Using file steel

Rick Marchand

Rick Marchand

Donkey on the Edge
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Forgive me, I've tried to search the forums but came up with nothing... maybe I'm not using the right terms.

I'm a beginner. In the past I've used file steel to make knives with pretty good success. I'm getting serious now and just wondering if sticking to old files is adviseable. These knives are going to be users all the way... nothing pretty... but practical. Here are a few pics.

Rick

unfinished woodlore type.
woodlore.jpg

A couple made from crosscut saw blades.
neckknife.jpg

myknife.jpg

I also make flint strikers from files.
strikersteel1.jpg
 
Those are nice! I especially like the second one, looks like it would be good for medieval costume.
 
" were they tough to work with?"

Not too bad, Yamato. I heat the steel to non magnetic and let it cool very slowly before shaping. I do everything mostly by hand and a little 1" x 30" belt grinder.
 
If you're wanting to get serious, then I would switch over to something like O-1 (my personal favorite) or 5160, 1018, etc. All are fairly easy to work with and heat treat from what I've read. I stock remove with 2x72 grinder and send out for HT.
 
Tecsec,
1018 is a mild steel and is NOT good for knives!:eek: Maybe you meant to say 1084....Which myself and Aldo have lots of.:D :thumbup: (and are looking to unload);)

Magnus, Tecsec makes a good point. Switching to a known steel is to the knifemakers advantage.:D
Mace
 
My .02 cents,
Aldo and Mace are good to work with. I purchased some of their steel at the last NECKA Hammerin.
 
Files make very good knives. The good ones are 1095, and W-2, and maybe W-1. I prefer Nicholson over the rest, only because I've had good reports from my customers, and I believe them to be W-2. They are easily heat treated, and are very durable with a selective temper. They hold an edge very well. I still make file blades on occasion, but use 01 for most these days.
 
Mace said:
Tecsec,
1018 is a mild steel and is NOT good for knives!:eek: Maybe you meant to say 1084....Which myself and Aldo have lots of.:D :thumbup: (and are looking to unload);)

Magnus, Tecsec makes a good point. Switching to a known steel is to the knifemakers advantage.:D
Mace
Click to expand...

Mace,

1018, 1019, whatever it takes! :rolleyes: Yes, duh, sorry. Friends shouldn't let friends post tired. Speaking of 1084...I may have to talk to you or Aldo about getting some of that....
 
Wish I was able to go...once again life got in the way. I'll be at the NY get together in September though.
 
How does O1 compare to.. say... 1095,W2 for carbon content. Alot of people I make knives for use the spines for flint striking. Which makes it difficult for tempering because it wont throw sparks if I take it too far... yet if I don't temper they become brittle. The widerness survival/primitive living group I make for really push these knives to the limits (digging, prying, battoning, -40 below climate, etc...). Maybe chosing a known high carbon steel would make tweeking the heat treat easier. I mostly use one brand of file (nicholson) but some of my millwright friends give me their used files and I don't always know the maker. I'm also making hawks from ballpeen hammer heads... but carbon content isn't as big of an issue there.
 
Mete and some of the others could answer this a little more in depth, but from my experience with O1 it's easy to work with, heat treat is easy, and holds an edge beyond belief.
 
Any steel, with a carbon content of say, .5% or higher, will get hard. Up to about 1%, when the hardness becomes a problem due to cracking in the quench. All you gotta do is follow proper heat treating procedures. The main problem with the simple steels (those with out alloys that allow a deeper, or more accurately 'slower' quench rate) may not get hard in oil, and may crack in brine (water). I DO like the simple steels, though. (1095, 1084, W1) because they are cheep (you can experiment without breaking the bank), and becasue they show a nice temper line if you are into that sort of thing. (who isn't?). 1095 makes the best filet knife of anything I've used. You can draw back the temper on the spine, by a number of easy methods (google), to get what you want in your blade.

01 has more alloys (vanadium, chrome, etc), which make it more predictable at quench. (you won't cuss as much). These alloys also make it more 'wear resistant', which means it hold an edge longer, too. However, this is getting more expensive, and irks the heck outta me.

I like L6 the best, because it has more nickel, more toughness, won't break, easier to work with. Impossible to get in stock removal sizes, unless you have big saw blades and do the testing for the proper heat treat. IF somebody made L6, added 3% vanadium, 2% chrome, it's all I'd use......
 
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