Need some advice on steel for a hatchet

L

longgunner97

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May 22, 2010
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I have been working on a design for a camp hatchet and have finally got the pattern that I want.I was wondering which steel would be more suitable for a hatchet, 1095 or 01?
 
I made mine from A2 so I would choose O1 being very similar, 1095 may be tough to get a good HT on given the quick quench that is needed and the thickness of the material.
 
Outside of tool steel something in the 1050-1060 class is good.1045 makes a pretty good hacker too.. Plenty of toughness. We use 1095 and 1084 in hawks but only for the welded in "bit"..You need to draw the higher carbon steels way back so they can take the pounding. They will work fine but the heat treat needs to be right.In a hawk or hatchet toughness is a bit more important than edge retention. Well in my opinion anyway,,,;)
 
I would think 5160 would do well. Tough, shock resistant, and will hold an edge well for a chopping tool.
 
since you seem to have only the 2 choices go with 0-1, properly treated you will find edges roll before chipping @ RC60, I used it in 5 hatchets this year
 
Are you forging it? or are you cutting out a blank and using stock removal? That makes a big difference. Buying tool steel large enough to cut a hatchet blank out of is pricey to say the least..I dont know if its a possibility in your case but you can just use mild steel for the body and forge weld in any "bit" you want..Ive welded tool steel in hawk bits many times. Ive got mild steel bodied tools out there that have seen more abuse than you can imagine..Real farm and butchering use too, not the occasional trail hike or camping trip..havent needed to fix one yet..
 
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I will be cutting the blank out and doing stock removal.The reason why I chose either 1095 or 01 is because that is what I have on hand.The peice 1095 I have is 4 inches wide by 12 inches long by 1/4 thick and I would only be able to get one blank out of it.The 01 I have is 6 inches wide by 18 inches long by 5/16 thick and I would be able to get two blanks out of it.The reason I am going to use either one of these is both peices were free.I saved them from the scrap pile at work along with a bunch of copper and brass rods and sheets.I work for a commercial roofing company and the boss was cleaning the shop the other day and was throwing a bunch of stuff out.The peices of 1095 and 01 were left overs from jigs that we made a few months ago.So seeing as I am just getting started in knife making I talked to the boss and asked him if I could have the stuff that he was throwing out to use in my knives.He said as long as I promised to make him a hunting knife I could have what ever I wanted.So of course I agreed.I will post a pic of my pattern after I get my camera back.
 
Great if you already have it go for it..Either one will make a fine hatchet, just get your temper right. You'll be pleased..If I had to choose between either Id go with the o1..Tough stuff.
 
I would use S7 as a firsts choice; it can handle the abuse that goes with the use of a hatchet.

Fred
 
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