Mustard Scales and my new Kukri!

[crashdive123]

Anything can be done if you put your mind to it.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

Anything can be done if you put your mind to it.

My mind was made up on it! I'll never try and grind .25" aluminum again unless it is a for the boat...A knife just ain't worth it but they are cut.

[Winter]

What are the holes for?

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

What are the holes for?

To lighten up the Kukri...it is 3/16" thick....

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

Fealt good to back at the forge! The first step of Heattreat is complete. Heated to non-magnetic and quenched in used vegatable oil, mineral spirits, and dishsoap. I was trying to disrupt the surface a bit with the mixed quench and got exactly the opposite it is almost blemish free.

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Check out the heat waves across my shirt. The forge got hotter than ever before with dry oak.

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A master griller uses his tongs because he forgot to have the right tool ready...

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[crashdive123]

In case you did burgers again before the heat treat ------ you left your fork next to the forge.

[Winter]

Great stuff Cowboy.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

Great stuff Cowboy.

Thanks Winter I am really pleased with how it is coming along.

[shooter_250]

Nice stuff CS,,,you cutting up the purlings for steel???...LOL

Lee

[crashdive123]

I really like the shape and design of this one. Hurry up and finish so we can drool over it.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

Shooter, I bought 1095 from Mcmastercarr for this one.

Crash, I am working on it! I am in unchartered territory on the handle. I will be tempering tonight. Still need to decide on whether to powdercoat it with black Sandtex.

I know why you like it. I recall a very similar design by you on what I think was your first one. I'll give credit where it is due. I took lessons from your design as well as Pmoore's T-rex, and the Cold Steel Kukri. Thanks also to Pict, the fellow that modified his machete to a scandi grind along the backside, Where has he been?

1095 .187" thick
15.375" overall
6" handle 9.375" blade length
2.687" wide at the belly and 1.5" at the base of the blade, conves grind.
Scandi Grind on the back 2.625" long, the rest of the back is squared.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

Temper pass one is completed and I am debating temper pass two....

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It has a range of Rockwell C from 57 to 62 after the first temper pass. As I understand it if I do another pass I can get it narrowed down to a point or two to a specific hardness. I love the colbalt blue and Deep Straw I obtained so far.

[Winter]

62 seems a bit hard for a chopper.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

62 seems a bit hard for a chopper.

The deep straw color near the holes in the blade is the area it is close to 62 The purples and blues are below 60 Rockwell C.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

http://www.anvilfire.com/FAQ-article...0anvilfire.com

The above link will show hardness by oxidation color during tempering.

[crashdive123]

Maybe I'm looking at the chart wrong, but it looks like temper colors translate to the temperature that it took to achieve that color and not hardness.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

Maybe I'm looking at the chart wrong, but it looks like temper colors translate to the temperature that it took to achieve that color and not hardness.

I was taught in Statics, Strengths, and Materials in college the color translated to reaching desired hardness. Doesn't mean I am not still on a quest to know more. For reference I did not set the oven over 425 to achieve the pictured colors. In theory (mine) the steel wouldn't exceed the temp. setting by the amount your reference to the chart would suggest. I dunno who is right. Let's try and learn something here. The next time I heat treat I'll do some sample we can do destructive testing on. I also have a Rockwell C test "rebound" type gauge. I will try and see if I can get it to measure the hardness. Thing is it is difficult to use an a convex ground surface.

I also think time at temperature is relevant and not shown in the chart. It is usually recommended that 1095 be tempered 1-3 times from 1-2hrs. at 400 F -425 F. Seems too that we are splitting hairs so to speak. One more thing you know I cannot handle the thing 'till we figure this one out.....

[canid]

the oxide color roughly indicates the temperature achieved, and this indirectly translates to the hardness achieved in temper. it is not exact, and varries from one steel to another, one surface finish to another, and even depends on how clean the surface is.

the dependent factors are the steel in question (full hard 1095 has a different maximum hardness than - say - 5160, 1075 or O1, those steels will moreover temper at different rates for a given temperature and duration, and the oxides will form at different points, due to different quantities of alloying elements and impurities), it's hardening condition prior to temper (how completely, deeply and evenly did it harden; as different steels can require different conditions than others to be evenly and completely hardened, and without quantitative measurement of those conditions we have to guess or assume we achieved them) and surface conditions (a matte/satin or even rough surface on the steel will not only oxidize at a different rate, but the exact same oxide colors will look different than a surface which is mirror polished, and surface contaminants such as skin oils, adhesive residues or quenchant residues can also change the color of your oxides for a given temperature).

for these reasons; when using qualitative rules and measures for such a broad range of conditions, we can only know how well it worked either by blind assumption, or by finally measuring the results in a reliable way. the only difference here (between this way our forefathers did things and the way they are done in modern industry with exacting quantitative measurements is the reliability. for somebody using this method, a 9/10 rate of 'close enough' results may be just fine. It certainly has been for me, so long as you remember that knowing your temps and times are correct trumps any unusual oxide colors every time. e.g. it is far more likely that the colors were off for one reason or another than that the temperature and time that you know to have worked for the same stock the last several times magically failed.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

the oxide color roughly indicates the temperature achieved, and this indirectly translates to the hardness achieved in temper. it is not exact, and varries from one steel to another, one surface finish to another, and even depends on how clean the surface is.

the dependent factors are the steel in question (full hard 1095 has a different maximum hardness than - say - 5160, 1075 or O1, those steels will moreover temper at different rates for a given temperature and duration, and the oxides will form at different points, due to different quantities of alloying elements and impurities), it's hardening condition prior to temper (how completely, deeply and evenly did it harden; as different steels can require different conditions than others to be evenly and completely hardened, and without quantitative measurement of those conditions we have to guess or assume we achieved them) and surface conditions (a matte/satin or even rough surface on the steel will not only oxidize at a different rate, but the exact same oxide colors will look different than a surface which is mirror polished, and surface contaminants such as skin oils, adhesive residues or quenchant residues can also change the color of your oxides for a given temperature).

for these reasons; when using qualitative rules and measures for such a broad range of conditions, we can only know how well it worked either by blind assumption, or by finally measuring the results in a reliable way. the only difference here (between this way our forefathers did things and the way they are done in modern industry with exacting quantitative measurements is the reliability. for somebody using this method, a 9/10 rate of 'close enough' results may be just fine. It certainly has been for me, so long as you remember that knowing your temps and times are correct trumps any unusual oxide colors every time. e.g. it is far more likely that the colors were off for one reason or another than that the temperature and time that you know to have worked for the same stock the last several times magically failed.

I agree wholeheartedly, thus my decision to just put it to the test using the knife for it's intended use. I left the scandi grind roughly .045" shy of of being sharp at the edge. I just attempted to dress it with a file and at first it skated then it bit then as I got deeper it skated again. I will take it to hair splitting on the stone and just use it. The Kukri edge is already sharp. I'll wrap the handle in paracord and put it through some paces.

[canid]

if the edge proves not to be durable enough and your blade is pretty thick i would wonder if it hardened deep enough to begin with. I've heard this shouldn't really be a problem with stock in the knife thickness range, but it is still said to need an ample soak time during the hardening heat to get complete/even hardening. sounds like you're probably fine though, if the inner steel where your edge is skated the file. It looks like a fine blade and of course you know your business.