Trying my hand (hammer) at Damascus

S.Grosvenor

S.Grosvenor

Fulltime KnifeMaker
Joined
Jan 24, 2010
Messages
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This is my 5th billet and the first time I tried to make a pattern,

IMAG0021-2.jpg


I don't know if there is a name already but I dubbed it Dot Matrix. I couldn't hardly wait to give it a quick etch to see the result.

IMAG0249.jpg

a Starting stack of Aldo's 1084 and 15n20.
 
Looks pretty dog-gone good, but you left out a few pics of the process.

Mashing damascus by hand can be a real pain. The welding is relatively easy, but the drawing by hand will about kill most folks.

Got any more pics? How did you "pattern" the steel?

Inquiring minds want to know.

Robert
 
I'll have to take more pictures next time. I only weld with a hammer, I draw with a 25lb little giant, I cant imagine doing the entire process by hand, during the first billet I did I drank 6 bottles of water, after 7hrs I called it quits. It felt like I was @ the gym.

The pattern was a 1/4" drill bit in a V pattern on a 1/2" spacing, I connected the dots with a 41/2" cutting disk. Patern was put in at 216 layers then drawn out to 3/8 thickness, ground and folded so pattern was on the outside then drawn out to 1/4". final layer count was 432.
 
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Very nice! :) I wish I had a little giant.. I'm stuck doing it by hand for now lol. Ya it's definitely a workout! I spread mine out over several days, a couple hours at a time. Definitely hard work. I'm torn between calling aldo and starting a new billet, or putting the money towards a press .. i want so bad to make more, but i know the press will save me in the long run. Anyway, congrats!
 
Ah-ha...... I kinda figured that if you drew it out by hand that you probably wouldn't be able to type a post for a while. :)

I have done it several times, as have many others, however, its just not worth the hassle. Too many places to buy good damascus.

Maybe someday when I win the lottery, I will buy myself a press or power hammer.

Thanks for letting us have a look................... Robert
 
R.Rock said:
something like this would speed it up a little, if it didn't kill ya first

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omKHOULlDhI&feature=related
Click to expand...

Steve, I think I saw Steven Seagal put some bad guy's head in one of those in the eighties!!! :D

I wonder where the heat source for the steel is....That train car deal looks way too slow to get it there fast enough to forge it, unless that metal will stay red hot longer than I think. Very cool video.
 
jonnymac44 said:
Steve, I think I saw Steven Seagal put some bad guy's head in one of those in the eighties!!! :D

I wonder where the heat source for the steel is....That train car deal looks way too slow to get it there fast enough to forge it, unless that metal will stay red hot longer than I think. Very cool video.
Click to expand...


That's probably not to far from the truth (Steven Segal stuff), Funny Stuff!
 
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