Oil Temp Gauge

[colu41]

How do you guys measure your oil temps when quenching? I've been using an old candy thermometer to get it up to temp but, its way to slow to be able to do multiple knives. So from quenching, the thermometer is too slow to get an accurate temp so I can cool it and quench another...Any tips on that would be great.

I have a laser thermometer, would that work? lol Paid $60 for it for one project I did a few years back.

 

[coldsteelburns]

The laser should work.. But I'm sure guys with more experienced about those and other ways to check temp will chime in.. You could always stick the top half of thermocouple in the oil, I think. I always used to preheat and check temp using a candy thermo as well and then just quenched up to 3 blades tops when using canola. Now I have 5 gal of Parks and just test temp with my finger, which isn't the "most" accurate way

The more oil you have, the more quenching it can take without getting too hot(which I'm sure is obvious). And Parks 50 (if you happen to get some) has a pretty wide temp range in with it will still work effectively... like from room temp ~60 F to maybe 150 F (don't hold me to those exact numbers, but it's a fairly large range like that) ... get 5 gallons and you should be able to quench a number of blades at once without affecting performance... But, back to the question..... What steel are you using, what oil are you using, how much oil is in your quench tank, and about how many blades do you plan on heat treating at the same time?

~Paul

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My YT Channel Lsubslimed

 

[A.McPherson]

Get a cheap electric oven thermometer. They have those ones with a thermocouple and a digital readout at Grocery Outlet for 15 bucks or something like that. Fast, accurate, easy to read.... what's not to like?

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Pretty much any cheap TC and readout will work. Oil temp checking is about the only shop task that the little IR testers are actually good at. The HF $15 laser/IR testers are fine for checking the oil tank temp.

As said, volume is your friend. 3-5 gallons is the minimum if you plan on doing multiple blades.

Most oil works best between 120F and 130F. If it rises more than 10° above 130F it starts to affect the quench quality. 20° is about the max increase you should allow. Check the specs and recommendations for the specific oil you use.
Parks #50 is a room temperature oil, and works best for quenching shallow hardening ( fast quench) steels between 70F and 100F.

A trick for cooling the oil when it rises too much is to keep a few one liter water bottles in the freezer and use one to cool the oil when needed. Wipe off any condensation on the outside, grab the neck with tongs ( or tie a string on it), and run it up and down in the oil for a few seconds, check the temp, etc. When done forging for the day, pour out the water and toss the bottle in the trash/recycle bin.

 

[ron_m80]

IR guns don't always work so well with reflective fluids or pipes and equipment with water droplets on them.

 

[colu41]

I use 1084 in a gallon of Canola. So thats why I would need to cool with (as Stacy said) a bottle of frozen water, but would like to be able to check the oil temp quickly instead of waiting for the candy therm. to snail down to temp.