Randall 7 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 Are all USA nicholson made files and rasps hardnable? I cut a small section off and quenched in water. I proceeded to hit it with the hammer to get it to break, I wanted to see how brittle it becomes. I could not get the piece to break. Link to post Share on other sites
Will Wilcox 263 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 (edited) Perhaps it was only case hardened? Try forging it thin and quenching, then put it in a vise and get a pipe wrench on it. If it's worth your time for blade steel, it should snap with little effort. Edited December 7, 2019 by Will Wilcox Link to post Share on other sites
Randall 7 Posted December 7, 2019 Author Share Posted December 7, 2019 Thanks I will try that in the morning and report back what i find out. Link to post Share on other sites
Alan Longmire 3,386 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 Yes, that should harden well. You have to be fast, though. Less than one second to get it from 1475 degrees to below 900 degrees or it won't fully harden. Link to post Share on other sites
Randall 7 Posted December 7, 2019 Author Share Posted December 7, 2019 It finally snapped, I forged a bit thinner and did a quick quench in water. A little tap with a hammer and it broke right in two. Link to post Share on other sites
Will Wilcox 263 Posted December 7, 2019 Share Posted December 7, 2019 Thick pieces of hardened, untempered steel can be deceptively tough. That's why it's usually recommended to forge unknown steel thin and then quench test. It's much easier to see if it will snap or bend. Glad it worked out for you. Link to post Share on other sites
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