Old guy at the shop told me to stop quenching my hot steel

Been messing around with leaf hooks after work for a few months. This 70 year old dude named Hank who's been coming to my bar for years saw me post a pic and said I'm ruining the metal by dunking it in water after shaping. Told me to just let it air cool on the anvil. Tried it last week on a batch of 5 hooks and they're way tougher now, no cracks at all. Anyone else get told some old school trick that actually made a difference?

2 comments

2 Comments

julia921d ago

That Hank sounds like he knows his stuff. Did he say anything about the difference between water and oil for quenching, or did he just say to skip it entirely? I've been hearing mixed things about post-forge cooling from the older guys at my local group, some swear by oil for certain steels but I've never tried it myself.

margaretk891d ago

Old Hank actually said if you're brave enough to use water on a blade you forged yourself, you better have your fire extinguisher and a fresh pair of pants handy. He mentioned oil is slower and less likely to crack the steel, but warned that some of those older guys at the local groups have been using the same can of motor oil since the Carter administration. Personally I stick with water for simple stuff and let the pros argue about the rest of it.