M42 steel saw blades turned into kitchen knives

[Billyboyr6]

I have lucked into a seemingly endless amount of used M42 bandsaw blades and thought I would make some knives out of this stuff. I figured if it can cut inconel, titanium, and other hard metals while on the
Saw it was made for, then it should be ok for a knife.

So the first one I made was a kitchen carving knife. Turned out really well I think.

I just finished a 15" kitchen carving knife from this stuff, and It will take a razor sharp edge. And cleans up nicely. I hand rubbed this one out to 800 grit and looks great, and added some cocobolo scales.

The saw blades that I have are about 2 1/4" wide including the high/low teeth and 1/16" thick.

 

[Cold Kill]

That looks sweet. I would say it is more of a saber than a knife, though. I have a feeling that is REALLY good steel. You did a damn good job.

 

[Moonberrys]

That looks like a sword not a kitchen knife.

 

[Billyboyr6]

Sword? Come on..... It's not that big. Lol. It's only a 9 1/2" blade. I've seen and used bigger knifes then that.

 

[jbmonkey]

Now that is badarse. Looks more like a fillet knife, in the shape not so much by dimensions I mean. Regardless call me impressed. Awesome job, and thanks for sharing with us.

I don't know squat about m42 steel.....feel free to educate, if you don't mind, Sir? How's it compare to l6 steel?

 

[Cold Kill]

Fine, it isn't a sword, it's a short sword.

 

[Quy4n8]

That looks really nice. I would think a classic chef's knife with a thin edge would be fantastic.

Q

 

[me2]

Are you sure it's solid M42 and not welded to a softer backing material?

 

[elkins45]

You are going to use that to carve the Thanksgiving turkey, aren't you?

 

[Cold Kill]

You are going to use that to carve the Thanksgiving turkey, aren't you?

The chainsaw is his other choice.

 

[Vicarious Reality]

That ''carving'' knife handle looks reeeally thin
What's M42?

 

[me2]

That ''carving'' knife handle looks reeeally thin
What's M42?

Molybdenum based high speed steel. Similar to M2 and M4, but more. It can be heat treated to a hardness of 68 HRc. Impact toughness is very low. Wear resistance, hardness, and heat resistance are very high. Hand sanding something like M42 is the knife makers equivalent of the guy in greek mythology continually pushing the boulder up hill, only to have it roll down again, ie eternal punishment.

 

[Billyboyr6]

Are you sure it's solid M42 and not welded to a softer backing material?

To be honest, I'm not sure. I didn't think about that being possible, but it verry well could be. If that were the case, I wonder what the rest of the blade is made of. It just might be worth a phone call to the manufacture.

 

[RandomAyes]

You might try taking a section of bandsaw and immersing it in vinegar. If it is "bi-metal" construction then the two different alloys might etch to noticeably different colors / at different rates.

 

[Billyboyr6]

You might try taking a section of bandsaw and immersing it in vinegar. If it is "bi-metal" construction then the two different alloys might etch to noticeably different colors / at different rates.

I'll give that a try. Seems simple enough.

 

[RandomAyes]

If I had to guess... it's probably bi-metal. Making the entire saw out of M42 HSS doesn't sound very cost effective.

 

[me2]

It's just a guess, but I'd think it was bi-metal just because you'd need really large diameter wheels to run solid M42 in a band saw. I have 2 solid HSS blades and hand sanding them, even from the finish under the paint, gives me the willies. I can't remember the steel grade, but there is a high speed steel specifically made for welding (laser or electron beam) to softer backing for bi-metal blades. It has high ductility in the annealed condition, for such a highly alloyed steel. My first job interview was in a plant that processed it by drawing it through 4 reducing dies without an annealing stage in between. The common name was edge wire, and it came in a rectangular wire form wound on a spool.

 

[Billyboyr6]

Might change your mind knowing that the blades are driven by 2 20" wheels on the saw and it takes two guys to change the blades. They are about 24' in overall length laid out flat as the arm on the saw is about 10' from wheel center to center. And the saw will accept raw material as wide as 20" thick. I will call the manufacture Monday and find out for sure what it is that I have. The box that the new blades come in just says m42 hi lo blade.

It is fairly tuff to sand to get to where the blade is now. That's the only reason I didn't go for a full mirror polish.

 

[A.P.F.]

Well, either way, you did a fine job on that knife.:thumbup:

 

[me2]

That's a helluva band saw. It could be solid then. The best way to tell might be price. Do you have any idea how much the blades cost? Will the blades bend at all before breaking?