Help me figure this out (forging a chainsaw blade)

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krause95

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Jan 27, 2015
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So I am trying to take a chainsaw blade and fuse it together into a somewhat solid piece to be able to forge. Today I tried it twice and no luck. I cleaned the blades as best as I could and then bundled it up and wrapped it as tight as I could get it with wire. Next I put borax on it and used an Oxy acetylene torch with a rose bud tip to heat it up as hot as I could (appears to start to melt). It somewhat worked but after reheating in my forge to bright bright cherry red and pounding on it it fell apart. I was using the borax in between heating and forging as well.

/Users/brandonkrause/Downloads/IMG_2173.JPG

The two crispy things in my picture are the two attempts.
What am I missing in my process?
Thanks!!
 
In order to forge weld, you need a forge with a 'reducing' atmosphere, ie, flames burning outside the forge (in a propane forge that is) which tells you there isn't enough oxygen in the forge to completely burn the fuel. Not sure what you were trying to accomplish with the oxyacetylene torch... And bright cherry isn't probably hot enough, when I weld I look for the borax to bubble on the piece, or, more recently I've been playing with welding without flux without and going for a bright yellow.
 
Right. I was using the oxyacetylene because the forge I have was not getting the metal hot enough to weld. I've read before that you can use the oxyacetylene to weld billets for pattern welded steel. I figured I could use the same method for the chainsaw blade.
 
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Even if the parts of the chain start to melt, they are also forming scale that keeps them from fusing to each other. Forge welding requires heat, a minimum of oxygen and force to overcome the surface tension and scale of the semi-molten steel.

The coolest way I've seen in using a stainless steel can with a layer of chain and powdered steel, a layer of good edge steel, then another layer of chain and powder. Heat, beat, cut away the stainless that is unlikely to fuse to the carbon steel.
 
So last night I was looking around some more and I found people who tack welded the chain together into a billet and then used a charcoal forge to heat it up and it seemed to work for them. What if I tacked the chains into a billet first then heated up to a dull red and boraxed the shit out of it before I attempt to heat it up to welding temp?

Would I have the same problems im having with this chain if I was using steel stock to make pattern welded steel?
 
When they say use a torch to weld for pattern welded, they are clamping multiple bars together and welding the edges in preparation for forge welding. A torch will not get all of your metal hot enough at the same time in order to pattern weld it. Also, you dont use borax until you metal is at tempurature or it will just melt off before your steel is hot enough. there are a number of WIPs on here that will give you instructions on what to do.
 
krause95 said:
and boraxed the shit out of it before I attempt to heat it up to welding temp?
Click to expand...

Too much flux can also be a problem with welding, many of us folks forge weld successfully without any flux/borax.

It seems as if you need to practice your forge welding with known, simple steels and flat stock that will minimize air pockets and inclusions and get you familiar with all the aspects needed to weld up a billet (atmosphere, cleanliness of material, how to hammer it together, etc) before trying something more difficult such as forge welding a chain. Although I have been wrong before....
 
My first real knife was out of chain saw chain, but I had a forge and had forge welded before. You need a forge that will get hotter. Lots of little pieces to get hot. Lots of little pieces to cool really fast. If all the pieces aren't that same temp, they won't weld.
Cable is prob easier then chain, but with out a forge that reaches welding temps, there is going to be a lot of frustration.
 
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