Homemades........ Rust prevention?

[Krypos]

http://www.pbblaster.com/store/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=1

hmm this is the best i can do i cant figure out how to link pics. Do u code 'em? Any how Krypos when you use a dremal (dumb question) do you quench? When metal is over heated it changes it structure and makes it more succeptable to rust. (Question more for people who didn't know )

ok, first, yes i quench, and often. otherwise that would totally blow my hacksaw picks. i did that once, i was cutting a thin section for a slim hook pick, and i got overzealous and didnt quench for about 3 seconds too long, and my pick was way too brittle and snapped before i finished.

as for linking images, i think technically we arent supposed to do that. though i could be wrong. but i would imagine it would work like when we host our own images. just make sure to right click on the image and hit copy image location.



the code for that being:

Code: Select all

[img]http://www.pbblaster.com/store/images/PBCatalyst.gif[/img]

[hiaxis]

Hey all, I was just reading some comments on quenching, hardness, etc. I'm fairly new to this site and to picking but as an engineer, I can say with certainty that quenching often results in a much more brittle material compared to simply allowing the material cool off slowly. Whether or not hot working and quenching your pick will make it brittle depends on the material itself, the cooling rate, and how hot you actually get it.

A low carbon steel doesn't have the carbon necessary modify its structure to a body centered tetragonal when it changes from a face centered cubic to a body centered cubic when quenched so quenching this material (if it's raised above the transition temperature) will not siginificantly increase the hardness. However, a medium or high carbon steel will harden when quenched if it was heated above the trans. temp.

The cooling rate will also effect the hardness of the material after being heated above the trans. temp. The slower the material is allowed to cool, the more the structure will return to its original structure, thus getting closer to the hardness you started with before heating it up.

To put it simply, quenching freezes the structure and prevents it from returning to its previous state. In the case of most steels, quenching will make your pick more brittle, not less brittle. If you don't heat it above the trans. temp.(around 1500-1600 F for steel) you will not harden the material when quenching it.

When working on picks, I'd be more worried about work hardening (which will make it more brittle) and stress concentrations. Make sure you make the pick as smooth as possible to lessen the likelihood of a crack starting at a tool mark left behind.

As for rust prevention, I'm with TheMikeMan.

I hope that was a clear explanation.

Brian

[iqarus]

see if you can make them out of aluminium. wont rust and flexible !

[machinist]

see if you can make them out of aluminium. wont rust and flexible !

a little too flexible if you ask me.

I deep gun blue ALL my pics and give them a coat with hoppes brand gun oil, it kinda seeps into the blueing. I do this for all my carbon steel tools, only problem is your hands kinda smell like you've been at the target range all day but nothing soap can't fix : )

the short answer is: I highly reccomend bluing.

[Eyes_Only]

My first pick tool was the Dyno Kwik Pick which was made out of aluminum. I don't know if anyone else has tried using aluminum picks but they bend very very easily. I would not recommend making any pick tools out of it.

[bumber]

see if you can make them out of aluminium. wont rust and flexible !

also aluminum corrodes and is just like rust, and like said before it is wiggley

[DarinR]

I do manganese phosphate parkerizing on firearms. This is the dark gray finish on most military firearms. If you are interested, I will bead blast and parkerize them with my next batch. No charge.

PM me if interested.

This offer is open to other members in the US. I am new to this forum and would like to do something to contribute and right now this is best I can do as my picking knowledge is at a relatively basic level. Read that to mean Kwiksets, some Schlage and most Master locks pick pretty easy but anything harder is a challenge.

Thanks,
Darin Reiss
FFL/SOT in KS

[unjust]

no.... alluminium doesn't corrode under normal conditions.... its surface will oxidize giving you a harder skin, but if you're corroding al, you've got some serious issues....

[dmux]

there are paste'ss that you can buy for bluing

gunsmiths use it a lot
http://www.birchwoodcasey.com/sport/blu ... 1&subcat=5

[hiaxis]

unjust is right. Aluminum actually oxidizes *very* quickly, but that's what makes is resist corrosion. The oxidized layer, aka passive layer, that forms protects the material underneath it from corrosion similar to the way stainless steel works. Pretty cool stuff actually.....

[mercurial]

I would like to try galvanising some of my steel picks, that should completly stop rust (except from extreme salts i.e Ocean water). The only trouble with this is I dont know if everyone can get Zinc plates (Does ANYONE know where to get them offline?) Other than the zinc you also need a plating solution so anyone interested should do some googlin.

For the purposes of galvanising picks, you would only need very small zinc plates.

I'd suggest getting a few standard(ie not alkaline, and not rechargable) 1.5V batteries, and opening them up.

There is usually an outer metal casing, with the labelling on it, this can be discarded. The two end-caps that are the battery's terminals usually come away at this point too.

Underneath this, there is a soft metal shell of zinc of high enough purity to electroplate. The black stuff inside it is manganese oxide, infused with electrolyte - very messy stuff, ged rid of it, and wash all traces off the zinc.

At the centre is a carbon rod - you may find this is useful as the other electrode when plating. Again, it should be washed of all traces of manganese oxide.

Making your own plating solution should also be quite straightforward, just research what the commercial solutions contain. A good start here is finding the MSDS (Medical Safety Data Sheet) - It will contain a breakdown of the product in question. Just google for the name of the product and "MSDS".

That said, I am unsure if galvanising would be an effective means for protecting lockpicks.

...Mark

[Krypos]

woah. dudes, im just gonna go buy some bluing agent stuff. that seems easiest and easy to attain.

i live in a small cramped apartment with my mom, lil bro and lil sis. i have no intention of opening up batteries and galvanizing steel metro-medichlorian anything.

but thanks for the info i guess.

[mercurial]

woah. dudes, im just gonna go buy some bluing agent stuff. that seems easiest and easy to attain.

i live in a small cramped apartment with my mom, lil bro and lil sis. i have no intention of opening up batteries and galvanizing steel metro-medichlorian anything.

but thanks for the info i guess.

Let me get this...Grinding hacksaw blades around mom, lil bro and lil sis is absolutely fine, but opening up a battery is taboo? *confused*

FYI somebody did ask above how to get zinc for plating their picks, without shopping online.

I agree gunbluing is simple and straightforward. You may be surprised to find that plating metals can also be very simple - and at almost zero cost, with common household items, if you can think laterally and improvise a little.

...Mark

*mutters something about safety of disassembling tape measures*

[Krypos]

haha.......yeah, i can see your point, but i dremel on my back deck, and with the exception of my brick headed lil brother, the other two are usually protected by 6 inches of wall at least.

and i must have missed the zinc plating question, my apologies.

now, whats this youre muttering about disassembling tape measures? i seem to recall one particular incident i had with a tape measure one late night.....