i will be welding some damascus steel soon. i have standard welding tools and was wondering if there is any thing i shoud know. i cant afford to practice on this stuff.

Chad,

You need a forge either gas or coal and a big hammer and something to use for an anvil. Get on the internet there is alot of info on damascus steel.
If you can't afford to practice and make mistakes you will be disapointed because there is a learning curve that we all have to go through. You will have billets that won't weld perfectly that you will throw away. Damascus isn't a big secret but it does take determination to find success.

Good luck

Larry

Larry,
I've been interested in damascus for years,particularly for blades.I was wondering if the stuff you make is of different composition than that and why?
Does it matter if you use a coal forge or a gas forge for best results in welding your billets? and what about heat treatring damascus blades?

Finally,something to talk about!!!!!!!!!!!!

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I'm only as good as you think I am.

I've made damascus blades for years and have always wanted to put some in a set of spurs. I just can't make myself commit that sweat equity on something I know I'd have to take to the roping pen! Larry and I have talked about this a couple times, and I admire his work tremendously. One day Larry...

Hey Chip, I tried welding in coal with little success, but that was early on. Back to that learning curve Larry spoke of and my coal quality was not that good. I would love to try it again. Personally, I prefer propane, good clean welds. I use 1084/15N20 almost exclusively for my blades and would not hesitate using it for a set of spurs. Larry, I'm curious too about your heat treat for your spurs... HT and draw down to a spring temper? I would think the HT would make the carbon mix a little more corrosion resistant. Good thread here guys.

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Jason Howell
ABS Journeyman Smith
http://www.howellbladesmith.com

sorry for the confusion,if i could type i would have explained in more detail.i have some small sheets of damascus that i can cut out and piece together to make a set of spurs however it will require a 1 inch weld on the inside of the heel band. i have a wire welder or stick and my imagination has been running wild about things that could go wrong. any help on the welding will be apprecated i only have one shot at this.
thanks chad

Id say skip the welding, and rivet them togather!....

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Billy & Amber Dodson.
BAD Western Wurks.
Geronimo,Tx.

Pretty good advice from Webad.

Stewart

Silverchip,

The art of forging damascus steel blades isn't rocket science but it does require some effort. I'm a very slow typer and it would take me for ever to try and explain it here. There is alot of info on the net, do a search. There are some bladesmiths who have web sites that are full of info. My friend Don Fogg has a good one dfoggknives.com


Next summer Josh Smith, who is a Mastersmith, will be having a hammer in at his shop in Frenchtown, MT just outside of Missoula. He talked me into being one of the demonstrators along with Tim Hancock and Harvey Dean. We are all mastersmiths and we will give demos on Damascus steel,forging and heat treating, and different construction methods.We will also be available to try and answer any questions. It should be a fun time for everyone. He may have some other demonstrators I'm not aware of. If anyone is interested give him a call at 406-626-5775 or email josh@joshsmithknives.com for more info.

I use a different mix for my spurs than my knives. My spurs tend to have more mild steel and nickel than my blades. My blades are about 85%+ or - carbon steels[ I use at least 2 different kinds] and about 20% mild and nickel steels. I use a propain forge and you get the best results because of the control you have over the heat and atmosphere inside the forge. I used a coal forge for over 20 years and would lose about 40% of my damascus, now the few problems I do run into aren't as major when it comes to blades. The spurs are a different deal because of the bending and forging required. The darn stuff will tear or split along a weld if you aren't real carefull.

Jason, I don't heat treat my spurs. I make mostly Cal. or Spanish Colonial style spurs and the heel bands tend to be heavy enough that it takes quite a bit of effort to bend then and if you heat treat the spurs it makes it hard for someone to make any adjustments to them.To day there are so many different types of boots a person can get over the life of the spur that I think being able to make a little adjustment is important. Thats just my opinion.

Larry

thanks guys, the hampster is once again exercizing