[TheForge] Titanium

[The Millers]

As I suspected!!

Thanks!!!
Ray
Cincinnati

On Sunday, March 6, 2005, at 12:36  AM, Andrew Vida wrote:

>
>
> debmiller at fuse.net wrote:
>> Hey Guys,
>> I must admit to forgetting whether or not I asked this question.
>> I have a welding class with a student interested in forging a blade 
>> out of titanium.
>
> 	Just this side of useless as a cutting utensil.
>> I mentioned that on this lost some people have recommended against 
>> titanium several times. I cannot remember why.
>
> 	Far too soft. 6-4 alloy used to be the hardest of them (may no longer 
> be the case... been a few years since I dealt with it).
>
> 	It makes a miserable knife compared to a good steel.
>> If titanium is a potential blade material does anyone have a chunk 
>> roughly 2" x 8" x 1 1/2" or so that you would sell him?
>
> 	You also have to be a bit careful with forging the alloys.  First you 
> have the issues of safety WRT fumes of vanadium, which may not kill 
> you, but they won't help you much either.  Hot forging 6-4 is, as I 
> recall, best accomplished with a hydraulic press.  This can all be 
> looked up in a Mark's Handbook.  These alloys are not easy to forge 
> the way CP is. In grinding, they glaze wheels heavily.  And in the end 
> you may have a really nice looking, but functionally useless knife.  
> As I recall, SEAL/UDT has a Ti alloy knife that they use for certain 
> types of operation.  I have heard that their usefulness is 
> exceptionally limited.
> _______________________________________________
> Manage membership or unsubscribe at:
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
> theforge mail list group photo site is
> http://www.photoaccess.com
> Login:  blacksmithblacksmith at hotmail.com
> password:  anvil
> ___________
>
>