Tamahagane steel?

[ryan9977]

to those familiar with tamahagane i had a question.....if someone gave you a hunk of steel could u tell if it was tamahagane by forging it out and the way it felt...if it was tested could you tell by the composition.....i heard a conversation between two parties...one a bladesmith....saying he was making some knives out of it and he could tell it was tamahagane by forging it...is he a mind reader or is it another case of bladesmith folklore......thanks for any insight .....ryan

 

[Dan Seaver]

Well tamahagane is a wide term now, many Japanese smiths make their own in their shops. If you consider tamahagane only the steel made by the NBTHK in Yokota, Nihon then you could not tell if it was true tamahagane by how it forged. If you consider tamahagane steel made in a tatara based smelter with a carbon range of .5-1.5 then yes you can tell that it is not factory produced steel because it welds easy and forges like soft butter.

My experience is limited so you might want to ask Jesus Hernandez, he does more work than I do.

 

[ryan9977]

thanks for the info dan.....ryan