Heating the metal

by **Ice** » 9 Apr 2004 18:51

Technik mentioned about heating, or not heating the metal when making tools (in this case, it was tension wrenches viewtopic.php?t=2498 )... does anybody know the real advantages/disadvantages in doing this?

I'm assuming it has something to do with lessening the integrity of the metal itself, but then again I'm only guessing. I'm curious if there's more to this than meets the eye?

by **PYRO1234321** » 9 Apr 2004 18:59

really depends on the metal and the degree of heating and cooling. Best advice IMHO is to try and bend cold first, if the material breaks or weakens to much, then try various heating/cooling combinations.

examples:
CS hacksaw blades; must be heated and cooled to bend and often become brittle if cooled to fast
wiperblades/s.c. bristols; can be bent cold to a certain degree 'flatwise', but require light heat to bend 'against the width' without buckling. once heated to red hot, wiperblades are useless.

these are my experiences

simple advice: experiment with your material of choice

by **Kung** » 10 Apr 2004 2:25

well tempering the metal (heating and cooling) makes carbon move the the surface and when you heat to much there will be not as much carbon in the middle to hold it together but there is alot on top that makes it brittle. if you heat just enough to bend and then cool after a few seconds of cooling on its own is te best way to make tension tools IMO.

by **Ice** » 10 Apr 2004 4:08

I learned something new in chemistry(?) today...

I'm guessing there is no way to revive the carbon content in the metal except by completely melting it down? How do you heat the metal? ...oven? ...lighter? ...butane lighter/torch?

by **plot** » 10 Apr 2004 5:29

Ice wrote:I learned something new in chemistry(?) today... I'm guessing there is no way to revive the carbon content in the metal except by completely melting it down? How do you heat the metal? ...oven? ...lighter? ...butane lighter/torch?

butane lighter/torch works best. oven... probably not good at all.

a lighter would do, but would take awhile and would be a PITA.

by **Ice** » 10 Apr 2004 12:44

I got one of those for melting "frozen locks" that I need access to outdoors in the winter (yes, for legit reasons). They're works of art these days, with all sorts of curves, shapes and colours, and it even lights up!

What's PITA? (...you're making me hungry!)

by **CitySpider** » 10 Apr 2004 12:52

Go to google, and do a search for "acronym pita" without the quotes.

by **Ice** » 10 Apr 2004 16:21

...oh! :p Usually people just spell it out.

by **SwitchBladeComb** » 10 Apr 2004 23:53

The advantages to melting are the thing just wont break if you bend and twist it about into whatever shape youre trying to get it. Its good for complex bending of metal into shapes you want. If you do choose to heat it, heat it to the point where you can bend it, but smoothly and with slight resistance. You'll probably want some needle nose pliars or something (dont wanna burn ure fingers

). The danger of heating is basically just overheating. When you do that, it "burns" the knife. Burning a knife ruins the temper of the steel. It will either become too brittle or too bendy or what have you.

Cold bending is ok for bending up to around 90 degrees. More than that and the metal will get weak and snap. A vice and pliars are usually helpful. Maybe a small hammer to help. Cold bending will be sufficient for most tension wrench type bending youll have to do.

If you do choose to heat it, butane lighters are perfect for the job. Just make sure its a torch lighter (one that makes a blue flame with that rapid decompression sound). They burn hot and heat fast.

by **Ice** » 15 Apr 2004 0:47

Yup, those butane torch lighters are amazing... I use it to melt frozen locks outside in the winter.

Getting a little off-topic here - how do the other butane torch lighters stack up, the ones with a green and red flame? The one I have is blue... I don't need the fancy ones, but just curious?

by **PYRO1234321** » 15 Apr 2004 1:16

The fame colour is due to different metal/chemical catalysts in the wire or mesh that heats to keep the flame going. most butane lighters actually use a platinum coated wire to sustain combustion much the same way as a catalytic converter on a car uses platinum to catalize unburnt hydrocarbons. some copper chemicals will give a green flame, but really its the same temp

by **plot** » 15 Apr 2004 2:29

i have a butane lighter that gives off a green flame... has a... certain leaf on the side of it... i love that thing.

by **technik** » 15 Apr 2004 2:30

I use my stove, its a to keep the heat in one place, but it does the job (eventually)

by **quicklocks** » 15 Apr 2004 3:21

when i bend street cleaner bristles i use the gas cooker in my kitchen. most times i heat the metal till it is red hot bend it. then heat it again, then drop it into ice cold water. i have been led to beleve than this case hardens the metal. but it seems there are people here who know more about this than me. am i doing right or wrong?? :?:

by **Ice** » 15 Apr 2004 9:49

How does the stove work? Do you use an element-stove or a halogen, or...?

Doesn't submerging hot metal in water shock it and make it weaker?

Heating the metal

Heating the metal

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