Zeb Camper

Wouldn't you know it? My micrometer was positioned directly under a leak in the roof. I gotta go buy another

Hey man! I'll shoot you a PM after while. Gotta find my micrometer.

Don't you have a good anvil waiting at home? What if she heard that you might be using a rock in favor of her? Would she say "did I disappoint you? Leave a bad taste in your mouth? You act like you never had love. And you want meeee to go withooouuuuut!"?

Obviously not as masterful as Mr. States's sharp remark, but it'll do!

Oh boy!

Thanks! I need to try cutting my O2 back I suppose. Thanks for keeping good record of your process!

I see what you did there! Sorry @Jerrod Miller! I uh,,,, meant that if I even could get bored of such an amazing thing (which I can't) then I may try knapping... You know, hypothetically of course! Not that it could happen...

Very nice! I need to try this again. I never seem to add any carbon to the steel when I do a melt. The pattern looks pretty wild. How many folds?

Well, more boring news about rocks here. I joined a knapping/primitive skills forum trying to pedal the stuff off to them. Apparently this is no good for knapping. You might in fact need to take some nyquil to knap with this stuff. It was interesting to me. They have a whole community with a knowlage base of skill, technique, and the science behind knapping... I might try it if I ever get bored with bladesmithing.

Thanks!

Im sure I'm boring people to death, but I figured I would add today's discovery for the benefit of the next dummy that drags a useless rock out of the woods. Guess what? This red rock is chert. Don't get it twisted, this junk might make you a blade, but your gonna have to knap it. Not enough fire involved in it for my taste though. The fact that I thought it was ore; was it irony, ore is this a bad pun? But on the bright side, I've got plenty more hematite just laying around in the driveway. It ever so slightly pulls a magnet already. I guess I gotta figure out how to roast this stuff. Another thing I'd like to do is find some limonite as I hear it naturally has more phosphorus in it. The two might make for some nice torsion bars.

You can, but it won't turn out as bold as hardened steel. And don't worry about asking too many questions. It's cheaper to ask questions. Etching actually causes a change in topography on the surface of a blade. The acid or salt will corrode the steel with the most carbon, or the lowest resistant alloys more aggressively than the other. So when you knock the oxides off, one is left lower than the other. The deeper the etch; the more contrast you'll get.

@Conner Michaux Ferric is gonna be best. It needs to be diluted with water. 4 parts water to one part ferric. Lots of folks keep it in a big piece of PVC capped on the bottom. Use pipe dope (or whatever that PVC sealant/adhesive stuff is). You can get a cap for the top too. But lemon juice or white vinegar should give you a sneak peek. Doesnt have to be fresh. Just make sure your scale from the quench is cleaned off good. Good luck!

How'd I miss this?.. You're pretty slick you know it? I seriously want that top one!

@Conner Michaux This is looking great! First off, In order to get a handle to fit nice and tight around the base of the blade, you'll need to bevel the tang all the way back. Etching Damascus requires an acid, or corrosive salt (such as ferric chloride). If you're on a budget, you can use warm white vinegar, lemon juice, or coffee. You'll need about a 400 grit polish to start. Degrease the blade with alchohol or acetone and let it dry before dipping it in. Don't get any fingerprints on the blade. Etch for a few minutes or so until you have a good amount of black oxides on the blade. Then, wetsand the blade with the 400 grit paper. Repeat until satisfied.