Ron Hicks

Of Late I been asking lots a ? and thought I would show what Ive been up to.

Im attemping to make a copy of the Musso Bowie

I finally got this thing forged the tang is still heavy duty but may finish grinding to size.

Im still leaving to much width at the choil and when profiling took off about 1/4 - looks like I need to take some more off.

The rest of the blade I just cleaned up the edges.

Where the clip starts -I think I need it a little deeper wher it starts

I havent bought the drawings yet but had this book with a pic. I think is the Musso.

I could used you advise

and have more ? to ask latter on

Ron

This pic is what I started with 11 in X 3 in wide 2 ton truck spring

This is after the beating

Im shooting for 13 3/4 long blade X 2 3/4

the white mark across the blade is soap stone

Crumbled ? Bearing ? You may have brass or bronze from a 'prelubricated' bearing which is made from powder metal impregnated with lubricant. That certainly would crumble ! Free machining type brass with lead may also cause problems . Normally brass will anneal [that starts out at about 450F] .The easiest way is to heat to red and cool [quenching not necessary ].

I bet you are right about the bearing race brass - I think the bearing was between 2 plates and doesnt look like there was a way to lube it.

What type of brass forges best?

Ron

Sorry for asking so may ? but I trying to do some things I never done before.

I need to make a big S shaped gaurd of brass

I have a couple of large brass I guess you would call the roller bearing races.

Between where each bearing theres a good size chunk of brass but not enough to make the gaurd from.

Can I forge weld brass to forge the gaurd from?

Ive mess around forging some brass before I would do 6 or 7 hammer blows then heat to red and cool in water is the the right way to do this?

Ron

James Black can you make me a knife like Bowies?

Come on guys this guys my Hero!

Maybe I have bit off more than I can chew.

This knife will be roughly 18 1/4 over all the blade is 2 3/4 X 13 3/4 long.

I am using a chunk of leaf spring from a 2 ton truck

I guess I should have made a preform but forged the point ,forge the width from 3 in. to 2 1/2 and finally finshed forging the distal taper . I forge the tip from the thickest end which was 1/2 in. thick the tang end is 1/4 thick which will be a rat tail tang .

Man that was lots of work to do with a hammer and a wore out arm.

Im working with charcoal and have been heating in sections to normalize trying to over lap each time. After I think have the whole blade normlized I place the blade in the forge and bury it all with charcoal and let it burn out on its own.

Do you think Im getting this thing normalized ?

Another dumb ? will anealling normalize the steel?

Thanks Ron

This is Great Stuff

Ron

Thanks for posting the pic Wayne sent

Ray I love it!

Im with Alan thanks to Bryan for suggesting this forum, and second, thanks to Don for setting it up!

This is going to be Great I love History

Thanks

Ron

So, after heat treating the blade I'm currently working on, I'm at the point now where I have to grind off the scale/decarb layer. I know some folks use anti-scale compounds, and I should probably look into them, but it got me thinking...Could a guy use borax as an anti-scale compound for normalizing/hardening in a coal forge? It seems to me that I could get the blade hot enough to melt the borax without it scaling up really, and then the borax would probably stick well enough up to critical temp.

 

Am I insane, or might this work? Would it screw up hardening? Anybody else ever try it?

 

-d

Guys I found a little sumtin I thought you might like , just another way to skin a cat.

Its form the book

Metal Working - A Book of Tools, Materials, and Processes for the Handyman

by Paul N. Hasluck

Originally Published 1907

Heating Without Scaling

If it is necessary that a pice should be finished and polished before hardening, a method of heating will have to be used that does not scale the surface. The usual way to do this is to enclose the steel in a box or tube packed with animal black, and plugged up in such a way that when all is red-hot together the contents can be shot out into water.

I dont think shoothing a knife blade in water would be a good idea but its the same idea - capping off a pipe and using it in the forge with a chunk of coal or charcoal in it to burn up the oxygen to stop scaling . You will get a tiny bit one end is open & when you take it out but not much at all .

I hate doing all that work getting a blade all cleaned up and get all that decarb you need to sand back off.

It also talks about Anealling in a box or tube full of charcoal powder heating to red and letting cool on it own that I want to try.

Any how

it helped a little with my knife making

Ron

Hey thanks for the pic. and the info. on decarb

Im sorry but Im just dumb ol country boy I got the decarb part but all that other stuff went right by me.

I was just tryin to help Decker with his ?

Ron

Take a look at Deckers ?

Im sure you can help

Thanks

Ron

deker May 15 2006, 01:23 PM Post #1

Group: Members

Posts: 124

Joined: 17-December 05

Member No.: 1,818

So, after heat treating the blade I'm currently working on, I'm at the point now where I have to grind off the scale/decarb layer. I know some folks use anti-scale compounds, and I should probably look into them, but it got me thinking...Could a guy use borax as an anti-scale compound for normalizing/hardening in a coal forge? It seems to me that I could get the blade hot enough to melt the borax without it scaling up really, and then the borax would probably stick well enough up to critical temp.

Am I insane, or might this work? Would it screw up hardening? Anybody else ever try it?

