Tomahawk steel

S

Samuraiboo

Joined
Feb 9, 2006
Messages
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Hi everyone
I have been making tomahawks for awhile now, but I have been using old railroad spikes. I was wondering if anyone had some advice on a different type of steel to use. I want to advance my skills a bit and need a little help.
I am working on one for a friend made out of 4140 with 1095 for the blade. Anyone use anything different? I will say thanks and I appreciate any advice I can get in advance!
 
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5160 for toughness and good edge retention (for impact-prone tools)

RMJ uses 4140, D.Winkler uses 5160 and S7/H13 for more abusive application.

I've seen some using L6, 1084/SK5 (railroad steel) and some even uses damascus.
 
Axles are often made from medium carbon steels like 1040 - usable but not great. Jay's suggestion of 5160 is better. Stop by your local autoshop and ask if they can save a few old leaf springs for you. They're 5160.



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You probably know this but for others, you need to test the steel before using it because sometimes it isn't what you hope it is. For example modern ground engage ag steel is often low to medium carbon boron steel. It is real tough but getting it above the mid HRc 40s won't happen. I've read several instances where leaf spring steel wouldn't harden for the smith using it. It wasn't 1085 or 5160 steel. Just to let others know if you are using some unknown steel and things aren't going as planned, it might not be your fault.
 
Where would be a good place to get steel tested? I found a bar of steel in some that I bought from a friend when he was moving. I thought it was just plain old mild steel. But it hardened up enough to shatter with a light hammer blow from a dull red quench. I was actually using it to make a decorative candle holder and I was straightening the piece and literally tapped it and it shattered like glass!
So if anyone could direct me to someone who could test it I would be very thankful!
 
A testing lab will charge upwards of $150. So the least costly method would be to develop a set of tests that you could use to determine if the steel is suitable. 5160 will behave a certain way when you normalize and quench it from a certain color. It will also temper to a certain hardness/toughness. If you think a steel might be 5160, treat a small piece as if it is and see if it behaves like it is. If it doesn't behave like 5160 but it still behaves like a steel you would use for a tomahawk then treat small pieces until you get a 'recipe' for optimizing the steel for tomahawks. Then forge your tomahawk and see how it works. Go onto the blacksmithing forums and see if some of the oldtimers have a resource or set of instructions for your hands on analysis. The only time it might be cost effective to send out a piece to be tested would be if you had several hundred pounds of steel that you knew was from the same batch. Even then a lot of smiths would suggest that you work up your own guidelines for getting the most out of it.
Good Luck:)
 
I used 5160 for the bit of a very quickly done small integral hawk simply because it's what I had and I've heat treated it before. It held up extremely well against 10-12 limbs of a frozen pine that fell over the road in G.W. National Forest. The gf and I were going backpacking so I didn't have anything larger (I know I should have had an axe in the car) but with the little hawk I removed enough branches in a way that we could drive under ;)
 
Go for S7 steel!

S7 is literally one of the toughest steels out there, perhaps even a bit tougher than INFI itself. It's perfect for a tomahawk because it just refuses to chip so it will take high impacts on hard surfaces like a champ. However, always remember that no matter how good the steel is, it is completely useless without the proper heat treat.
 
Knifein said:
Go for S7 steel!

S7 is literally one of the toughest steels out there, perhaps even a bit tougher than INFI itself. It's perfect for a tomahawk because it just refuses to chip so it will take high impacts on hard surfaces like a champ. However, always remember that no matter how good the steel is, it is completely useless without the proper heat treat.
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It is also hard to work and fairly expensive. The forge temperature is @ 2000 F and not below 1700 F. If you salvage it you can get 5160 for free (except time). Good, clean, certified 5160 can be had for @ $4/lb. S7 is going to cost $10 - $15/lb.
 
I know that some Jackhammer bits are S7 but what else would be made from it? anything larger than the bits? I guess they would work though. Railroad spikes aren't large at all!
 
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