Question about a heat treat process

P

PrinceArmory

Joined
Mar 23, 2008
Messages
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I was recommended to ask my question here instead so here goes again:

Ok so I've read a ton of stuff pertaining to heat treat and temper and with so many varying opinions and throw in the technical details for each different steel type, I've basically learned only enough to confuse myself so far.

So for my first knife, I requested the input of a friend who says he knows what hes doing and I want see if the method used was good enough.

Steel type is an unknown cheapo damascus from India
The process he suggested was to use an oxy/acetylene torch to heat up the blade to red hot then he dunked the blade into oil (un-warmed) several times in a row and then allowed to air cool the rest of the way to ambient temp.

Then to temper it, he applied the torch to the spine until the dark rainbow traveled to the edge, then water quenched till cool, moved the torch down a little bit, and repeated the process along the spine until reaching the tip.

Some of this just seemed off to me but it may be because I have my head filled with so much random technical stuff that his way just seems too easy, maybe also forgetting that once upon a time blacksmiths didn't have all the scientific data available and simply did what worked.

Can anyone confirm the validity of this method and that it works well enough and why, or why not that it does/doesn't work?
 
Well, depending upon what steels your friend is used to working with, his methods very well may produce reasonable results for him. Can you produce a serviceable knife in this fashion? Sure you can! I will say that the multiple quenching only has a benefit on some steels (and then only when used in lieu or proper soak times), and I'm surprised that there was no normalizing heats beforehand (especially with a material of unknown pedigree).

What it comes down to is this; You can make a knife that will likely do what you need it to do with no problems by keeping it simple. Most of us folks who go on and on about the details of heat treatment are searching for that "1% extra" in terms of our heat treatment.

To be honest though, the piece of the equation I'd worry about is the damascus of unknown origin from India. There's better than even odds that no matter what you do to it, it won't harden. A lot of the steel coming out of India/Pakistan at bargain prices is literally scraps of whatever, welded together with no thought of its intended purpose.

Especially for your first knife that is a fantastic piece of work! You should be very proud of it. Keep with it, keep re-reading the stickies at the top about working the various steel types, and let some of that soak in for a while. If you're confused about a certain bit of technical detail after reading what's already been posted about it, ask for some clarification on the bit that's a sticking point for you. You already seem to have a string desire to do well in your knifemaking, and a good set of skills to back it up judging from the picture in your other thread. Keep at it and let us know if we can help.

-d
 
I tried to harden an Indiapaki damascus Bowie for a friend. Nothing would harden it in the slightest. Oil, water, no hardening. He paid $80.00 for that blade. An expensive lesson.
 
Yes, many of those blades are made from 55 gallon drums and manhole covers.....or so I have heard.
 
A guy just gave me a kukri made in India.... it looks great , chrome plated and all but when I put a file to the edge it was as soft as butter and I'm thinkin it's probably mild steel! soooo it will go on the wall to look at for sure...sure wish it was not just a knife shaped object!
 
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