Newbie asks about bedframe angle iron. Since it is so differnent from 'normal' steel, would it be a good choice for making sharp tools, like chisel, gouges and knives? It eats up drill bits, and has a different color of spark from 'normal' steel. Is it like auto leaf springs ?
No - this is 2006, even better steel is cheap and commonplace. If you want to make this sort of tooling, then try throwing away some of those old rusted out files from the last yard sale and using them.
If you want to make some sorts of tool, like a wood-splitting froe, then bed angle is pretty good stuff. So is leafspring.
Read the rec.knives FAQ for a very good guide to available recycleable steels.
Coil springs and some torsion bars are a _lot_ different to 5160, enough different to make some of them near unworkable.
In a scrapyard I'd concentrate on looking for van leafsprings and halfshafts - forget the coilsprings, unless you're looking to make punches for use on hot steel.
So what you are saying is "the steel from the different parts feel different under the hammer"?
If so, you are running into some of those "other" alloys the book on "vehicle suspension springs" mentioned. There are hundreds of them and a dozen "common steels" was one point of the book. :)
I didn't know that the alloys tended to be separated out into different jobs, the book didn't go into that, just the alloying and the reasons for the alloying. 5160 tended to be used for extra thick springs was mentioned tho.
My spark testing didn't show me enough I guess :/... leaf springs, coil springs, torsion bars and anti-sway bars all looked to be the same general stuff.
Oh heck, it all those Rolls Royce parts you're working with, that's the problem. ;)
GA, what's it say about 9260 (hi-Si) in the Heat Treater's Guide?
I can't remember why (but it struck me as a steel a blacksmith would want to avoid).
Joe stopped posting them, but I think Cliff will be using the "new" one on his website in the near future. By new, I mean the one that Joe posted a draft of a few years ago for comment... in fact I think you were one of the commentors :)
For now, this is an not-yet-complete listing Cliff is working on:
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