Opinion please before heat treat

ClosetotheEdge

ClosetotheEdge

Joined
Mar 11, 2013
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32
I plan on heat treating this blade tomorrow but before I do so, I would like some opinions. This was made from a Farriers rasp which has a different cut pattern on each side. I did almost a full flat grind but because of the depth difference of the cuts, my grind looks a little awkward (to say the least)from one side to the other ...Does anyone have a suggestion to remedy this? or should I just go with it considering it a "rustic" file knife?

Any amount of criticism is appreciated

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On this left side I need to bring the plunge line up a bit.
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I like it. It has a pretty cool look to it. The only concern I have is all of those weak points on the blade. Some of those original file grooves are pretty deep.
 
I just realized, not only can you cut things, but file things also! Take the edge thickness down more before heat treat though. It's really hard to tell what's what, but with the inconsistency of the grinds, the metal will warp to the thinner side if you get it really thin. There's lots of threads about edge thickness before heat treat, but alot of people recommend about 1/16 inch thick.
 
BTW, if you are sending it for heat treat, then I suppose you probably have no way of annealing. In that case, don't waste your time trying to drill pin holes. This is a problem inherent with using files for knives. Unless you have some very expensive carbide bits and a drill press with some good speed adjustment.
 
I've made at least a hundred farrier rasp knives....you have a good start there, but you need to drill holes prior to heat treat for the pins in the handle. The cutting edge is still too thick in its present configuration. I'd also work on grinding the edge a little more consistent in terms of thickness...thick here, thin there, so to speak. Did you anneal prior to working the blade? Always anneal the blade before cutting out and working up...

As far as heat treat, I get the best results with Brownells Tough Quench or something close to that, headed to 140 degrees.
 
To answer some of the questions and comments- I do plan to drill my pin holes before I heat treat it. I annealed the file first and will be attempting the heat treat myself. The blade thickness at the moment is about the width of a penny and does vary a little in thickness from the ricasso to the tip (this was my second attempt at using a 1x30 belt grinder). Will this thickness be too thick to finish after heat treating?

godogs- do you have any trouble with the depth of the file grooves in your rasp knives?
 
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