Old machete blade for knife making?

[Scoobywan]

So after looking at all the nice looking blades that have been made by other forum members I to wanted to try making something that might resemble a knife. So I have an old machete (cheap department store $10 special) laying here, and just wanted to see if I could get some input about using that blade to make a couple smaller knives. I wish I could remember what brand it was so I could look up the details, but I'm sure you've all seen them hanging in the walmart/target/whatever camping department. Basically I just want to know if it would make a decent smaller blade, or if the metal used is not suited for a smaller fixed blade. I know it's not a lot of info to go on and I apologize for that, if nothing else I'll give it a go and let ya know how well it works. :)

[gryffynklm]

It should be fine. If you have trouble cutting the metal, you may have to take down the temper by heating the blade and allowing it to cool at room temp first.

[crashdive123]

It should work fine. Looking forward to your progress.

[panch0]

If you don't have a way of re-heat treating the blade then keep the steel cool by dipping in water every couple of passes on the grinder. Once it is hot enough to be uncomfortable then cool off in the water. Don't leave any part hanging on the grinder especially the tip cause you will burn the tip and it will have a ssoft tip and will roll much easier than the rest of the blade. Have fun and good luck.

[Camp10]

I couldnt find any info on the steel type for a Ozark trail machete (I'm assuming that is what you have). My guess is it is just a plain carbon steel and if that is the case, you should be able to work it and heat treat it. If it is stainless, I dont know if it would be worth doing. A machete is going to be hardened to a lower hardness than a knife because it needs to be tougher. A knife might be in the hardness range of 57-60 Rc but a machete is probably closer to 53-55 and there is a huge difference when it comes to keeping it sharp. If it is a carbon steel, you can reharden it after you have reshaped it and it should make a decent knife.

[gryffynklm]

You can check for stainless by checking if a magnet will attract to it.

I stand Corrected.

[Camp10]

You can check for stainless by checking if a magnet will attract to it.

I'm pretty sure that knife steel..even stainless is magnetic

[gryffynklm]

I learn something different every day. The SS I have tried with a magnet has not attracted.

Camp10 you are correct Knife stainless is usually some what magnetic

Stainless steel will have a varying magnetism depending on the ratios of the components of the alloy.

Ferritic stainless steels are ferromagnetic and have been used as soft magnetic components such as solenoid cores, pole pieces and return paths. Although their magnetic properties are not generally as good as conventional soft magnetic alloys, they are successfully used for magnetic components that must withstand corrosive environments. As such, they offer a cost-effective alternative to plated iron and silicon-iron components. Additionally, the relatively high electrical resistivity of Ferritic stainless steels has resulted in excellent AC performance.

Examples of Ferritic stainless steel are Type 430F Solenoid Quality, Type 430FR Solenoid Quality, and Type 446


All austenitic stainless steels are paramagnetic, non-magnetic, in the fully austenitic condition as occurs in well-annealed alloys. The permeability (magnatism) increases with cold work due to deformation-induced martensite, a ferromagnetic phase. For certain grades such as Types 302 and 304, the increase in magnetic permeability can be appreciable, resulting in these grades being weakly ferromagnetic in the heavily cold-worked state.

Examples of austenitic stainless steels are Type 302, 303, 304, 316 and 316L.



All Martensitic and most precipitation Hardenable stainless steels are ferromagnetic. Due to the stresses induced by the hardening transformation, these grades exhibit permanent magnetic properties if magnetized in the hardened condition. For a given grade, the coercive force, Hc, tends to increase with increasing hardening, rendering these alloys more difficult to demagnetize.

Examples of martensitic stainless steels are Type 410, 416, 420, 440B and 17-4.
Taken from the link below

http://www.mceproducts.com/knowledge-base/article/article-dtl.asp?id=18


Here is a listing of the types of stainless steel used for knives and manufacturers of knives.

