Practice Steel

childzplay

childzplay

Joined
Jun 13, 2006
Messages
202
In anticipation of getting the Grizzly 2x72, I'm chomping at the bit wanting to grind me some steel.

What do you guys recommend for practice?

I've seen 1080 talked about and I know 440C very popular. Both seem relatively cheap.

I would be sending them out for heat treatment. I'm a super newb so I need to know some very basic things, like what do I do when I get some bars. I saw someone mention something about soaking 1080 in vinegar for 2 days.

I want to get right to grinding so I can practice, but I don't want to do dumb things that will slow the progress. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks as always!
Todd
 
1080, if you want steel to practice on. I've also heard some recommend paint stirring sticks, if you want really cheap.
 
One thing you may want to consider if you are really just practicing is to use mild steel. It can't be significantly hardened so you won't be able to really make a knife with it, but as far as learning how to use your grinder, it is a very inexpensive (or free if you ask around) alternative. Plus I find it handy to have some in the shop for making various jigs, etc...

I think if you are going to send out for heat treat, then you may want to go with an air hardening steel like 440C. I recently made a few knives with 440C, and am really happy with the way they turned out. Despite all the newer high tech alloys out there these days, there are many makers that scarcely use anything else.

1080 is great to work with but you'll need to find someone that will do the oil quench for you. That being said, 108* steel is comparatively simple to heat treat. Here is a like to a good article on the process by Kevin Cashen: http://www.knivesby.com/knifemaking-Kevin-Cashen-treating-1084.html
There may also be some forum members or makers in your area that would be willing to help you out with this.

Don't forget to check out the stickies at the top of this forum if you haven't done so already.
 
Thanks a lot, excellent tips. I never thought about the paint sticks. It sounds to me it would be very beneficial to have some of that mild steel. Ideally if one of my practice pieces turn out great by accident, I would love to harden it and make it into a knife. That being said, having some mild steel around to make jigs out of sounds very smart.

I'm thinking I should get some 1080, some 440C, and figure out this mild steel. All of these sound very beneficial to have around the shop. I'm wanting some 154CM too. The Bob Loveless book "How To Make Knives" is a daily read.
 
Sorry, another question, what thickness & width? I'm sure I'll be starting with hunters and tactical knives to begin. Ultimately Bowies are the dream.
 
1080 is relatively cheap and if you make a nice knife while practicing you can HT it and finish it.

Mild steel is great to have around the shop for a variety of reasons, won't HT worth much but could be a nice letter opener.

Paint stirring sticks are very cheap, won't destroy belts and you won't burn your fingers.

If you really want to learn to grind here's my advice. Go to Lowes or HD and get the big 1/4" paint stirrers. When you can grind clean, matching plunges and grind lines on each side then grind about 50 more practice sticks just like it. Use the mental attitude of "this is a knife" and not the attitude of "it's just a stick."

3/16 is a good size for hunters, width is dependent on your designs.
 
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