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Normalizing
- Thread starter Bruz
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- Feb 6, 2001
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??? I normally heat treat in the evening but, I can't tell north when the fur and fangs kick in.
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- Oct 8, 2003
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from what i've heard, its an old wives tale because smiths of the old days thought that the magnetic pull would actually be enough to twist the blade. havent had any trouble with it myself, after a good annealing and normalizing my blades have all come out decently straight (that is the ones i annealed or normalized)
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- Dec 2, 1999
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- 9,910
Be sure the chicken foot is no higher than 2 feet above the blade during the cooling.
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- May 31, 2000
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It's REALLY best to do it when a lighnening storm is rolling in from the northwest.
- Joined
- Mar 18, 1999
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- 2,112
What did they do before a compass was invented, only make kukris and scimitars??? I suppose once magnetic North was discovered that only then did blades start to straighten out...I'm more worried about the gravitational pull of the moon. I noticed that when Mars was so close this past summer that all of my blades were crooked. I never had this problem when I strictly did stock removal. At least thats what my chicken bones revealed.
...and yet another mute point in the ongoing forging vs. stock removal argument. In stock removal, magnetic North and the gravitational pull of the moon have no effect on the straightness of the blade.
Craig
...and yet another mute point in the ongoing forging vs. stock removal argument. In stock removal, magnetic North and the gravitational pull of the moon have no effect on the straightness of the blade.
Craig
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- Jul 8, 2001
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- 3,623
OK, I hate to share all my secrets but you guys need all the help you can get, I see that. Here's the deal.
First get a new farmers almanac, check to see when your sign is in aline with your spouses sign, or if your not married your closest friend. Now make sure that you pick a day that the alinement falls on a tuesday, wednesday or thursday, preferably between 1 and 3 p.m. now, with a rabbits foot in front right pocket, four leaf clover in front left pocket, chicken or turkey bone in both back pockets ( if you don't have pockets go to wal-mart first and buy some) and a horse shoe around your neck, with the opening up, so the luck doesn't fall out. Bring the blade up to critical heat, quickly quench with the point of the blade faceing due north, as soon as the smoke and bubbling stops, hold blade over head straight up toward the sky with cutting edge still faceing due north, until cool. Then temper. If you still have problems change places with rabbit foot and four leaf clover. OK Any questions, please send to Indian George.
Bill
First get a new farmers almanac, check to see when your sign is in aline with your spouses sign, or if your not married your closest friend. Now make sure that you pick a day that the alinement falls on a tuesday, wednesday or thursday, preferably between 1 and 3 p.m. now, with a rabbits foot in front right pocket, four leaf clover in front left pocket, chicken or turkey bone in both back pockets ( if you don't have pockets go to wal-mart first and buy some) and a horse shoe around your neck, with the opening up, so the luck doesn't fall out. Bring the blade up to critical heat, quickly quench with the point of the blade faceing due north, as soon as the smoke and bubbling stops, hold blade over head straight up toward the sky with cutting edge still faceing due north, until cool. Then temper. If you still have problems change places with rabbit foot and four leaf clover. OK Any questions, please send to Indian George.
Bill
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- Feb 6, 2001
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Nah, that parts just for the fun of it.
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- Mar 9, 2003
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Thanks guys, knew I would get the truth and then some! The bacon grease sounds like a great idea, I've only tried that while in the mountains to keep the wolves away...got that advise on a huntin forum.
Just so you don't think I'm gettin my book learnin from a book of wive's tale's here's the link, about the 13th paragraph.
http://pub53.ezboard.com/fprimalfiresfrm12.showMessage?topicID=25.topic
The bacon grease sounds like a great idea, I've only tried that while in the mountains to keep the wolves away...got that advise on a huntin forum. Just so you don't think I'm gettin my book learnin from a book of wive's tale's here's the link, about the 13th paragraph.
http://pub53.ezboard.com/fprimalfiresfrm12.showMessage?topicID=25.topic
Bruz,
Regardless of the joking or not, it is true but only while in the northern hemisphere. If in the southern, and only after kissing the Royal Baby if traveling there for the first time, it should point to the south pole (point of blade).
It is true.
RL
Regardless of the joking or not, it is true but only while in the northern hemisphere. If in the southern, and only after kissing the Royal Baby if traveling there for the first time, it should point to the south pole (point of blade).
It is true.
RL
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2002
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- 992
Guys, shhhhh, quit telling everyone this isn't true! I'm developing an electromagnetic quench tank to market to all the neo-tribal knifemakers who actually believe this...I'm going to make millions! Next, I'm going to develop a quench tank that fiddles with the strong nuclear force...forget the force of gravity or the electromagnetic force...we need to go to the strongest one! Now, where was that recipe I had for creating a quark-gluon plasma!? ...I guess I'll have to make a trip up to Brookhaven or Fermi-lab....
