Using Hacksaw Blades

[Jason Sivertsen]

Hi Guys
I have some used 400x32x1.6mm hacksaw blades. The steel is M2 High speed steel. Data sheet for M2 attached.
Will this steel work for blades. I was thinking of making some thin kitchen knives.
Thanks

 

[Robert Mayo]

Jason many knives have been made from those power hacksaw blades. They are a bear to grind fully hardended but you can turn them into nice useable knives.

Bob

 

[wnease]

this is getting cliche, but

You should send that junk for me for proper disposal!


I love M2, it seems to work a lot better for knives than its charpy numbers suggest.

Test with a file to see if they are through hardened and not edge hardened. If they are only edge hardened you will have to design your blades accordingly.

Hard to grind yes but one of my favorite beater blades is made from a big power hacksaw blade I made 15 years ago.

 

[Djinn]

I 've made a bunch of knives from old Starrett blades over the years. There are a few things to keep in mind M2 rusts and quick, M2 is what is called a "red hard" steel which means even if you heat it red hot it's still hard (most of the carbides are vanadium and don't soften easily), as Robert said above they are a bear to grind and to sharpen, if you're planning to drill any holes in it change your plans. Make sure they are not marked "hard edge", "bi-metal", or similar. If they are they only have a strip of M2 on the edge. I've also used Heller nucut, Blue-Molly, Nichols, and a few others with good results, but the Starretts are my favorite.

These were made from the old Starrett blades I mentioned above. You can still see the logo on the kiridashi.

The examples here and all the others I make from M2 saw blades are a very low angle katashinogi (meaning ground from 1 side, or one ridge) grind. Finding, marking and maintaining the center line on a hard piece of steel that is only .065 is a real challenge.