To soak or not to soak 1095

E

Eonwe

Joined
Mar 21, 2017
Messages
4
Hi there,

I want to HT several 1095 blades with 5mm thickness (0.2''), and I have read from several people that in order to make use of the steel's full potential you have to let it soak for 10 minutes at the desired heat. Now i have heared the complete opposite from other guys, saying that the 10 minutes of soaking time are per 5inches of thickness or so.

Can anyone help me here? I have no clue what and what not to believe :confused:
 
Yes you need to soak it. That's why it's not recommended for HT by beginners in a forge. It wouldn't matter how long you soaked a 5" section it won't harden that deep because you can't quench it fast enough, so I don't know what those folks are thinking.
 
Okay....
Is there anything different to it when working with clay covered blades to achieve a hamon?
 
No, same soak time, but temperature is more critical. Use the lower side of the austenitizing range for yaki-ire.
 
scott.livesey said:
temperature is more critical here than time. for best results, keep the steel between 1475* and 1525*F. 10 to 15 minutes should work for 1/4" material.
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If you go above 1475f, you will start losing hardness, unless you add sub zero or cryo to the quench. With 1095, time and temp are both critical, as is proper quench speed.
 
I've got some 1075 on the way from Jantz and will be trying for a hamon. Do you need to soak 1075 and can you quench in Canola oil?
 
madpawn said:
I've got some 1075 on the way from Jantz and will be trying for a hamon. Do you need to soak 1075 and can you quench in Canola oil?
Click to expand...

The faster the quench, the better the hamon activity, up to the point you break the blade in quench.

1075 will harden in canola, but with the low manganese, a faster quench will harden it more.
 
I can't get my hands on parks 50 or equivalent without dishing out a lot of cash. I don't need 5 gallons, I just want 2. Neither do I want to attempt quenching in brine. I plan to forge the knife and it will be fairly big and long so I'll be scared to risk cracking it. How about if I don't heat the Canola oil at all? Will that be a quick enough quench and be safer than brine?
 
The canola will be slower if unheated. Parks is an exception, as it is formulated to have its max speed at room temp. All other quench oils I know of are best around 120-130F.

You will have several things to deal with.
1) A very fast quench rate steel ( less than 1 second to pass the pearlite nose).
2) A moderately fast quenchant. ( Perhaps not fast enough for more than a thin blade in 1095)
3) A thick blade with a lot of mass. (This slows things down more.)
4) The spine and upper bevel are coated with clay, which will help retain heat. (This will bleed back down into the edge and lower bevel.)

Your big blade edge will probably harden OK (ish) in a couple gallons of canola. It may not achieve max rockwell hardness, but it will be plenty hard for most use. However, the hamon may be less than desired, as the speed past the pearlite nose will be really close. Guessing where the hamon will land will also be hard. Fin detail like ashi may be non-existent. My suggestion is to try for a high notare hamon. I would only clay the top 1/4" of the spine with the thicker clay.
 
Thanks for the great information as always Stacy! A "billowing waves" hamon is what I like to achieve but it looks like I may have made poor choices in my steel and quenchant. What would be the ideal forging steel for a beginner to get the best hamon? I realize that hamons are probably not for beginners but I'd like to try. I will bite the bullet and buy some #50 from Maxim.
 
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1075 will make a very nice hamon, look at some of J. Doyle, Kuraki and Matt Gregory knives.
Aldo’s W2 is another popular steel for active hamon.
 
I completely agree with the Josh.

I would still recommend anyone wanting to work these hypereutectic steels buying a five gallon pail of Parks #50. You won't believe the difference until you quench in it. It lasts almost forever (in our usage) and is really worth the purchase.
 
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