What kind of heat treat oven is good?

[Jason Arnold]

I do not suggest that heat treating even simple carbon steels is like falling off a log. I down play none of it. It all must be done properly to the particulars of each steel and all require experience, testing and analysis.

I agree with you 100% rlinger. Well said.

 

[rlinger]

Jason, my high regards for your experience in thses matters causes me to feel good about that adda-boy. I'll take it.

RL

 

[Michael J. Spangler]

so are you implying that you use foil to "atmospherically control" your forge when doing stainless blades? now with this experimentation and analysis, should i start with what the steel company says and work my way off of that? or do you go completely with something different?

indian george HammerHead let me know when you get it so I can use it. Boy that will be a role reversal.

You know you're always welcome. if i get one you might be using some more of that D2 you like. we all know the stockpile of steels you have sitting around, just waiting for you to get sick of damascus (that'll be a cold day in heII)

 

[rlinger]

Hammer,

No(!), not stainless in the forge for the HT. I said before - temperature control. Equally emphatically, yes - I begin with the vendors heat treating specifications. We must remember though that not many steels, relatively speaking, are specifically designed for knife making. Therefore, heat treat data sheets can be something you need to use some judgement on - for or purposes - but the fall back position for beginning our testing should be to reference these sheets implicitly but keeping in mind our cross sections will be small. As an example but not limited to this, our soak time may or may not have to vary some.

If we are to heat treat we must be willing to have great patience and the ability to forego some knife making while we learn our steel of interest. The difference between something that looks like a knife and a real knife is the heat treat.

RL

 

[Michael J. Spangler]

thats a good starting place for me then. and i didn't really understand your wording on wether or not you HT stainless in your oven.

 

[Mike Hull]

Originally posted by HammerFall
thats a good starting place for me then. and i didn't really understand your wording on wether or not you HT stainless in your oven.

I would suggest you take Kit's advice in the first few posts of this thread.
He's been doing this for about 20 years, and has heat treated literally hundreds of blades in his Paragon oven.