-Darren
Next, I'm going to develop a quench tank that fiddles with the strong nuclear force...forget the force of gravity or the electromagnetic force...we need to go to the strongest one! Now, where was that recipe I had for creating a quark-gluon plasma!? ...I guess I'll have to make a trip up to Brookhaven or Fermi-lab.... -Darren
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- Mar 18, 1999
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- 2,112
Who said it wasn't true??? 
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- Sep 9, 2003
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I love this thread . You folks are having entirely too much fun with this silly topic . It is good to see that common sense and a sense of humor still does exist in bladesmithing. Darren I feel some groovy good vibes about your quench tank ideas
. You folks are having entirely too much fun with this silly topic . It is good to see that common sense and a sense of humor still does exist in bladesmithing. Darren I feel some groovy good vibes about your quench tank ideas- Joined
- Sep 9, 2003
- Messages
- 2,361
Well, moderation in all things... including having too much fun. It has been brought to my attention that the ripples of this thread are spreading out across the internet and rocking the boat in other forums. Kind of like television signals from "Jerry Springer" screaming across the cosmos at the speed of light to end up as our first impression and greeting and to a different culture. And even though I had the least to say in the thread, my name has been retrieved from the fray. So I thought I would give my $.02 here, at the source, and let it trickle down to the other places.
Just as we see our fun as harmless I also see the concepts that spawned it as harmless. With some of the wild speculative voodoo that has really misled would-be smiths toward a lifetime of lackluster results, this issue is really harmless, and I think that is why we can afford to have so much fun with it.
We don't want to tar and feather the person who sits at the casino with their "lucky charm" in hand. We figure, if it helps them feel better, more power to them. There are silly things going on in bladesmithing that is actually detrimental to the art and the final product, but this is one of those things that can't hurt anything and if it makes a person feel better about the quench, why not.
Some times giving a quick try is easier than going to the library, so I have angled the oil trough in a north/south direction before just to see if I could "feel the force" (but I think they were all tang north). I have also quenched a LOT of blades vertically in a tube so those knives must be real confused little guys.
Heck I have been known to say an "Our Father..." during welds on real complex pieces, just to be safe. Does it mean anything to the final piece? No, but it makes me feel better. Is there any science to it? Absolutely not! But it makes me feel better.
Those are my honest thoughts on the topic.
And even though I had the least to say in the thread, my name has been retrieved from the fray. So I thought I would give my $.02 here, at the source, and let it trickle down to the other places.Just as we see our fun as harmless I also see the concepts that spawned it as harmless. With some of the wild speculative voodoo that has really misled would-be smiths toward a lifetime of lackluster results, this issue is really harmless, and I think that is why we can afford to have so much fun with it.
We don't want to tar and feather the person who sits at the casino with their "lucky charm" in hand. We figure, if it helps them feel better, more power to them. There are silly things going on in bladesmithing that is actually detrimental to the art and the final product, but this is one of those things that can't hurt anything and if it makes a person feel better about the quench, why not.
Some times giving a quick try is easier than going to the library, so I have angled the oil trough in a north/south direction before just to see if I could "feel the force" (but I think they were all tang north). I have also quenched a LOT of blades vertically in a tube so those knives must be real confused little guys.
Heck I have been known to say an "Our Father..." during welds on real complex pieces, just to be safe. Does it mean anything to the final piece? No, but it makes me feel better. Is there any science to it? Absolutely not! But it makes me feel better.
Those are my honest thoughts on the topic.
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- Sep 14, 2002
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- 992
Very well put Kevin...and very diplomatic too. This whole North thing really gets some people fired up to the point where they immediately start calling names and making wild innuendo's about the person who disagrees with them and their birth origin! I just don't get it at all.
Kevin's correct though, it just doesn't make any difference what direction you point that silly point toward.
I hereby make a vow to myself in public. I will not let myself get sucked into any more discussions regarding anything to do with science or heat treating or anything else controversial in any online forum, I will only discuss these things face to face from now on. Are there any support groups out there in case I slip back into my old logical ways?
-Darren
This whole North thing really gets some people fired up to the point where they immediately start calling names and making wild innuendo's about the person who disagrees with them and their birth origin! I just don't get it at all.Kevin's correct though, it just doesn't make any difference what direction you point that silly point toward.
I hereby make a vow to myself in public. I will not let myself get sucked into any more discussions regarding anything to do with science or heat treating or anything else controversial in any online forum, I will only discuss these things face to face from now on. Are there any support groups out there in case I slip back into my old logical ways?
-Darren
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2002
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- 992