Proper way to anneal...

http://ajh-knives.com/metals.html

This line up gives ht info for most popular blade steels. You didn't say what type you're annealing.

Rudy

I've been working with O1, W1, A2 and old truck springs. I am in an experimentation/learning/practicing phase. I pound and form experiment with heat treating and tempering then break it. I'll try drawing pieces down to re-work then harden again to see if I get the same results. When I get ready to build a nice knife I want to know I can finish it.
 
Be very carfull with the old truck springs. They do have stress cracks in them that do not show up until you go to polish them.
 
Annealing A2, which is air hardening, is going to be different from annealing O-1 and W1 which are oil harding and water hardening respectively. Don't get too literal about the water hardening, in thin sections even W1 tends to do better in oil. So there's no "one size fits all" formula for any heat treatment of steel. You have to work with the specific requirements for each steel alloy; some are rather easy and others are rather demanding.

Doug Lester
 
I've been working with O1, W1, A2 and old truck springs. I am in an experimentation/learning/practicing phase. I pound and form experiment with heat treating and tempering then break it. I'll try drawing pieces down to re-work then harden again to see if I get the same results. When I get ready to build a nice knife I want to know I can finish it.


The O1, W2, and A2 are easy to help with, they are actual steel designations, but aside from the good points from Archer Moon about you problems with the truck springs, it is problematic for us helping since it is not a steel designation and narrows it down little more than "steel".

I have detailed information on a few steels, one of which is O-1, at my website here:
http://www.cashenblades.com/info/steel/o1.html

You are wise and doing well for yourself to ask if there are different methods for different steels, most new makers just go with the popular notion that their is a one size fits all recipe. Of course since every steel has a different chemistry one size cannot fit all, and the concept that there are simple one size fits all recipes is one of the greatest pitfalls in modern knifemaking. Because of this you actually get very well known and respected makers saying steel XXX doesn't perform any differently than 1084, well actually no it won't if you heat treat every steel the same goofy way, they will then all display the same mediocre results. :31:
 
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