Straightening 1084 questions from a newbie

B

Bill Ashley

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Feb 3, 2016
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I just started grinding out a few blades on my 4x36 porter cable sander (I know pretty high tech :). I am really enjoying it, and am looking forward to upgrading equipment soon. My first two blades are 0-1 and I bought it from jantz supply. I have access to a potters kiln with accurate temp control for a heat treat. I just took delivery on 48" of 1084 from New Jersey steel baron. Upon inspecting the 1084 I found there was an ever so slight bend in the longer length of steel. I cut the steel into useable lengths and after laying them on a flat surface found them to still have some bend... I chose stock removal over forging primarily because I do not know shit about knifemaking (yet!). I do not have a forge to heat the steel and take the bend out. My question is would heating the 1084 to non-magnetic inside the kiln and then letting it cool slowly in the kiln possibly take the bend out or relieve the stress (anneal)??? Any suggestions on any of this would be GREATLY appreciated. Also if this has already been covered in another thread I am sorry - I did search but didn't find anything . Thanks again in advance!
 
Karl B. Andersen said:
Bend it straight.
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Yep. No heat necessary. If it's not too bad, I'd go ahead and cut your knife out and get it profiled to desired shape and then tweak it and bend it as needed to make it straight and flat. It might be easier to do if you shape your knife first.
 
Working metal is going to be in your job description if you are going to be a knifemaker. In terms of difficulty, getting a bend out is at the bottom of the list. You can put one end in a vise and use a 2X4 with a slot cut in the end to apply leverage. You can hammer it on a swayback anvil with a mallet or baseball bat. You can use the same vise with a 3 point jig to straighten. You can put it on the garage floor or driveway with a scrap piece of metal under each end and drive the car over it. You can get a cheap shop press from Harbor Freight (which works great by the way). The point is there are many ways to straighten a bar of steel. If you want to make knives you will need to be a problem solver. You got this.
 
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This is where working with someone, just hanging out in a shop with a metal worker is priceless.
I've gotten a huge amount of factual information from online sources, but the amount of practical info that you "download" by working side by side with someone who understands metal is amazing.
I don't see a clue to where you are in the country, so I can't recommend specifics, but find your local blacksmiths group, and go to their conference or hammer in- take some classes and you'll gain so much understanding in such a short time it'll make your head spin.
 
When you receive the steel it should be fairly soft .You can the straighten it by bending. To remove all stresses do a 'sub-critical anneal' - a couple of hours at 1200F if needed.
If the steel is hardened as in after HT , never straighten at under 400 F !
 
Bill,

How thick is the steel you're trying to flatten? The thinner stuff like 1/8" can be done pretty easily with your hands or most tools around the shop. The 1/4" or thicker stuff is tough in the shorter lengths.
 
Bill Ashley said:
Thank you for all the helpful responses, I'm gonna try a shop press and go from there. Thanks again!
Click to expand...

A common misconception is that one can straighten by squeezing flat. Generally, this is not the case - straightening is usually achieved by counter-bending. I'm not sure what you planned on doing with the press, but I thought I'd clarify this point.

So generally going to a shop press is overkill, unless you are otherwise unable achieve the required forces. If you have access to general fabrication shop tools, a forming roll (e.g. slip roll) is often more effective than a press.

If you have access to a press than can output hundreds of tons of pressure, or if you are trying to remedy abrupt kinks in the steel, then a press with flat dies will help with the task.
 
If you have hands, a bench vise, a crescent wrench and a piece of wood of some sort, you can straighten just about any piece of unhardened metal of most any type that I can think of (that would be even remotely suitable for our purposes as knife makers. Not talking an I-beam here). If you can't....knifemaking is probably not going to be your forte.
 
Interesting read
I'm not a knife maker
But I'd take a crack at straightening the steel
Figuring out the method is the thrill of the chase
And then agin there is alway utube
 
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