Questions on the quenching medium.

C

Charles Dean

Joined
Feb 3, 2001
Messages
92
I noticed that everyone says to heat your oil to about 120 to 140 degrees. What is the best way to do this? And what type of of oil do you use? A lot of people say Automatic Transmission Fluid. Any particular brand or anything? My last is what type of container do you use? I'm sorta at a lost to find a metal container that I can edge quench blades in. Some people use pipes and qhench blades edge first but I just wanna edge qhench. Thanks for all the help. Oh yeah I forgot. This isnt on quenching but I still need to know. How do you guys keep your propane tanks from freezing? Something about puting them in water? I'm not totally clear on that.
 
Do a search on "quenching" and you should find what you're looking for. There are numerous threads that should answer all of your questions.

Happy hunting (or is that quenching ?). . . ;)
 
Charles,

This is what I use and maybe it will help, I do all my forging and heat treating out side(hope to get a metal building some day soon) so I needed something that was mobil so I use a big turkey roasting pan and the lid comes in real handy for smothering the fire you get when quenching, I got a paint roller screen that they use in 5 Gal paint buckets and adjusted it so it would fit in the pan about 3" off the bottom, that lets the oil circulate real well and I adjust my depth by just adding or taking out a little oil. I use ford ATF and just before I start my quench cycle I set the turkey roaster on a hot plate and bring it to the temp I want. Then just quench while its on the hot plate. I usually forge out 5 or 6 blades before I take the time to heat treat and then I can do them all at once and then temper at the same time.I can do that since I use mostly 1 steel.
As for the propane question, don't know I use coal.

Hope this helps

Bill B.????
 
I use olive oil heated on an electric hotplate. And I have an inexpensive cooking thermometer to check the temp. How big are the blades? I've used aluminum baking pans formed to size for some projects.:)
 
Get a bigger propane bottle. That will work. The small "gas grill" size just doesn't have enought volumn. By the way, all propane bottles will require the new type valve starting next year I believe. If you buy one of the larger bottles BE SURE it is of the new type.

Heating quenching medium? Some folks heat up a large piece of steel in there forge then place it in the oil until the "right" temperature is obtained.

C Wilkins
 
You can just use a old cake pan or cut a metal 5 gallon bucket in half,the hardware store sells metal trays for doing the joint compound while putting up sheet rock that will work,or you can get a paint can from them,or about a 2 foot section of 3 inch pipe that is treaded on one end and then put a cap on it and use that.If you are only doing small blades at the present a juice can will be gig enough..I have used olive oil or peanut oil with really good results as a quenchant...
A friend of mine used to use olive oil and he would buy it in a gallon metal container and he wouls set it on edge and cut a hole in the can and use it that way to quench..Heating a metal bar and putting in the oil works just fine if you don't have a hot plate or stove outside to heat with,You don't want to quench in the house...
Bruce
 
Having used several makeshift quenching containers that i was not pleased with found a easy one to make described in Ed Fowlers Knife Talk..piece of 5"dia pipe 18" long with a slot cutlenghwise with square plates welded on ends,with rack so you can adjust depth of edge quench,i hinged on a section of pipe for a lid ..Hot plate for heating sounds dangerous.. Use a candy thermother to check
temp...
 
I use a couple different sizes of quench pans, they came from an old salad bar and are made of stainless steel. I heat them on a yard sale electric hot plate. I use Texaco A hydraulic oil because of the flame retardant additive in it. It never catches on fire. A candy thermomoter or digital pyrometer to monitor oil heat.

If you use 2 propane bottles and hook them together with a T fitting, they wont freeze up. Use the big bottles that hold 20 gallons each. George Rebello is burning 50 gallons a week! See what he uses.
 
Hey, Bruce B. Who is George Rebello??? OH!!! Thats me. I run my forge off a 100 lb. propane tank ( from Home Depot )and I have been going thru a tank a week ($50). When it get down to 1/3 of a tank, I have a 30 gallon plastic bucket filled with water that I put it in to stop the freezing.
My quenching media is used calm shack oil. It smells like french fries cooking when I am quenching. I also use a turkey pan, if you are doing over 3 blades it gets to hot.
 
Hey George, its just a matter of time before your neighbors ask you,can i have a large order of fries with that knife...please?:D :p
 
I got lazy. I have a 100 gallon vertical tank that the guy comes and fills every so often. I keep a 20 lb tank as a spare for the grill or the forge.
The t fitting 2 tanks works well. I used that for awhile.
Enjoy, Ken
 
I guess I got lazy also.I have 150 gallon tank that they come out and fill every so often.I also have the old 100 pound tank that I used to have to get filled as a backup,and that is what I use on my torches.
Bruce
 
This may not be the best but I recently used a Wok to heat my oil. I just poured it in and then turned it on a low temp while I was heating my blade up. It seems to have worked okay. The only problem I have about this is to make sure the oil heats evenly and when you put the knife in that it has an even depth.
 
I use veggie oil in a large stock pot with a kitchen type cooking thermometer. I heat the oil by a method that I believe I got the inspiration for here on BF from Darrel Ralph a couple of years ago. I took an old electric skillet and cut off everything that wasn't the element and you have an immersion heater that you hang from the side of the pot. It takes about ten minutes to get to 140, and you have to stir the oil constantly to keep it evenly heated. A depth limiter of somekind would be nice, right now I just hold the knife blade in to the depth I want to quench.

A longer pan that could sit on a two burner hot plate seems like it would be a pretty good set up.

I use the small tanks of propane for extended periods on my small Ron Reil inspired forge and have never had any problems with freezing up, yet!

How do you go about getting refills on the 100 tanks, I've been eying them at Home Depot?

Guy Thomas
 
Originally posted by Silent

How do you go about getting refills on the 100 tanks, I've been eying them at Home Depot?

Guy Thomas
Click to expand...

I go to the local U-HAUL place or most any RV park/supplier can fill them.

C Wilkins
 
I don't know about Florida, but here in Washington almost all gas stations and a lot of hardware stores have propane. I just take them up and get them filled like any RV'er or BBQ'er does... ask and pay :D

As far as the quenchant, I bought vet-grade mineral oil at the local farm store and it works great.

I think quite a few people get too wrapped up in their heat source for the quenching medium when a cheap hot-plate or a pre-heated piece of steel dropped in the tank will do the job and do it fast. A candy thermometer does help.

Good luck,

Nick
 
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