-
The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is available! Price is $250 ea (shipped within CONUS).
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/
what would be the best
- Thread starter v-6
- Start date
what would be the best steel to turn into a knife, that you can oil guench and heat treat in a toaster oven?
How thick do you think is knife should be. (bowie)
vern
What kind of set up do you have for hardening the blade? I assume you are talking about O1, 52100, 5160 and the like. Thickness is determined by what you want to use it for. The same with the steel.
Cougar Allen
Buccaneer (ret.)
- Joined
- Oct 9, 1998
- Messages
- 77,047
Lets see if we can find the right forum
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2005
- Messages
- 475
With the method your talking about, you only temper the knife in the oven, you have to have some sort of forge to heat treat a blade. The steel has got to get red hot, and toaster ovens only go to like, 500.
You can build yourself a little forge for blade lengths shorter than.. say, 4-5", for something like $45 new, cheaper if you have a soft firebrick supplier locally, or could find a torch on the cheap. (Bernzomatic JTH7 is recomended. S'what I used to use.)
Check the sticky at the top of this forum, and introduce yourself here.
You can build yourself a little forge for blade lengths shorter than.. say, 4-5", for something like $45 new, cheaper if you have a soft firebrick supplier locally, or could find a torch on the cheap. (Bernzomatic JTH7 is recomended. S'what I used to use.)
Check the sticky at the top of this forum, and introduce yourself here.
- Joined
- Oct 3, 2002
- Messages
- 12,297
5160, 1060, L6, 1075, 1084, 1095, 01, W1, W2, 3/16" to 1/4" thick.
A lot to chose from and I left out a few
A lot to chose from and I left out a few
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith
ilmarinen - MODERATOR
Moderator
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2004
- Messages
- 38,513
Vern,
Welcome to the blades forums.
A search on this topic will reveal a lot of discussion about what steels are "BEST" for which purposes.
The general answer is that most all steels with over 60 points of carbon will make a good knife.The primary things you need to determine are:
What equipment/procedures will I use to make this knife ?
Can I get this steel in a continued supply and quality?
Do I know the properties and heat treatment of this steel ?
With those questions in mind pick a steel that you can get a continued supply of from a known source. If you are using John Deere hay forks, and you will always have a good supply, that is fine. Just contact John Deere and get the specs on the steel. (Most long time makers will tell you that the steel source should be well known, and ordering steel from a supplier is far better, as the quality and content are assured.)Then learn all you can about the forging and heat treatment of that steel type. Use the right oil for the steel type, and temper at the proper temperature and times. Master this steel and make lots of knives from it before jumping from new steel to new steel. With a good steel to use, a continued supply, and mastery of the steel, you may never change the steel you make your knives from.
Short answer would have been , "There is no 'BEST' steel." (But I rarely give short answers)
Stacy
Welcome to the blades forums.
A search on this topic will reveal a lot of discussion about what steels are "BEST" for which purposes.
The general answer is that most all steels with over 60 points of carbon will make a good knife.The primary things you need to determine are:
What equipment/procedures will I use to make this knife ?
Can I get this steel in a continued supply and quality?
Do I know the properties and heat treatment of this steel ?
With those questions in mind pick a steel that you can get a continued supply of from a known source. If you are using John Deere hay forks, and you will always have a good supply, that is fine. Just contact John Deere and get the specs on the steel. (Most long time makers will tell you that the steel source should be well known, and ordering steel from a supplier is far better, as the quality and content are assured.)Then learn all you can about the forging and heat treatment of that steel type. Use the right oil for the steel type, and temper at the proper temperature and times. Master this steel and make lots of knives from it before jumping from new steel to new steel. With a good steel to use, a continued supply, and mastery of the steel, you may never change the steel you make your knives from.
Short answer would have been , "There is no 'BEST' steel." (But I rarely give short answers)
Stacy