Thread: Cutting high carbon steel

Hi Ern,

Cutting it off with an angle grinder using a 1mm wheel should be ok, provided that you clamp some heatsinking close to the cut. I've cut lots of 1095 spring steel that way without problems.

If you have some flat copper or aluminium bar and set up for the cut in your vise with the
heatsink bar clamped either side of the chisel you should be ok. I would cut a little shy of your final line and grind the last bit anyway just to be sure.

Regards
Ray

Thanks Ray.

If the cutoff affects the temper you could always re-temper the blade later. It is quite easy.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Good point.

Prefer not to remove the handle though.

Ern, I doubt you would have the slightest trouble if you follow Ray's instructions. I recently cut a chisel using just that method. I clamped it between two chunks of 3/16" mild steel. The offcut got a little hot, & showed blueing at the edge of the cut, but the side that was in the 'heat sink' kept its cool, and certainly seems ok after regrinding & sharpening. The trick is to make sure you have a pretty fresh wheel & make a quick, clean cut.

Ever since Ray put me onto these 1mm wheels, I've been using them like they are going out of style - nothing metal is safe round here any more...

Cheers,

Yes they're handy devices. I've done long cuts with them to make turning scrapers out of 3/8" thick HSS blanks.

Originally Posted by rsser

It can be slowly jointed on a grinder to get rid of this section

Ciao,
I would prefer this method. Immerging the chisel in the water frequently I think it is safer.

Giuliano

Yeah, trouble is a coarse grind wheel is $30; using my #80 takes too long with too many redressings that fill the air with stuff you don't want to breathe.

And there's a view that water dipping leads to microfractures.

Originally Posted by rsser

Yeah, trouble is a coarse grind wheel is $30; using my #80 takes too long with too many redressings that fill the air with stuff you don't want to breathe.

And there's a view that water dipping leads to microfractures.

I think $30 are well invested for. The coarse wheel will be useful in many other situations.

The thin kerf cutting wheels generates very little heat and what heat is generated is restricted very locally so the detempering occurs on a very local scale.

Microcracking is more of a risk when the steel gets very hot so the more often you stop and cool the lower the risk

Pity you weren't closer and you could use my water cooled metal cutting saw.

Although I think it's unnecessary, what about putting it in a tall container and covering the blade in water, put it in the freezer to freeze the water, Remove the chisel and attached ice block and then run some water over the end to expose the tip clamping the handle in a vice and then using a cut of wheel?

There's an idea.

ac445ab, I'd have to remove a wheel to install the coarse job, then replace the old one and retrue it.

I've done a pile of shaping or reshaping of HCS and HSS blades and tools and the bench grinder is the slowest option in my experience.

It's not something I've tried while cutting but when gas welding thin sheet I have often used soggy mashed newspaper to minimise distortion.
Cheers,
Jim

K, this is the washup by way of feedback.

I know I have two alloy rectangular bars in the shed for a heat sink but could I find them?

No opportunity to go out and get some more.

So I pulled out the new Ryobi mini belt and disc sander that'd been acquired some time ago and had at it.

Surprisingly for such a cheap machine the belt has lasted well and as has been noted by Derek and others, it grinds relatively cool.

So the jointing is done and now the back will go onto a #120 Shapton for initial lapping.

Thanks all for your advice.