- Joined
- Apr 24, 2013
- Messages
- 408
I'm working on a knife made from an old Nicholson handy file I had in the shop, best guess from reading is that it's 1095 steel, since it's from the mid 1970's. It's a simple wharncliffe/sheepsfoot design. Measures about 5 7/8" X 7/8" X .15" thick & is fairly hefty for a blade this size. The cutting edge is about 2 1/2" long & it's fun working on something like this on a rainy weekend just on a whim.
I did the grinding with plenty of water so the blade didn't overheat as it was shaped. Set the oven at about 410 with an oven thermometer (the control knob isn't really accurate) & baked it twice yesterday for an hour each time. Ended up with a darkish straw color once it was cooked, so I think the thermometer isn't very accurate. According to a color chart I found, it went to about 465f during this process. Am I right in thinking this is now somewhere near 59-60 as a finished hardness? Since I don't know where this thing started with the initial file's hardness, it's a "best guess" scenario.
It has some 1/4"mesquite slabs glued up for the scales with G-flex & should work well enough for a general use knife in the shop or truck. Will post a couple of pictures once it's finished. Thanks for looking & appreciate an answer about hardness question.
I did the grinding with plenty of water so the blade didn't overheat as it was shaped. Set the oven at about 410 with an oven thermometer (the control knob isn't really accurate) & baked it twice yesterday for an hour each time. Ended up with a darkish straw color once it was cooked, so I think the thermometer isn't very accurate. According to a color chart I found, it went to about 465f during this process. Am I right in thinking this is now somewhere near 59-60 as a finished hardness? Since I don't know where this thing started with the initial file's hardness, it's a "best guess" scenario.
It has some 1/4"mesquite slabs glued up for the scales with G-flex & should work well enough for a general use knife in the shop or truck. Will post a couple of pictures once it's finished. Thanks for looking & appreciate an answer about hardness question.
