how I could heat treat it without a forge, that would be wonderful. The piece of steel I got was 3/32" thick, 11" long, and 1-1/2" wide, for $1.
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Oh yeah, the guy said that it is either A2 or O-1. How can I tell the difference, to know what I really have?
 
Either way, you need a bit of a soak, so it will take some tricky work with a torch to get it right without burning up your steel for O-1. A2 likes a 30-45 minutes soak at around 1775 followed by an air or plate quench. You'll need to send it off for heat treatment if you don't have a forge or oven. O-1 needs *at least* 5 minutes (20 minute is much, much better) at 1475 before oil quenching.

Both steels are tough to do well without heat control. A2 will be next to impossible without an oven. I bet you could find someone to heat treat for you if you knew what kind of steel you're working with. It will take an analysis to know for sure unless you can get someone to help you try and heat treat some scrap.

Oh, good job on the blade. Can't wait to see what it looks like once the bevels are ground in.

--nathan
 
If you use Peters' Heat Treat, they will test it for you before the HT it. They just shoot it with a handheld thingy and it tells them what the steel is.
 
Nice First KSO Mike! If I we're you I'd send it out to Peter's Heat Treat like eric said, since you dont know what kind of steel it really is. But if you have to do it yourself, talk to your Art Teacher at school. see if you can stay after one day and run the ceramics kiln. Or if you have a metal shop talk to the teacher and see if he'll help you heat treat it. Nathan's heat treat process is spot on though. Talk to the guy you got it from some more and see if he can remember what it is.

Good Luck

Jason
 
I got the grind done now, next thing is to have it heat treated. (While it's away I'll work on the handle)
Like it? First time grinding :)
Knife Side 1.jpg

Knife Side 2.jpg
 
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