what type of steel should I buy? :)

B

bronyblacksmith

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Nov 6, 2012
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I am saving up some money to purchase some steel from Aldo and I was thinking of buying some 1084 or o -1 to forge with.
I was thinking of making general 4 inch outdoor knives and some chefs knives (out of different thicknesses) and maybe a 7 inch camp/chopper.
they would be quenched in a gas forge and tempered in an oven.
thanks.
 
1084 (especially from Aldo) is going to be much, much easier to HT in a forge than O1. It is great for both outdoor knives and kitchen knives.

- Chris
 
Well I'd really recommend quenching in some oil instead of your forge :)

I really recommend 1084 for its simplicity in heat treating versus O1.

Aldo will be just north of Birmingham,Alabam next weekend at Batson's Blade Symposium at Tannehill State park. You should drive over, me and some of the Bama crew plan on being there around lunchtime on Saturday. You can also shop around for other supplies and tools.
 
hey op , aldo has some great steel

The 01 isnt so great for forging in my experience (i had it crack) apparently it "air hardens".

I would get some 1084 and get it thick so you can cut out small peices and forge it down to the correct knife thickness.
 
thanks for all the advice so far and thanks will but i wont be able to make it over there.
and as for the quench I could not find any magic dragon blood so I figured liquid propane would have to work. :)
 
bronyblacksmith said:
thanks for all the advice so far and thanks will but i wont be able to make it over there.
and as for the quench I could not find any magic dragon blood so I figured liquid propane would have to work. :)
Click to expand...
a quench is when you dip the blade in water or oil.

I advise you not to dip a hot blade into a bath of liquid propane.
 
seriously guys liquid propane and dragon blood one of those doesn't even exist. I guess sarcasm doesn't travel over the internet huh.
yes I was kidding. what I meant to say in the original post was that it would be heated to critical in a gas forge in stead of a charcoal forge and quenched in oil.
 
Ok. I will admit, you had me worried.

Addressing the OP, I can attest, due to my limited success with it, that 1084 is essentially stupid-proof if you do your research when it comes to HT. I managed to get good results with very limited supplies. 1084 is good stuff.
 
You will find it hard to beat Aldo's 1084 for simplicity and results. The small amount of vanadium helps refine the grain. It has just the right amount of manganese to make the quench pretty Newbie proof in most any faster speed quench oil. Canola oil will work fine for those not ready to invest in a commercial fast quenchant.


1084 Basics
Forge it from the yellow range ( 2150F), and don't forge it after it drops down to light cherry red ( 1500F).
Normalize after a forging session is done for the day.
Do a sub-critical annealing before grinding and drilling the blade.
Run through a grain refinement cycling treatment before HT.
When doing HT, use a magnet to determine when the blade gets to about 1400F and turns non-magnetic ( cherry red ) and then heat a little hotter to about 1500F ( light cherry red) and quench.
Temper in the kitchen oven at 400F to 450F for two hours, cool off in running water, and temper again for a second two hours. Use 400F for a slicer, and 450F for a chopper/utility knife.
 
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