154 CM: Carbon 1.05 %; Manganese 0.5%; Chromium 14%. A high carbon alloy, a very hard steel, first used for knifes in 1972. Used for combat knives by companies like Gerber and Benchmade.
420: Carbon 0.15%-0.6%; 1% Manganese; 12-14% Chromium. An inexpensive steel, but hard steel.
420HC: Carbon 0.5-0.7%; Manganese 0.35-0.9%; Chromium 13.5%. A popular, hard steel. Used by companies like Gerber and Buck knives.
440A: Carbon 0.60-0.75%; Manganese 1.0%; Chromium 16.0-18.0%. High carbon, hard steel. Used by SOG for their SEAL 2000.
440B: Carbon 0.75-0.95%; Manganese 1.0%; Chromium 16-18%. Used by Randall Knives.
440C: Carbon 0.95 - 1.20%; Manganese 0.40%; Chromium 17.0%; Vanadium 0.50%; Molybdenum 0.50%. One of the most popular knife steels in the world. Hard, durable, and easy to work with. Used in the SOG Bowie knife.
ATS34: Carbon 1.05%; Manganese 0.4%; Chromium 14.0%. A Japanese version of 154 CM, a hard steel that is used by Spyderco, Buck, and Gerber knives.
AUS-8: Carbon 0.7-0.8%; Manganese 1.0%; Chromium 13.0-14.5%; Nickel 0.5%; Vanadium 0.1-0.25%; Molybdenum 0.1 - 0.3%. A hard steel used by many custom knifemakers and companies like Spyderco, SOG, and Kershaw among others.
CPM-S30V (Also called S30V): Carbon 1.45%; Chromium 14%; Molybdenum 2%; Vanadium 4%. A high wear, durable, hard steel, excellent for knives. Used by Spyderco, Lone Wolf, and Benchmade.
CPM440V: Carbon 2.15%; Manganese 0.4%; Chromium 17%; Vanadium 5.5%; Molybdenum 0.4%. An extremely hard, high carbon steel. Used for Kershaw folding knives, like the Ken Onion designed Boa knives.
D-2: Carbon 1.5%; Molybdenum 1%; Chromium 12%Vanadium 1%. A stain-resistant, but not quite stainless, tool steel, used in knife making by Bob Dozier, Benchmade, and Ka-Bar knives. Has good edge retention, but needs to be cleaned frequently so it does not rust.
Damascus Steel: A legendary steel used by Muslim people against Europeans during the Crusades. It was said to be much stronger, flexible, and sharper than European steel. The process for making it was lost. Many people have experimented with recreating Damascus steel, notably Bill Moran.
M-2: Carbon 0.85%; Tungsten 6.35%; Molybdenum 5.0%; Chromium 4.0%; Vanadium 2%. A good steel used in kitchen knives and folding knives. A high-speed steel, meaning it is resistant to high temperatures and will maintain its edge even when extremely hot.
M-4: Carbon 1.3%; Tungsten 6.35%; Molybdenum 5.0%; Chromium 4.0%; Vanadium 4%. Much like M-2 in its heat resistance, but with a higher carbon that makes it more difficult to sharpen or work. Makes an excellent knife blade.
O-1: Carbon .85-1%; Manganese 1-1.4%; Chromium 0.4-0.6%; Vanadium 0.3%. A very popular, easy to tool, high carbon steel. One of the most popular knife steels for beginning knifesmiths.
Sandvic 12C27: Carbon 0.6%; Manganese 0.35%; Chromium 14.0%. A Swedish steel, very popular because it has few impurities.
Stainless steel: A steel that has a high chromium content to prevent rust. Because knives need high carbon to remain sharp, a stainless steel for knives is just rust resistant, not completely rust proof.
Titanium: A lightweight, hard metal used for knife handles and parts. It does not have good edge retention, so it does not typically make good blades. Because of its resilience against harsh elements, it is used frequently for diving knives.
Z60CDV14: Carbon 0.6-0.65%; Manganese 0.45%; Chromium 14%; Nickel 0.15%; Vanadium 0.15 to 0.2%; Molybdenum 0.55 to 0.6%. A Swedish steel high in carbon that has both good edge retention and is easy to sharpen. Used by Columbia River Knife and Tool.

[Rick]

Walk into Lowes and put a magnet to their "stainless" steel grills. I guarantee it will stick. I've done it just to see what the quality of the SS was.

[klkak]

I've made knives out of some old Ontario machete's. They were 1095 and made very good blades. I did have them re-hardened and re-tempered. Here are a couple of pictures of one of the knives I made when I first started on it. I don't have any completed pic's because I loaned the knife to my trapping partner and he is reluctant to return it. But thats ok, I have his Fox-pro.:innocent:

note: I've modified the design slightly to give it a little longer handle.

[panch0]

Klkak that looks exactly like a knife I am getting heat treated this week. The handle looks short but feel good in the hands.

[klkak]

Klkak that looks exactly like a knife I am getting heat treated this week. The handle looks short but feel good in the hands.

I cut one out this morning and took it in to be heat treated. I'll get it back Monday or Tuesday. I'm going to use ironwood for the handle as I still have a couple of pieces of it here. I'll take a finished picture of this one. Also note, "I will not be loaning this one out"!