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Old timer told me to heat treat before grinding... I didn't listen
Guy named Bill at a local shop in Tulsa told me to always finish my heat treat before I start grinding a blade. I figured I'd save time by rough-grinding first and ended up with three warped knives that were basically scrap metal. Anybody else ever ignore solid advice and pay for it with ruined steel?
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adam1861mo ago
My buddy Dale tried the same thing with a hunting knife, thought he could skip the triple temper cycle and just rough it out. He ended up with a blade that looked perfect but cracked right down the middle during the final quench, sounded like a gunshot in his garage. He spent three weekends on that thing, all gone in a split second because he wanted to save two hours of waiting on the oven. The worst part was he had a piece of 1084 with a killer pattern from some old saw blade, total waste of good steel. Now he jokes that thermometers and timers are his best friends, but I can tell it still stings when he talks about it. You ever have a project that made you swear off shortcuts for good?
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I gotta say, I read "ended up with three warped knives that were basically scrap metal" and I'm a little skeptical. I mean, sure, heat treat first is the safe way, but is it really that black and white? I've roughed out blades before the heat treat plenty of times and never had a total failure. Maybe it depends on the steel or how aggressive you are on the grinder. I have a feeling a lot of folks online make this sound like the end of the world when really it's more about knowing your own setup and materials. Not saying Bill was wrong, but I'd probably try it again with a simpler steel like 1075 before swearing off the method entirely.
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zarat371mo ago
David, you bring up a good point, isn't it funny how much the steel and grinder speed changes the game. @adam186 that story about the saw blade really hits home for me, reminds me of the time I tried to rush a puukko with a water stone and ended up with a blade shaped like a banana. Everyone's got that one shortcut that backfired, but sometimes you just gotta try it with the right steel before you call it quits.
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