-d

Out Standing

the handle looks fine to me

I love Bowies

Ron

Nice Knife

Just think some blacksmith way back when If he only knew .

Thats Cool

Ron

The way I understand it; When you use an oven atmosphere with no oxygen in it to prevent scale rather than just a coating, you can have a carbon rich atmosphere, to add carbon. A carbon neutral, to keep the chemistry, or a carbon lean atmosphere. One that will suck a little carbon out of the steel, ..... decarb.

That's the way I understand it. I'm sure there are guys here that can explain it much better than I.

 

Daryl.

Don't know the whys or where-fors of this spec. Maybe Dr. Scott can tell you, since he has a lot of experience with this steel.

I can't post our spec out right, but here is some commercial data for 4340. I use either 4340H or 4340 mod, (300m). http://www.suppliersonline.com/research/pr...y/metals/67.asp

I know we consistently get over 300,000 ksi with this spec.

 

EDIT: I do know that this stuff makes martensite very easily. So easy in fact, it's hard to prvent it when you don't want it, normalize, etc. It's basicly air hardening, even though technicly it isn't. I think that's the reason for the looong cool down.

We get 100% martensite in the middle of a 4 inch round. No retained aus. Fun steel. Jerry

Yes that would be nice If some others would tell more about decarb- I like all the info. I can get with Heat Treat.

I have no experence with an Oven must be different than working with coal or charcoal + I have only worked with spring steel - for some reason I thought dekers ? was about working in a coal fire ?

Hey why not put some charcoal in your oven for a carbon rich atmosphere, to add carbon right?

Thanks for the info and welcome more

Ron

Yes, that's what I basicly do also. I still get an ultra thin scale. You can blow it off the blade, and its so thin, that it will float on the air like gold leaf.

 

I need something that will stop decarb also. Will the borax hold up to 30 hours in the oven? Will it prevent decarb as well as scale?

I must of read something wrong or have no idea what decarb is?

I thought decarb scale was what formed on the blade when in heat treat the swrily stuff that had to be removed from the surface of the steel the layer that had the carbon burned out from to much oyxgen in the fire? I guess If a guy planned on removeing a bunch of steel durning final finish it would not matter but I do my blades by hand tools and try to get them close as I can before heat treat .

Can you please explaine to me about Decarb?

Thanks Ron

You can do it with out putting anything on your blade with a pipe and weld on a end and a bit of coal or something to burn up the oyxgen

I tried it and works like a charm

check this out

Hope its OK?

Ron

http://www.knifenetwork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=35099

Bob

Wheres the pics of you cuttin the Cheese?

Ron

Thanks for the specs Lin

Thats is a Great Knife!

Ron

I'd call it a Texas Toothpick, and bend the choil thingy so it would function as a bottle opener! Looks good. I like loop sheaths.

Thanks all

Alan

I think it will stay an Arkansas Toothpick

Made by an Arkansas Hillbilly

Ron

I have a 3 ft. hunk of R.R. Rail Ive had for years laying in my storage. Wondering If it would be fit for knives or make something useful like forging tools ? I had bought it to make an anvil but found one shortly after.

Any Ideas ?

Ron

I made this Bowie while the Fourm was down

Forged 5160 -Edge Quench- Walnut Slabs- Tappered Full Tang- NS Guard & Pins

3/16 thick at spine - 1 1/4 X 10 inch Blade-Almost Flat Ground

Mex Loop Sheath with Copper Tacks

What style do you all think ?

A big mess

Ron

Another Great Knife - Antique Style Bowies are my favorite.

Ron

My regular pipe hawks are about 7 to 9 inches overall length, edge length is usually 2 to 2.5 inches. The eye is about .75" wide inside by 1.25" long at the top, slightly less at the bottom. Originals from the late 1700s-early 1800s are usually a bit smaller in all dimensions.

 

In the event I slit and drift one, I'll make the slit length about 1.5 times the width of the drift front-to-back, if that makes sense. That way the sides can move outwards without stretching much when you drift.

KSB: Great idea! :ylsuper:

good stuff

Venetian style - half penny style S guard

Hm guys Ill think about .

I for sure want some kind of guard.

Yes it was the Barr blade.

Ron

I thought I would show what I have been working on.

Im not sure If you would call it a Bowie Knife?

Im callin it a Bowie knife.

I dont know really what style of Bowie it is ?

I guess Im goin for an ol Barr Killin Bowie .

I tried to copy the handle shape of Liver Eatin Johnson Bowie

except Im using Black Walnut but just doin 1/8 NS pins

I wish I could do the domed pins like James Black.

The blade shape is my copy of one Bob Engnath drawings

10 in. blade.

This is my first try at a False edge , might do a little more file work.

Im kind of stumped on what I will do for the guard?

I may just do a simple 1/8 thick NS Oval.

Any Ideas for a Guard?

Any How

I got to say Bowie 6 times and James Black Twice

I got lot more work to go

Tell me what Yall Think

Ron

The Bowie Knife Unsheathing an American Legend by Norm Flayderman

If you Love Bowie Knives like I do you got to get this book!

Great Photos

Tons of History

Ron