Stainless Steel Foil

[opaul]

I'm still in the throes of contemplating an oven and the peripherals required to go with it. Is the stainless steel foil required or is a nice to have to prevent scale build up? I haven't done much research but I did a few and it appears it is somewhat but may well worth the cost in the long run? Also looking at quench plates, etc.
Thanks!

 

[Ty Adams]

The stainless foil is a must for air hardening steel. The long soak times and high temperatures that are required lead to pitting and thick decarb.

 

[opaul]

The stainless foil is a must for air hardening steel. The long soak times and high temperatures that are required lead to pitting and thick decarb.

Thanks Ty! Looks like I will be in the market for some of that soon!

 

[Smallshop]

I tried A2 once without it....just in case everyone was being wimpy....LOL!!! That scale is harder than flint and took forever to remove. The blade seem fine after the fortune in belts was expended....

I don't use the wood scrap in the foil and get nice results.

 

[opaul]

I tried A2 once without it....just in case everyone was being wimpy....LOL!!! That scale is harder than flint and took forever to remove. The blade seem fine after the fortune in belts was expended....

I don't use the wood scrap in the foil and get nice results.

What is the 'wood scrap'?

 

[JawJacker]

The wood or as I use piece of tissue inside the foil pack will burn up and consume any oxygen in the pack and prevent any decarb. Actually I've done it with and without didn't notice difference to the eye. What you will notice is if you get a pin hole in the foil pack the blade will get nasty from the oxygen.

If you keep making blades you wont regret the purchase of an oven, I think I spent 150.00 on a roll of stainless foil. I swallowed the fact I wont pay bills with knives its a hobby for me, even then an oven made sense in my case. Cry once and get it done.

 

[BossDog]

Disclaimer: I sell ovens so take this for what it's worth.

I will try to talk you out of one and then tell you why you want to get one.

(assuming we are talking about stainless steel)

An oven doesn't save you any money until you heat treat several hundred knife blanks. Maybe 300 to 400 depending on where you send them and how many at a time you send. You can get commercial heat treating down to a $1.50 to $2 per blade if you send in enough of them at one time. If you send in one or two at a time, expect $20 per blade with shipping.

Using your own oven, if you follow published heat treat data you can expect to get fairly close to the heat treat schedule hardness. If you vary from that, you need a hardness tester which is going to cost nearly as much as the HT oven. Tool wrap adds around a buck to a buck fifty per blade to heat treat, electricity costs maybe 50cents. Add in a dewar for liquid nitrogen for cryo treatment - used for $350 on eBay and quench plates (1" thick aluminum) and you are into it for $1500 or so and probably a bit more. That is a lot of send out blades.

What your own oven does do for you is double or triple your production. By being able to heat treat today and finish a knife (knives) tomorrow instead of waiting two to three weeks sending them out, you get to significantly increase your output. You also get to experiment with different hardness levels on different steels. 59HRC hardness is not the best for every steel out there. If you want to significantly increase your knife production and gain a much better understanding of heat treating and what it can do performance wise for your knives, get an oven. If you are looking hard at costs maybe keep sending them out for heat treatment.

If you heat treat several hundred blades a year, you probably send them out in batches but still have an oven for small batches or one off's because sometimes time is money.

If you primarily forge carbon steels and think: "I forge so I don't need an oven" Maybe ask around the full time forging guys about their oven. They will all likely have an oven as an extension of their forging heat treat treat process to put out the best heat treated knife they can. I might bet there are more ovens in forging shops than stock removal shops.

 

[opaul]

Great feedback............thank you!!

 

[Smallshop]

...Now if your shop is your "happy place" and you love experimenting to make the best blade you can....what are you waiting for??!!

There is something magical listening to that furnace follow the program you just wrote...lol.


Very well said Tracy. Thank you.

 

[opaul]

...Now if your shop is your "happy place" and you love experimenting to make the best blade you can....what are you waiting for??!!

There is something magical listening to that furnace follow the program you just wrote...lol.


Very well said Tracy. Thank you.

It is my happy place. I guess with any tool or tools you acquire, you do it based on need or in my case 'wants'. My eight year old daughter once told me after I said I needed something ... "Dad is that a want or a need". Obviously her mother taught her well . With that said, I want a furnace. There, its out in the open!

 

[bladegrinder]

It is my happy place. I guess with any tool or tools you acquire, you do it based on need or in my case 'wants'. My eight year old daughter once told me after I said I needed something ... "Dad is that a want or a need". Obviously her mother taught her well . With that said, I want a furnace. There, its out in the open!

I say if you feel you can afford it, buy it if you want it, no matter what it is.
You only live once, nobody gets out alive. and I feel safe saying this......your not going to look at that oven five years from now and think, man, why oh why did I buy that damn thing....that's assuming you don't get a lemon, but I haven't heard of many people having any problems with their ovens that weren't self induced.

 

[opaul]

I say if you feel you can afford it, buy it if you want it, no matter what it is.
You only live once, nobody gets out alive. and I feel safe saying this......your not going to look at that oven five years from now and think, man, why oh why did I buy that damn thing....that's assuming you don't get a lemon, but I haven't heard of many people having any problems with their ovens that weren't self induced.

I agree bladegrinder. I went through several table saws before I got the one I really wanted to start with......Sears, Grizzly, Delta and finally a Powermatic with a beismyer fence.
I'd like to start making some knives with air hardening steel so it's the next path in knife making, IMHO.

 

[Smallshop]

The last machine shop I worked at the guys laughed because I bought so many tools. I had two rollaways there...I told them that when I started my shop I did not expect to buy set up tools or inspection tools....more laughing(cause no one really goes out on their own...right?)....then one day I pushed those tool boxes out of the shop and never did really have to buy more tools. These old friends of mine are mighty reliable....