Kerosene as flux for hand welds

[springer82]

I've seen that. It is a interesting process.

 

[EdCaffreyMS]

he put the hot billet on a block of wood and started hammering on it. Why wood?????

My guess.....besides trying to make the video look "cool", is skill level. A block of wood forces the blows to be soft, even if the material is struck too hard. Light blows in the beginning "set" the weld(s). Most who have limited skills will hit too hard when they first start out trying to forge weld......which causes the pieces to "slide" over each other, rather then actually weld.

 

[mike miller]

That's funny, Dennis. I watched that video before bedtime last night. One thing that really shocked me was when he put the hot billet on a block of wood and started hammering on it. Why wood?????

I would say to get the scale knocked out of the billet and not allowing it to be hammered into the billet. You see a scale coming out. If you like Shurap look up Frerk Meringa on Utube. I believe that is his name.

 

[mike miller]

Kerosene use on YOutube check out Caleb Royer big brother . He shows using it on some of his video.

 

[Chris623]

My guess.....besides trying to make the video look "cool", is skill level. A block of wood forces the blows to be soft, even if the material is struck too hard. Light blows in the beginning "set" the weld(s). Most who have limited skills will hit too hard when they first start out trying to forge weld......which causes the pieces to "slide" over each other, rather then actually weld.

Thanks, Ed.................I had no idea. I've never done any forge welding..............especially damascus type work, so it was totally baffling to me why he did that.

 

[mike miller]

I went back and watched Kyle Roysters youtube and he was wetting the billet down with kerosene and then coated it with borax.