TIL I was heating my steel way too hot for years

Used to crank my forge until the metal was almost white-hot before hammering. Thought that made it softer and easier to work. Then a guy at a hammer-in in Nashville showed me how I was burning out carbon and making my blades brittle. He had me try working at a dull orange heat instead and the difference in finish quality was night and day. Anybody else have a basic technique they stuck with forever before someone called them out?

2 comments

2 Comments

simoncarr4d ago

Did your buddy see a big difference in how long your blades lasted too? I had a friend who swore by heating his steel until it was damn near melting and he could not be talked out of it for years. Another smith at a demo just handed him a piece he'd ruined and had him try to snap it, and it broke clean in half like a cracker. He was gutted but he switched to a lower heat right after that day. It is wild how one little change in your setup can flip your whole process around.

thea_knight4d agoMost Upvoted

Brought my own blade to a guy who knew his stuff years back. He took one look at my edge and said I was cooking it too hot. I didn't believe him until he let me try his grinder and watched me work. First piece I did his way, the steel just felt different. Held an edge way longer, didn't chip out on me. Felt like an idiot for all the good steel I'd ruined before that.