[Jewelry making - Article 00323] - Re: [Orchid] Hardening steel - recycled car-parts

[jesse]

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    this has been suggested before by Jim Binnion and myself: 

    http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0898158966/theganoksinpr-20 

    The US price is even lower now -- $13.57 US 

    buy the book you won't regret it. 

    There are a couple very simple things you can do to determine what
    type of steel you have. A magnet will tell you what type steel it is
    -- If it doesn't attract a magnet it,it is an austenitic steel and
    can be heat annealed but not heat hardened. It can be work hardened
    ( which causes problems in cutting it). Steel that is magnetic may
    be hardenable if it has enough carbon in it. this can be determined
    by looking at the spark pattern when grinding it. The book does show
    spark patterns. Cars are not likely to have much mystery metal in
    them, but modern frame and body steel is not the same as it used to
    be. Lighter, thinner, stronger alloys are being used now. These will
    be very low carbon with the lighter, stronger properties coming from
    the added non carbon metals in the alloy. 

    As far as automotive valves go there are a few problems - Exhaust
    valves may show up as austenitic. Which means they are not easily
    hardened, but some will be magnetic and but not desirable forging
    stock because they are Sodium cooled. The valves are hollow and
    filled with sodium which spontaneously catch Fire with water... The
    larger standard American engines will not normally have sodium
    cooled but aftermarket sodium filled valves are around installed in
    racing engines. I don't know about newer US engines. European
    engines commonly will have sodium cooled exhaust valves.so It is
    better just to avoid exhaust valves for reworking into tools and
    stick with magnetic inlet valves. 

    a few Internet sites on steel identification aRe: 

http://www.alexdenouden.nl/04/vonkset.htm
http://engineeringtoolbox.com/identification-stainless-steel-d_383.html
http://metalwebnews.org/machinist/ch2.html

jesse
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