Van Barnett & Dellana Heat Treating SMALL BLADES...

ddd

ddd

Joined
Apr 6, 2003
Messages
2,498
Heat treating of small blades the way Van and Dellana do it, is a short and very
critical process done in total darkness.
These pictures were taken by my son Nir, a professional designer, when
we were at Van Barnett and Dellana's place in West Virginia doing the
photography for their book.

Both knifemakers held their blade to a torch in total darkness, heating it until it
reaches the correct color indicating a temperature of about 1500° Fahrenheit
(815° Celsius). The blade is then quenched in a warm oil mixture that is of Van’s
original mix, and is wrapped and re-heated to a specific temperature to achieve
a workable hardness.

Handholding the camera in total darkness Nir shot about 40 individual pictures
during the minute or so of each process. Lucky for us all we got one amazing
picture in each case. They are now displayed on full pages in the book...

"The Art Knives of Van Barnett & Dellana" will be introduced at the 2011 BLADE Show.

Van heat treating the blade of the liner lock folding dagger
that he made for the book:
HT-Van.jpg


Dellana heat treating the blade of the lockback folder she made for the book:
HT-Dellana%2527s-Blade.jpg


All the best,
David Darom (ddd)
 
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Danbo said:
You would think they'd get an oven.
Click to expand...

Maybe, but what a boring picture that would be...

Seriously, Van has two kilns (these are special ovens used for working
in constant and accurate temperatures) that he usually uses for heat
treating blades that are longer than 3” or 4” (76-102 mm).
He finds that small blades are much easier to keep at a consistent
heat with just a torch or in the forge so the color is very easy to see
in a darkened room. The large blades are wrapped in stainless foil and
sealed from the air before heat treatment begins in his large Kress kiln.

All the best,
David Darom (ddd)
 
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hello new desktop image:)!
 
To answer a question sent to me, all I know about their process
of Heat Treating small blades is in the book. If anyone is interested
in more detailed information, I am sure that both Van and Dellana
will share their knowledge gladly at the coming BLADE Show...

Here are the "tools" used for the HT process that I watched in progress...

All the best,
David Darom (ddd)

Van%2527s-HT.jpg
 
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