Stacking Blanks on stock by hand

[CAJones]

Am a bit puzzled by the 2/3s as wide stock? Do you mean narrow up the blanks.

What I meant was to use steel stock that is roughly 2/3s as wide as what you have pictured and put 1 row of blanks down it instead of trying to get 2 rows.


John, I totally understand the waste not want not. In fact I put all the cut off pieces in a can for all that canister Damascus I'm going to make someday! :biggrin:

Chris

 

[wall e]

Ok the stock is 1.5 wide and the blanks are between 1 and 1.25 then a single row with out nesting. Got it.

 

[John Wilson]

You can still nest "a little bit" by laying out the knives point-to-point. The tips curve. So by drawing the next knife upside down, the the two tips can go past one another. You may only save a few inches of steel, but over 4 feet those inches add up and you may get one extra knife out of the steel. I guess I'm the worst bandsaw cutter-outer ever, but I still leave 1/4 to 3/8 between pattern outlines so make sure I can make the cut between them. I even lay a ruler past each pattern diagonally to tell myself where to lay the next pattern. If I can lay a ruler between them, I know I can make the cut.

 

[John Wilson]

John, I totally understand the waste not want not. In fact I put all the cut off pieces in a can for all that canister Damascus I'm going to make someday! :biggrin:

Ha! Me too! I have a scrap metal bucket I toss the bigger chunks in. I'll probably never actually use it, I just figure if I ever want tetanus years from now I can reach into the bucket and fish around.

 

[wall e]

Ok Im picking up what your laying down.
This paricular piece is about 2.5ft long and 1.5 wide, so the jigsaw puzzle of blanks is pretty snug in several spots.
I used the cut off wheel on the dremel and split the blank profile line on the two challenge ones.

 

[natenaaron]

why do you have to draw them all on at the same time? Make a pattern. Trace it, cut it, trace it, cut it etc...It takes the same amount of time. Using two patterns, one bigger than the other, as mentioned, ensures the most economical manner of cutting.

My plasma cutter was the best business decision I ever made but it has limits and the heat affected zone is a problem. I would not use it on knife steel because you will lose that area plus add work because you have to grind. Plus the learning curve needed to hand cut that accurately with the speed necessary to keep the heated area to a minimum and still cut through is high. That type of accuracy and speed means computer control which means a sizable expense.

 

[wall e]

I normally just make one blade at a time per request or my own mabbe I should try this style, but I was bored and wanted to try nesting blades to see what head aches I could run into or mabbe not any at all.
I had a major delay in cutting on my entry level saw; I was working on my back porch for a year thusly moisture found its way into the drive wheel bushing and viola rust siezed it up. So 20 min later w new bushing made and a new retaining washer were cutting again. Here is the current scribe splittings. Now off to cut the rest of the drop off them. (Also ran outta coffee)

 

[wall e]

An hr later here is the cut and profiled blanks. Later today I'm drilling the pin holes and giving them a final check and clean any residual mill scale off and send off to ht. Hoping the finger skinners stay flat and true through ht,cryo and temper.

The pinch points have me a lil nervous.