Procedure for finishing a Damascus Blade

H

Hotopal

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Sep 26, 2017
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Procedure for finishing a Damascus blade.

As an apprentice I made several knives from large hacksaw blades. However this is my first attempt to make a “classic” knife. I have purchased a Damascus blank (the steel is 1095 + 15N20) and shaped it to my design. But I have not shaped/sharpened the cutting edge. Can anyone advise the steps I should take please?

Q1. Do I sharpen the cutting edge before I acid treat the blade?

Q2. Do I polish the whole blade prior to heat treating it? (given the fact that it will be harder to polish any scratches out after it is hardened). Obviously I would then have to polish it again prior to completion.

Q3. Do I heat treat the blade prior to, or after, acid treating it?

Q4. What would you recommend for acid treating?

Q5. What would you recommend for heat treating?

Please advise a step by step procedure if possible.

Kind regards,

Neville
 
I was an Apprentice Boilermaker 50 years ago. I am 67y old.
So I am looking to be taught by members of this site!
Kind regards,
Neville
 
Hotopal said:
Procedure for finishing a Damascus blade.

As an apprentice I made several knives from large hacksaw blades. However this is my first attempt to make a “classic” knife. I have purchased a Damascus blank (the steel is 1095 + 15N20) and shaped it to my design. But I have not shaped/sharpened the cutting edge. Can anyone advise the steps I should take please?

Q1. Do I sharpen the cutting edge before I acid treat the blade?
Click to expand...
It depends. If it's going to be a user then no. If it's just for show then yes. First sharpening will remove the pattern on the very edge anyway. I sharpen after final etch.

Hotopal said:
Q2. Do I polish the whole blade prior to heat treating it? (given the fact that it will be harder to polish any scratches out after it is hardened). Obviously I would then have to polish it again prior to completion.
Click to expand...
Up to a certain degree yes. Personally I like to polish up to 320 grit at least. But this is personal preference. That way I can just redo the polish in 320 post heat treat/cleanup and continue from there. I find that doing Damascus to a higher grit pre heat treat just isn't useful.
Hotopal said:
Q3. Do I heat treat the blade prior to, or after, acid treating it?
Click to expand...
Prior
Hotopal said:
Q4. What would you recommend for acid treating?
Click to expand...
I (and most people I know of) use either: Ferric Chloride (fairly benevolent to work with)
Sulphiric Acid (Nasty stuff) or Hydrochloric Acid (also nasty)

Or, strong hot instant coffee.

Either will work. Personally I enjoy Ferric the most, Hydro for stainless damascus. And if I want to give carbon steel a bit of extra contrast then the coffee is a nice touch.

Hotopal said:
Q5. What would you recommend for heat treating?
Click to expand...
Can't answer that one because it depends on the steel, intended use, and design of the knife. But I know that in general 1095/15N20 damascus is supposedly heat treated the same way as you would treat 1095

Hotopal said:
Please advise a step by step procedure if possible.

Kind regards,

Neville
Click to expand...
Yeah I'm not going to to the step by step thing. Plenty of tutorials and info out there already.
 
What LX said!!

Here's a few pics:

KVL48g4.jpg


In the ferric chloride, then out:

feu8uHj.jpg


Neutralize:

Db1MPGo.jpg


Sand with 2,000 grit paper:

8vPEvB7.jpg
 
Generally I'll do two 30 minute dips in the ferric chloride. Those are old pics and I neutralize with Windex now, original formula that has the ammonia in it, since it is the ammonia that does the work.
 
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