Spark Testing.

[JTknives]

As many of you know i have a ton of tool steel that is marked but im not shure if i 100% trust the lables. but i dont have the money to test it all. so it looks like some spark testing is in order. will i beable to tell the diffrince between L6, A2, D2, S7, M4, and M2. and is there any pictures of the spark patterns of these steels. thanks

 

[fitzo]

Have you asked the place you bought it whether they know for sure what it is or just took the word of where they bought it in the first place? A lot of places that deal in scrap metal have a point-and-shoot device nowadays that allows them to analyze on the spot. Some of these "guns" are "smart" and figure out the mix and give it a name.

As for spark testing, a newbie might kinda-sorta tell some things broadly apart but the skill one would need for what you want would take us many years to develop if ever.

 

[bikermikearchery]

this one has some pictures.http://www.tpub.com/steelworker1/6.htm