Steel for Axes?

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MrFlea

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Jun 29, 2020
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Hey im looking into forging my first axe soon. I want to do 1080 but i cant find proper steel for that because i want to drift a hole instead of forge weld. I know the railroad ties or whatever they're called are 1080 but damn people charge a lot. So where can i find some thick square stock of high carbon steel?
 
Scot Forge claims to stock 1080 square bar in thick sections.
 
Just go down to the nearest railroad and get a piece.
Don’t forget to bring a hacksaw and/or an acetylene torch :D.
 
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BJE said:
Just go down to the nearest railroad and get a piece.
Don’t forget to bring a hacksaw and/or an acetylene torch :D.
Click to expand...

In all seriousness, you can do the job fairly quick and easy by just scoring or cutting a groove where you want the split to happen and then whack it with a sledge hammer and it'll pop clean.

 
MrFlea said:
Hey im looking into forging my first axe soon. I want to do 1080 but i cant find proper steel for that because i want to drift a hole instead of forge weld. I know the railroad ties or whatever they're called are 1080 but damn people charge a lot. So where can i find some thick square stock of high carbon steel?
Click to expand...

Slitting and drifting a solid of higher-C steel will beat you up pretty good,boss.
There's a reason why most axes were(and are)softer alloy everywhere but the cutting edge.
Is there any reason why you couldn't weld in the edge?
Normal gauge stock for slit&drift axe is 3/4" plate,"mild",meaning just plain structural steel, A36 or equivalent.Something that small(you'd have a very tough time slitting anything over 2" tall),2" wide strap by 4-5" long is something that they'll generally just give you for free at a steel yard(or direct you to their dumpster).

Steel weighs 0.28 lbs per 1 cubic inch,so you can do your calculation according.

Normally,most makers would start using stock equal in dimensions to the poll of future axe.

If you Do start with a RR rail,you Will "... know the meaning of suffering",as Lord Buddha liked to say,not only in drifting,but also in having to significantly alter the shape of the piece.
(unless you've access to a PH and are willing to invest time and effort in making of some custom tools,which will also require higher-C stock).

Please be advised that the land on both sides of any RR line is their private property,and it's tawdally against the law to tresspass on it,and they Really frown on people picking up any and all metal adjacent,wether or not may look like "junk" to you-it Isn't.
 
For a first try I'd advise doing a "wrap" with either mild flat bar with a high carbon edge as Jake suggested or a vehicle leaf spring that will not need an edge welded in as it has enough carbon content for an axe.

Have you forged anything before?
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
In all seriousness, you can do the job fairly quick and easy by just scoring or cutting a groove where you want the split to happen and then whack it with a sledge hammer and it'll pop clean.
Click to expand...
Good to know.
I use a similar technique all the time to get pressed on wheel bearing races off the spindle. Take a die grinder and score a line about half way through the race, then take a chisel bit and air hammer right on the score line, breaks it loose every time and race slides right off.
 
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