Came across a problem with the wood. While sanding to near final shape i opened a worm hole up that goes deep into the scale. Anyone have any suggestions on how to fill this and dye it so it roughly matches the wood? The scale is already jb welded to the knife so no removing it and starting again with any feasable ease.
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Old 1095 usa nicholson files
- Thread starter herektir
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+1, this has worked well for me.
KamValleyForge
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on this subject, I was making a knife for my dad for father's day from an old usa nicholson file we had lying around.
Got the teeth all ground off on the belt grinder, then cut it about halfway and forged it to shape. put the bevels on and everything while being careful not to blue it. touchmarked and then eyechrometer'd the quench heat and soak and quenched in lukewarm (about 30-35c) canola oil. after that I let it temper for two hours at 425 in the toaster oven. during tempering (lol) I looked up proper methods for HTing w1/1095. got all worried I'd messed it up and would have to start over. as i never heard a ping in the quench I decided to just go with it. turned out fine, it's a beautiful knife now.
Got the teeth all ground off on the belt grinder, then cut it about halfway and forged it to shape. put the bevels on and everything while being careful not to blue it. touchmarked and then eyechrometer'd the quench heat and soak and quenched in lukewarm (about 30-35c) canola oil. after that I let it temper for two hours at 425 in the toaster oven. during tempering (lol) I looked up proper methods for HTing w1/1095. got all worried I'd messed it up and would have to start over. as i never heard a ping in the quench I decided to just go with it. turned out fine, it's a beautiful knife now.
Canola is not a good quench oil for shallow hardening steels. Most simple steels are very sensitive to temperature also, it’s not good practice to heat treat in a forge.
Hoss
KamValleyForge
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Yeah i know but thats all I have at the moment. I'm pretty new to knifemaking (two and a half years), I dont have the budget for a ht oven, and I'm not in an area with anywhere nearby to get any of it so shipping things in is ridiculously expensive.
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith
ilmarinen - MODERATOR
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You can HT in a forge if that is all you have. It isn't the same as a HT oven, but it works fine for many folks.
Getting a pail of Parks #50 or the equivalent will be a wise decision.
If money is really tight, try 7-8% brine. Warm it to 80-100°F/25-35°C. Make the brine with 3# and 5 gallons water (1Kg salt and 12L water). Brine works well with W1/W2 and 1095. Normalizing before the quench is a good idea.
Temper IMMEDIATELY after the brine quench. The steel will be very hard and very brittle. Don't test it or grind on it ... take it to the kitchen oven which is already pre-heated at 400-425°F/205-220°C and temper twice for 1 hour each temper. Cool it off in running cold water and put it right back in the oven.
One thing that affects HT results a lot when using a forge is overheating. Almost every newer smith thinks he knows how hot the steel in the forge is. rarely are they correct. Use a magnet to determine when it transforms to austenite (curie point) and quench immediately. When the magnet stops sticking to the blade ... QUENCH!
I also suggest a thin wash of clay on the blade before quenching. Make a slurry of potters clay, slip, satanite, or other clay that is about as thin as a melted milkshake or heavy cream. Wash the blade well and coat with the slurry. Let the excess drip off and let the clay on the blade dry. The clay wash helps in the quench and reduces the dreaded "PING" that happens with brine and water quenches. If you feel the PING or feel the TINK, the blade cracked or broke in the quench.
Getting a pail of Parks #50 or the equivalent will be a wise decision.
If money is really tight, try 7-8% brine. Warm it to 80-100°F/25-35°C. Make the brine with 3# and 5 gallons water (1Kg salt and 12L water). Brine works well with W1/W2 and 1095. Normalizing before the quench is a good idea.
Temper IMMEDIATELY after the brine quench. The steel will be very hard and very brittle. Don't test it or grind on it ... take it to the kitchen oven which is already pre-heated at 400-425°F/205-220°C and temper twice for 1 hour each temper. Cool it off in running cold water and put it right back in the oven.
One thing that affects HT results a lot when using a forge is overheating. Almost every newer smith thinks he knows how hot the steel in the forge is. rarely are they correct. Use a magnet to determine when it transforms to austenite (curie point) and quench immediately. When the magnet stops sticking to the blade ... QUENCH!
I also suggest a thin wash of clay on the blade before quenching. Make a slurry of potters clay, slip, satanite, or other clay that is about as thin as a melted milkshake or heavy cream. Wash the blade well and coat with the slurry. Let the excess drip off and let the clay on the blade dry. The clay wash helps in the quench and reduces the dreaded "PING" that happens with brine and water quenches. If you feel the PING or feel the TINK, the blade cracked or broke in the quench.
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